Free Republic

In the wake of Katrina, Sen. John McCain says the budget deficit is so dire that the Medicare prescription drug benefit should be scrapped. Gloria Borger reports.

President Bush says he will submit a budget that cuts the deficit in half and mantains strict spending discipline. "We will provide every tool and resource for our military, we will protect the homeland," Bush said. He said he would "maintain strict discipline in spending tax dollars." In the 17th news conference of his presidency, Bush was pushing his second-term agenda. As for Iraq, Bush accused insurgents there of trying to "disrupt the democratic process" but he cautioned that next month's elections were just the first step of a long process in creating a stable, democratic country. "The elections in...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration is expected to scrap the costly signature design for the Bay Bridge's new eastern span and will instead recommend building a simple skyway, sources close to the negotiations said Thursday. The shift away from a single-tower suspension span to a viaduct, similar in concept to the San Mateo and Dumbarton bridges, is expected to be announced today at a press conference in San Francisco, sources in state and local government said on condition they not be identified. The decision to go with a skyway brings the state all the way back to the original design for...

BUSH TO SEEK BIG BUDGET INCREASE FOR NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS... Laura Bush plans to announce the request -- for the largest increase in two decades -- on Thursday... Developing...

66 days until the USOC elects its 2012 candidate. The USOC narrowed the list to New York and San Francisco today in Chicago.