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WASHINGTON, July 27, 2006 – President Bush thanked Romanian President Traian Basescu today for his country's strong support for the young democracies in Iraq and Afghanistan. Speaking at a photo opportunity in the Oval Office between working sessions, the two leaders told reporters they share goals for the region and will continue their commitment to peace there. "Romania will continue to remain an ally of the United States in supporting the democracy in Iraq and Afghanistan," Basescu said. Romania is a "stalwart ally" in the terror war, with just under 700 troops in Iraq and about 800 in Afghanistan,...

The book on young voters has always been that they vote with their hearts, not their heads. For years, that meant politicians wooing the young focused on social issues. But these days, it seems another book is on young people's minds - their pocketbook. Coupled with the war in Iraq, concerns over college tuition, Social Security and good-paying jobs seem to dominate talk among young voters.

WASHINGTON - House debate on a bill to protect the Pledge of Allegiance from legal challenges because of the "under God" phrase erupted in heated rhetoric Wednesday with lawmakers from both parties using religious references to support their side. "We are making an all-out assault on the Constitution of the United States which, thank God, will fail," said Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi in opposition to the bill barring most federal courts from ruling on the pledge. The pledge protection act, expected to pass over mainly Democratic opposition, is part of the House GOP's "American values agenda" that House Speaker Dennis...

Campaign analysts say the Republican Party's chances of defeating Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington have improved significantly as the Democrat has been forced to fend off rivals opposed to the war in Iraq. Polls show Republican business executive Mike McGavick has moved within striking distance of Miss Cantwell, who this month persuaded one of her Democratic primary challengers to join her campaign. "Two things are going on here," said Mr. McGavick. "One, we're getting better known and people know what my message is and that's building support as we go along. On the other side of the equation, Cantwell continues...

In politics, we like to say that the only poll that counts is the one taken on Election Day. Based on their recent successes, military recruiters may want to chime in that the only poll on Iraq that counts is the one taken every month when their recruitment results are totaled. If that’s the case, support for the campaign in Iraq is strong. Last week the Defense Department announced that the four major branches — Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines — had met their recruiting goals for June. Annual goals are within sight, well before the fiscal year ends...

House Republicans To Vote On Amendment Banning Gay Marriage Washington D.C. (AHN) - House Republicans are going ahead to vote on a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. The vote is scheduled for Tuesday as part of a week in which House GOP leaders plan to focus on what they call their "American values agenda." In one of his weekly radio addresses, President Bush said changing the Constitution is necessary because "activist judges and some local officials have made an aggressive attempt to redefine marriage in recent years. Last month, the Senate was short of the 11 of the 60...

WASHINGTON -- Almost 60 percent of likely voters surveyed say it's important for a president to believe in God and be deeply religious while also having the backing of most Americans on how he is managing the economy and foreign policy. A new O'Leary Report/Zogby International Values Poll (as of January 2004) that looked at the political and ideological divisions in the nation showed significant support for personal religious involvement by the country's top leader. Fifty-nine percent of those polled said having a president who is religious is more important to them than having one who is not religious, while...

Now finally the GOP is starting to see that the Democrats aren't in as strong a position for November as the myth that's been perpetuated he past months. I never have thought they had a chance and argued that since I first joined here months ago. The idea defies logic and the reality of the nations top issues. Well it's about time the GOP is starting to see this and act on it. Well past time IMO. I've never felt that the GOP was going to lose the House or Senate. I argued here months ago when I first came...

ATLANTA - With less than two weeks to go before the July 18 primary, a judge Friday issued a restraining order blocking Georgia's voter ID law, saying that requiring photos as proof of identity is an unconstitutional burden. Superior Court Judge Melvin Westmoreland said in a sharply worded written ruling that the Legislature doesn't have the authority to enforce the law and an amendment to the state Constitution would be required instead. The law, he said, "unduly burdens the fundamental right to vote rather than regulate it." The law requires that every voter who casts a ballot in person provide...

Lawmakers say constituents wary of deficit, help for rich WASHINGTON -- Support for tax cuts -- a signature campaign issue for congressional Republicans -- is waning on Capitol Hill, with the GOP-led Congress reaching its Independence Day recess with no tax-trimming victories to tout in home districts. Senate majority leader Bill Frist last week was forced to withdraw a measure to cut the estate tax, which foes derisively call the ``death tax," because there was not enough support for it. Income tax cuts and credits -- including an expansion of the very popular child tax credit -- are still...

On the last day of the Supreme Court’s term, Tom Goldstein, the prominent D.C. appellate lawyer who served as second chair representing Al Gore in Bush v. Gore, participated in a panel hosted by the liberal American Constitution Society at the National Press Club. In the middle of the symposium, Goldstein received word concerning the result of one of the final cases of the term, and raised his hands as if to signal a touchdown. When the moderator asked whom the “touchdown” was for, Goldstein declared: “The Good Guys.” The case was Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, and the victorious party was...

Dueling immigration hearings Wednesday in San Diego will present opposite portrayals of illegal border-crossers: Congressional testimony will center on terrorists and criminals, while immigrant testimonials will beg compassion for illegal immigrants. Border-area law enforcement officials are likely to testify in the congressional hearing Wednesday that terrorists, drug cartels and gangsters are crossing the porous southern border in increasing numbers to harm Americans. Most witnesses have given similar statements to Congress before. A later counter-hearing by human-rights activists at a San Diego public park will offer testimonials about how immigration enforcement policy is costing the lives of people who are determined...

PROVO — Former congressional hopeful John Jacob pushed to make illegal immigration the key issue of last week's Republican primary in the 3rd Congressional District, but exit poll results show the issue polarized voters in favor of his opponent, Rep. Chris Cannon. Rep. Chris Cannon, here speaking last Tuesday awaiting election results, won 55.8 percent of the vote. "Really what you see here is there's a very conservative contingent on issues like immigration, but there just aren't enough of them to elect a very conservative candidate," said Quin Monson, assistant director for the BYU Center for the Study of Elections...

Republicans are once again making the fight against terrorism a campaign cornerstone. So far, Democrats have not been as engaging. President Bush says Democrats want to "wave the white flag of surrender" in Iraq. Vice President Dick Cheney accuses the opposition party's leaders of "defeatism" in the global war on terrorism. And House Republican leader John A. Boehner of Ohio charges Democrats who applauded last week's Supreme Court ruling on detainees with advocating "special privileges for terrorists." Ever since the Sept. 11 attacks, Republicans have made an uncompromising stance against terrorism a cornerstone of their campaigns. It helped the GOP...

WASHINGTON - House Republicans intend to hold votes this summer and fall touching on abortion, guns, religion and other priority issues for social conservatives, part of an attempt to improve the party's prospects in the midterm elections. The "American Values Agenda" also includes a proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage — which already has failed in the Senate — a prohibition on human cloning and possibly votes on several popular tax cuts. "Radical courts have attempted to gut our religious freedom and redefine the value system on which America was built. We hope to restore some of those basic...

There are two ways to ask questions about “the most important issue or problem.” The more common technique asks about the most important issue or problem “facing the nation today” (or state or community). The second, less-used approach is to ask about the issue or problem that “your own family worries most about.” Two very different lists of issues or problems result.The first question identifies issues that are officially “most important.” These are the issues politicians and the media talk about, “hot” issues like Iraq, immigration and global warming. The second question uncovers issues real people and families actually worry...

Just a few weeks ago, some Republicans were openly fretting about the war in Iraq and its effect on their re-election prospects, with particularly vulnerable lawmakers worried that its growing unpopularity was becoming a drag on their campaigns. But there was little sign of such nervousness on Wednesday as Republican after Republican took to the Senate floor to offer an unambiguous embrace of the Iraq war and to portray Democrats as advocates of an overly hasty withdrawal that would have grave consequences for the security of the United States. Like their counterparts in the House last week, they accused Democrats...

Eran Sternberg, director of Arutz Sheva's televised programming, was forcibly detained and questioned by General Security Services (GSS) on Tuesday. They warned him that he "had best be careful." The GSS (Israel's domestic intelligence agency) claimed that Sternberg engaged in violent incitement against officers of the law. Sternberg, who was the former spokesman for the Gaza Coast Regional Council before the uprooting of the Jewish communities of Gaza, vehemently denies the allegations. Sternberg, 31 and a father of four, currently lives in Yad Binyamin, between Beit Shemesh and Ashdod, together with his expelled neighbors from the former northern Gush Katif...

MEXICO CITY - With Mexico's presidential election two weeks away, the drug wars are a central issue in the race, and the main candidates are all trying to look tough on the issue, while splitting over whether U.S.-style solutions are needed. The candidate who speaks most closely to American concerns is conservative Felipe Calderon. He advocates extraditing more drug lords to the United States, and replacing Mexico's secretive court system with open, U.S.-style trials. Roberto Madrazo of the former ruling party claims the toughest law-and-order platform: One of his campaign ads depicts a criminal wetting his pants out of fear...

DOVER, N.H. --Calling the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks a greater shock to the American psyche than Pearl Harbor, U.S. Sen. Joseph Biden said Saturday that Democrats must demonstrate they can provide for national security to win back the presidency. The Delaware Democrat spoke to just over 100 people gathered at an event organized by Strafford County Democrats. "I'm running for president -- flat out," he said, adding his party should learn to be more blunt. "The next Democrat, whether it's me or Sen. Clinton or John Kerry, whomever -- the Democratic nominee -- they'd better be able to ante up...