AP - Republicans are counting on a glitch-free convention to help lift the party's sagging morale and boost John McCain's presidential prospects when they assemble in this picturesque city on the Mississippi River in six weeks.

AP - Iraq welcomes Obama with common goal: hope of US troops pullout by 2010 ... McCain ad blames Obama for high gas prices, cites opposition to drilling ... GOP counting on convention planning, venue to lift McCain's prospects in November ... Obama cuts back on spending in June as he builds up cash reserves ... League of Conservation Voters latest environmental group to endorse Obama

AFP - Republican White House hopeful John McCain is campaigning this week in states crucial to victory in the November election while the media spotlight shines on Democratic rival Barack Obama's trip abroad.

AP - Republicans are counting on a glitch-free convention to help lift the party's sagging morale and boost John McCain's presidential prospects when they assemble in this picturesque city on the Mississippi River in six weeks.

AP - President Bush, in the second half of a Southwestern fundraising trip Friday, backed the candidacy of Republican Pete Olson, who is challenging incumbent Rep. Nick Lampson in Texas' 22nd congressional district.

AFP - Republican White House hopeful John McCain on Friday predicted a surge of militant attacks in Iraq around the time of the US election in November.

AP - Former Texas Sen. Phil Gramm resigned Friday from his role as GOP presidential candidate John McCain's campaign co-chairman, hoping to quiet the uproar that followed his comments that the United States had become a "nation of whiners" whose constant complaints about the U.S. economy show they are in a "mental recession."

CQPolitics.com - Republican presidential candidate John McCain and the Republican Party are knocking on the door of history when it comes to joint fundraising committees.

AP - Seeking to blunt GOP efforts to permit oil exploration off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, House Democrats Thursday pressed legislation they say would spur drilling on already available lands in Alaska, the West and the western Gulf of Mexico.

AP - McCain tells NAACP he backs vouchers for private schools ... Obama warns against 'fighting the last war' instead of adapting ... Obama predicts huge increase in black voters, opening up usually Republican states ... AP Interview: Ex-Clinton aide has 'complicated emotions' over move to Obama campaign ... Federal judge declines Republican National Convention protesters bid for looser restrictions