Democrats and Republicans are using the ethics turmoil surrounding House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (search) to wage a rhetorical duel accusing each other of skirting tough debates on Social Security, gas prices and judges.
Republicans lunged first on Wednesday, accusing Democrats of exploiting questions about who paid for two of DeLay's trips abroad.
Democrats parried by describing DeLay as the face of a Republican majority controlled by radical, right-wing extremists, unfairly wielding power by changing House ethics rules and threatening to abolish Senate filibusters — a hallowed tradition that allows senators to stall legislation with unlimited talk.
DeLay is under attack, but did he do anything illegal? We'll get a fair and balanced debate from House Majority Whip Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and House Minority Whip Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md.
Plus, President Bush wants John Bolton (search) to be his man at the United Nations, but will he win Senate approval? And the rhetoric heats up over the federal bench — is a meltdown in the Senate inevitable? We'll be joined by Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
And, we'll get powerful political punditry from Brit Hume, FOX News managing editor, and our panel of FOX News contributors: Mara Liasson and Juan Williams of National Public Radio and Bill Kristol of The Weekly Standard.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox