"This month, the General Accounting Office (GAO) - the investigative and auditing arm of Congress - issued a report that contains some startling revelations," notes John Dean. "Though they are couched in very polite language, they are bombshells nonetheless.

Alastair Campbell, the top spin doctor for British Prime Minister Tony Blair, has announced his resignation amid continuing controversy over his role in building the case for war with Iraq. Nicknamed England's "real deputy prime minister," Campbell said his family had paid a heavy price for the "real and intense" pressures of his job.

"For most Americans, August is a time for summer vacation. For members of Congress, their aides and some lobbyists, it's a time for privately sponsored junkets," the Washington Post's Juliet Eilperin writes.