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Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut says the Democratic Party's 2004 platform hinges on national security -- from candidate Sen. John Kerry's military service to Iraq. DeLauro, who chaired the platform drafting committee, says 50 percent of the document focuses on national security issues. Hear NPR's Robert Siegel and DeLauro.

In a speech to the United Nations Tuesday, President Bush defended his decision to launch the war in Iraq, and asked for help with reconstruction there. Sen. John Kerry says the president has snubbed the U.N. too many times and lacks the international credibility needed to rally other nations to the cause. NPR's Scott Horsley reports.

Campaigning in Michigan, President Bush says John Kerry's health care plan would create a massive, expensive bureaucracy. In Washington, Kerry accuses Bush of voicing support for the assault weapons ban but doing nothing to renew it. Hear NPR's Don Gonyea.

President Bush and Sen. John Kerry hit the campaign trail after the first presidential debate of the 2004 campaign, seeking momentum in attracting voters. Kerry spoke in Florida, while President Bush visited Pennsylvania and New Hampshire. Hear NPR's Scott Horsley and NPR's Don Gonyea.

Three years after American-led forces in Afghanistan overthrew the Taliban, newly elected President Hamid Karzai takes the oath of office. In a short speech, Karzai said Afghanistan has left its dark past but the fight against terrorism is not over. Hear NPR's Renee Montagne and Washington Post reporter John Lancaster.

NPR's senior news analyst says that even if prospective United Nations ambassador John Bolton survives the nomination battle and is confirmed, it may be difficult for him to work with U.N. delegates who are aware of his lukewarm support in his own country.

On the eve of the Democratic National Convention in Boston, party officials and delegates prepare for the process that will see Sen. John Kerry named as the party's candidate for the presidency. Anti-war protesters also began the demonstrations Sunday. Hear NPR's Linda Wertheimer, NPR's David Welna and NPR's Brian Naylor.

NPR's Robert Siegel talks with John Green, political scientist and director of the Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron, about "527" groups. They've been a powerful and wealthy force in the presidential campaign so far, despite the fact that the soft money they thrive on was to be outlawed by the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform in 2002.

The New York Stock Exchange's new CEO proposes changes to the exchange's traditional open-outcry auction process. John Thain says the exchange needs to adopt a more automated system of trading, but auctioneers who work the trading floor see a threat to their livelihoods. NPR's Jim Zarroli reports.

Sen. John Kerry heads to hotly contested Florida Friday, still questioning why nearly 400 tons of explosives are missing from a storage facility in Iraq. President Bush, traveling in the Midwest, argued Thursday that the facts on the disappearance are not yet known. Hear NPR's Scott Horsley and NPR's Don Gonyea.

The Minus 5 is the newest album by singer-songwriter Scott McCaughey. The musical polymath from Seattle is best known for playing with Young Fresh Fellows and R.E.M. The new record features contributions from Pete Buck, Jeff Tweedy, John Wesley Harding and other contributors.

NPR's Michele Norris talks with John McCrea, lead singer and songwriter of the band CAKE, whose newest album is Pressure Chief. Mr. McCrea explains that his songwriting is often inspired by the frustrations and sadness of romances gone wrong; fortunately, these stories are vivid and occasionally humorous.

Get Lifted is the first solo album by R&B singer and piano player John Legend, who made his name playing with star producer Kanye West. Rock critic Ken Tucker has a review.

Pointing to rising casualties and daily attacks in Iraq, congressional Democrats accuse the Bush administration of failing to deploy enough U.S. troops or adequately plan for reconstruction efforts. Republican Sen. John McCain (AZ) joins the calls for more "straight talk" from the White House on the challenges ahead. Hear NPR's David Welna.

Now that U.S. forces have engaged the Iraqi Republican Guard south of Baghdad, American artillery will play an increasingly important role. The big 155 mm howitzers line up several miles behind the front to support the forward infantry. For the gun crews, it's often a lonely, thankless job, but they draw satisfaction from their gun's reputation as the "king of battle". NPR's John Burnett reports from central Iraq.

All Things Considered guest host John Ydstie talks to NPR's Anne Garrels about the situation inside Baghdad, where electricity and phone service are cut off. Garrels reports that her movements are very limited because of a curfew, but she can hear explosions, shelling and missiles in the western part of the city, closest to Baghdad Airport.

A new survey says most Americans think high-income people don't pay their fair share of taxes. Yet most Americans also want the government to dump a tax paid almost entirely by the wealthy: the estate tax. These findings are in a poll by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Kennedy School of Government. NPR's John Ydstie reports.

NPR's Robert Siegel explores the much-ballyhooed decision to include hundreds of reporters with troops in Iraq. In Pentagon terms these reporters were "embedded" with the U.S. forces. We hear the thoughts of Deputy Defense Secretary Brian Whitman, Washington Post reporter Rick Atkinson, Harvard scholar Marvin Kalb, NPR's John Burnett and writer Eric Alterman.

The Bush administration's recent request for $87 billion to fund postwar efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan has pushed the cost of intervention in Iraq far above early White House estimates. Analysts say the White House failed to plan for costs associated with looting and sabotage and overestimated Iraq's oil revenue potential. Hear NPR's John Ydstie.

John Biewen of American RadioWorks explores how one predominantly black neighborhood in Durham, North Carolina, tries to cope with a high incarceration rate…and with the steady flow of returning ex-inmates.