Edwards Releases Brief Statement
John Edwards released this statement in reaction to the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales:

"Better late than never."

Maliki Blasts Hillary Clinton And Carl Levin
Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said at a news conference, "There are American officials who consider Iraq as if it were one of their villages, for example Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin. They should come to their senses." Levin and Clinton have both called for a vote of no confidence against the prime minister, while President Bush is publicly standing by him.

Thompson Still Has Red Pickup Truck — But Isn't Using It
It turns out that the red pickup truck bought by Fred Thompson as a prop for his 1994 Senate campaign is still in his possession, currently kept at his mother's house. Thompson, however, has resisted efforts to get him back in the truck, which he used to affect a folksy image — but didn't even drive himself.

Presidential Candidates Funnel PAC Money To Iowa Lawmakers
In order to get on the good side of Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina elected officials and other partisans, presidential candidates are donating thousands of dollars to the state parties and to individual officials. The biggest donations have been to state parties — the Democratic Party in Iowa received more than $500,000 in the first half of the year from the presidential candidates, while the Iowa GOP took in $200,000 from the Republican presidential field.

Warner Not Ruling Out Voting For Dem Withdrawal Bill
The President may be in danger of losing another key GOP Senator's Iraq support: John Warner (R-VA). "I'm going to have to evaluate it," Warner said of Democratic legislation mandating a withdrawal. "I don't say that as a threat, but I say that is an option we all have to consider." Warner had indicated previously that his patience with the President was wearing thin, but he has yet to sign on to a withdrawal plan and even said the decision should be left with the president.

McConnell Teases At New Direction In Iraq
Mitch McConnell said on Fox News Sunday that there's a "good chance" of American going in a different direction in Iraq after the White House/Petraeus/Crocker report this September. While he insisted that this would not mean "an arbitrary surrender date," he also said, "But I think it’s entirely possible that the president will lay out a strategy that takes us into a different place, which hopefully, at the end of the day, ends up with some American troops forward deployed in the Middle East at the end of this draw down that many of us are anticipating over a period of time."

Dodd Local Office Burglarized
Chris Dodd's office in Hartford, Connecticut, was burglarized over the weekend. Police have not yet said what evidence what left at the scene, and Dodd's staff has no further comment during the police investigation.