Odds and Ends

Is it Friday again yet? No? Oh, darn. Here's some news...

As another story of broken levees this week in the Midwest floods brings further destruction, you would think we would finally have that conversation about our national priorities and protecting our faltering infrastructure. But we won't.

The devastation brought the Obama campaign to Illinois this past weekend to pitch in.

Later this summer, the Obama campaign may be doing more extensive traveling: "Barack Obama may depart this summer from his road-warrior tour of election-battleground states to take a trip around the world, one intended to shore up his credentials on foreign policy."

He's also confirmed that trips to Afghanistan and Iraq will happen before the election.

Meanwhile, in Iraq: "The Bush administration's Iraq policy suffered two major setbacks Friday when Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki publicly rejected key U.S. terms for an ongoing military presence and anti-American Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called for a new militia offensive against U.S. forces." Aka, 'progress'.

Sen. McCain has found the long-term solution to our energy woes... off-shore drilling.

And Honda, meanwhile, begins commercial production on a hydrogen fuel-cell powered car.

Hey, look at you Congress, doing stuff! "Lawmakers voted Thursday to subpoena nine companies responsible for analyzing the most dangerous food entering the country as part of an investigation that gained more urgency with an outbreak of salmonella from tomatoes."

In court news, a federal judge rules in Bush's favor on the missing White House emails issue.

And finally, the Supreme Court "made it easier Monday for some foreigners who overstay their visas to seek to remain in the United States legally."