Defense

Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) said he was "surprised" by John McCain's opposition to Webb's G.I. Bill during an appearance on The Daily Show Monday night, attacking McCain for approving funds for the war but not expanding troop benefits.

"You know, my thoughts about John were, he is fine voting for 600 billion dollars to send these people off. The least we can do is give them at a chance at a first class future," Webb said.

"Not only that, the tax payers of America paid for every penny of John McCain's education and they paid for every penny of my education. We both went to the Naval Academy. And the least we can do is to give these people a first class shot at the future."

Webb also told host John Stewart he didn't want the G.I. Bill to be "a political issue."

Watch the full interview.

If Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) ends up as the Republican vice presidential nominee this year, people wondering how it happened will look back at his speech at Commentary's annual dinner on Sunday.

Lieberman's speech is being lauded by conservative pundits who are putting him forth as a potential running mate as John McCain. The speech featured attacks on Barack Obama for being too willing to meet with rogue nations' leaders and on Democrats for being too beholden to its left wing on foreign policy. Lieberman kept up the criticism in an op-ed Wednesday in the Wall Street Journal.

Read the whole speech here and read key snippets after the jump.

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John McCain today said he would withdraw most U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of his first term as president.

Speaking in Columbus, Ohio, McCain laid out an agenda for accomplishments by the end of his first term. Also among them were: the Taliban's resurgence reduced with Pakistan's help; discontinuation of nuclear programs in Russia, China, and North Korea;

The Hill's Mike Soraghan reports:

House Defense Appropriations Chairman John Murtha (D-Pa.) found himself a little off message Tuesday when he was mobbed by reporters looking for details of the wartime supplemental spending bill.

He apparently forgot that he

The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) tomorrow will launch a tour through California, Nevada, and Colorado in opposition of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy for gay and lesbian servicemembers. The tour will start in San Diego, then will proceed to Las Vegas, Denver, and Palm Springs.

""Don

MoveOn.org is calling on its members in the Washington D.C. area to protest the cost of the Iraq war near Senate office buildings on Thursday. It's part of the Iraq/Recession campaign that MoveOn and other liberal groups have started to try to put pressure on lawmakers to start withdrawing troops soon.

MoveOn and its partners plan to unveil polling on Thursday that supports its claim that war spending has hurt the economy. But others, including the former chairman of the Economic Council of Advisers under President Bill Clinton, have been more skeptical of the war's economic impact.

Here's a snippet of MoveOn's invite:

Dear MoveOn Member,

On Thursday, we're making major news at events in Washington and around the country. We're unveiling a new poll showing that local voters want to stop wasting billions in Iraq, and want to help the economy by investing those resources here at home.

In Washington, we can make an even bigger splash if there's a crowd at the press conference

The House Oversight Committee announced today it will hold a hearing April 22 to "examine the broad trends, incentives, and challenges present in the Defense Department