President Obama welcomed Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari to the White House this week, but Karzai’s comments may overshadow any good will engendered at the meet and greet. After U.S. warplanes attacked two villages in the past week, allegedly killing 147 civilians, Karzai told CNN, “We demand an end to these operations…and end to the air strikes.” He continued: “We cannot justify in any manner, for whatever number of Taliban or for whatever number of significantly important terrorists, the accidental or otherwise loss of civilians.” Lately violence in the region has been at its highest level since late 2001. President Obama is expected to double the troop numbers in Afghanistan by the end of the year.

What started as a small brush fire has exploded in Southern California, forcing at least 30,000 people to flee as the out-of-control blaze advances on Santa Barbara and two other communities. About 75 homes have been lost since the fire spread into the enclaves of multi-million dollar mansions. Another 3,500 homes stand in the path of the fire, but luckily there are no civilian casualties. "Literally, last night, all hell broke loose," city Fire Chief Andrew DiMizio said. "We saw the fire spread laterally across the top of the city and the fire front extend to almost 5 miles now." This is the fourth fire in two years to plague the affluent Santa Barbara area.

Just in time to celebrate his 100th day in office, Michael Steele has made another instantly regrettable statement. He isn’t exactly known for his restraint but still managed to raise eyebrows on Friday for saying that Obama, in regards to a new justice on the Supreme Court, should “empathize right on your behind.” The Republican National Committee Chairman disagrees with Obama’s view that Justice David Souter’s replacement should bring “empathy and understanding” along with legal knowledge to the Court. “Crazy nonsense empathetic! I’ll give you empathy. Empathize right on your behind. Craziness!” Steele said on the Morning in America radio show. He added that Obama should be searching for a judge who knows the Constitution and respects the rule of law. At least Steele has back-up this time: Senator Orrin Hatch called empathy “a buzzword for judicial activists.”

President Obama will arrive in Egypt on June 4th in order to give a speech on U.S. relations with the Muslim world. He pledged during the campaign to deliver a speech from a Muslim capital during his first few months in office, but the details of the event have been held up by diplomatic and security needs. The last American politician to speak publicly in Egypt was Condoleezza Rice in 2005, who elicited scorn for criticizing Egyptian and other Middle Eastern governments' crackdowns on democracy. While Obama is likely to have learned from Rice's mistake, he did include more room in his budget than the Bush administration Egyptian pro-democracy groups that are not approved by the government.

The former police officer turned alleged wife-killer doesn’t seem too worried about his charges: Drew Peterson joked with the media about his jail jumpsuit on his first day in court. Reporters asked how he was doing, and he responded, “Three squares a day and a spiffy outfit, and I got the bling,” while holding up his handcuffs. The man being held on a $20 million bail added, “Can't complain." Peterson, who is the prime suspect in the disappearance of his fourth wife, was brought in Thursday on charges of murdering his third wife, Kathleen Savio. During his first court appearance on Friday the judge delayed Peterson’s arraignment to May 18 because his lawyers were not present.

The fallout has arrived over the bizarre Air Force One flyover that terrified thousands of people in New York City. White House Military Office director Louis Caldera, who approved the photography stunt that involved three planes flying low over the Statue of Liberty, has submitted his resignation over the incident. President Obama was apparently livid over the event, which was eerily reminiscent of September 11, and his deputy chief of staff has been reviewing the event this week.

You might want to take this in with a grain of salt. Tabloids are buzzing with reports that 48-year-old Sean Penn may have left his long-time wife Robin Wright Penn to be in the arms of actress Natalie Portman. Penn filed for separation from his 43-year-old wife a few weeks after Star magazine reported Portman and Penn were seen kissing after a dinner at the Sunset Tower Hotel bar. "She stimulates him in ways no other person has, mentally or professionally," a source said. "There's a lot more there with Natalie than any of the other girls Sean's been with." Girl, indeed. For those keeping count, the Garden State actress is 27.

Did the handshake mean nothing? Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez recently seized the assets of additional oil contracts—both foreign and domestic—in an effort to fill the government’s mounting deficit as oil revenues decline. Chavez said the Venezuelan people “will never again be anyone’s slave,” at a ceremony celebrating the seizures on Friday. The country relies on oil for about 93 percent of its export earnings, and is deep in debt to many of the oil contractors since last year. Chavez said he is expropriating 39 oil terminals and about 300 boats used in western Venezuela, but he may widen the scope of the takeovers.

A Bush-era regulation that limits protection of polar bears from global warming remains unchallenged by the White House. Though Congress gave Interior Secretary Ken Salazar the authority to change the rule, he's expected to announce on Friday that it stands. The law says no action outside the Arctic can be considered a threat to the animal, even though it is endangered due to the melting of Arctic sea ice, widely believed to be caused by global warming. Environmentalists hoped they could use the Endangered Species Act to require country-wide stricter emissions controls.

Actress Mia Farrow is ending her 12-day fast protesting the humanitarian crisis in Darfur and is leaving billionaire Richard Branson to carry on the cause. Farrow’s doctor said she must stop the liquid fast for health reasons. “I am fortunate. The women, children, and men I am fasting for do not have this option,” 64-year-old Farrow told Entertainment Tonight. Branson, the mogul behind the Virgin brand, said he visited Darfur over a year ago and was “horrified” by the conditions there. He plans to fast three days for the cause.

After years of being closed to visitors, the Statue of Liberty's top observation deck located in the crown will open on July 4. The crown has been closed since the September 11 attacks because authorities said the narrow stairway exit didn't permit for emergency evacuations. The lower observation deck and pedestal reopened in 2004. Only 30 visitors will be allowed in per hour, and will undergo strict security screening before being allowed up.

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin will not be rubbing elbows with President Obama at the White House Press Correspondents Dinner this weekend as originally planned. She declared a state of emergency because of flooding in Eagle, Alaska. “It’s basically wiped out a town,” said her spokesman. Poor excuse! Another persona non grata who is surprisingly grata and will still attend is Alberto Gonzales. The Washington Post reports, “You might think Gonzo would be a little bashful about showing up at a place that will be jam-packed full of the new guard in the Obama administration and the very Democrats in Congress who drove him from office. But no, he'll be there all right this Saturday night. Gonzales is a confirmed guest of the Houston Chronicle, his old hometown paper.”

Talk about irony: The U.S. is shoveling billions into General Motors to revive the nation's economy, but the company wants to move many of its jobs overseas in order to cut labor costs. GM wants to double the number of cars they build in Mexico, China, and South Korea—leaving Obama's auto task force in an awkward position: they can either force GM to keep jobs at home, even though it would financially strain the already-troubled company, or let GM outsource and face political fury. "If GM is going to do more of its production overseas, then why exactly are we saving GM?" said Robert Reich, the former labor secretary.

When a Wesleyan student was fatally shot while working the register at a campus book store on Wednesday, the campus went into lockdown. Little did they know, they had every reason to: her killer, a 29-year-old man named Stephen P. Morgan who had harrassed her since they met at a NYU summer course two years ago, had plans to launch a killing spree on campus. Morgan shot Johanna Justin-Jinich seven times and walked away. After shedding his disguise he hung around the crime scene—one officer even asked him for his contact info as a potential witness, but he declined and was let go. He turned himself in to police last night.

A new government report showing fewer job losses than forecasted signaled to some that the worst of the recession could be over. President Obama voiced caution, though, when speaking to reporters at the White House today, saying that the rate of joblessness is "still a sobering toll." The report showed that the jobless rate rose to 8.9 percent in April, but the pace of layoffs slowed to 539,000 in April from well over 600,000 the previous month. Obama said, "If we want to come out of this recession better than before, we have to make sure we have a work force that's trained better," before outlining his plans to help jobless people return to college without losing their unemployment benefits.

A new Gallup poll further confirms a rightward leaning trend among people in their late 30s and early 40s known as Gen X. Generation X, who political scientists Ruy Teixeira and John Judis called "a bulwark of the Republican vote," boasts the largest amount of identified Republicans than any other demographic. The percentage of Americans who identify with the GOP dips among people in their early 20s—also known as millenials—and baby boomers in their late 40s and 50s. Democrats shouldn't get overconfident, though: while these two groups have the biggest share of identified Dems, the younger set also lays claim to the most Independents.

The Fox network's snub of President Obama's 100-day press conference was portrayed as an affront to the administration, but other networks hope that Fox has paved the way for them to do the same in the future. The four biggest networks lost about $30 million in cumulative ad revenue by Obama's three prime time news conferences. "We will continue to make our decisions on White House requests on a case-by-case basis, but the Fox decision gives us cover to reject a request," said an executive who would not be named out of fear of the Obama administration's possible retribution. Since Ronald Reagan—who held more prime time pressers than any president before him—presidents have made a point of holding conferences in the daytime so as not to disrupt networks' revenue streams.

When Sheryl Crow dumped Lance Armstrong in 2005 because he didn't want more children, she probably didn't envision him getting someone else pregnant only four years later. As Armstrong reveals in his new biography, Lance, Crow "wanted marriage, she wanted children; and not that I didn't want that, but I didn't want that at that time because I had just gotten out of a marriage, I'd just had kids... Yet we're up against her biological clock—that pressure is what cracked it." Two years after their split, Crow adopted a baby on her own. Armstrong went on to date Kate Hudson and Ashley Olson, among others, before settling down with Anna Hansen, who will have his fourth child next month.

Another sign of President Obama shifting priorities from Iraq to Afghanistan: “Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is expected to bolster the U.S. military leadership in Afghanistan by appointing a three-star general to Kabul, according to senior defense officials,” reports The Wall Street Journal. The exact role of Lt. General David M. Rodriguez is still under discussion, and his appointment hasn’t been officially announced. “The move underscores growing concern in the military over the course of the conflict and marks the first time since the seven-year war began that the U.S. will have two senior commanders there.” The United States, meanwhile, acknowledged that civilians had died in U.S. airstrikes in Afghanistan, but also said the Taliban’s count of 147 deaths is “extremely over-exaggerated.”

Has Nancy Pelosi been caught lying? The Speaker of the House denied last month that she knew about waterboarding, but ABC News’ Rick Klein reports that “House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was briefed on the use of ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ on terrorist suspect Abu Zubaydah in September 2002, according to a report prepared by the Director of National Intelligence’s office.” In other (not so new) news, Dick Cheney knew about torture all along and is proud of it: In an interview with a radio host, he said Obama and Democrats were ending interrogation policies “to appeal to the far-left in their party.” He went on to offer some advice that, for comedy’s sake, we hope the GOP follows: "I think it would be a mistake for us to moderate. This is about fundamental beliefs and values and ideas. … You know, when you add all those things up the idea that we ought to moderate basically means we ought to fundamentally change our philosophy. I for one am not prepared to do that, and I think most us aren't."

Jacob Zuma is taking all three of his wives to his inauguration as South Africa’s president this Saturday, sparking speculation as to which of his wives will take on the role of first lady. The 67-year-old has been married five times and has 19 children. He grew up a Zulu in rural South Africa, where polygamy is common, though he will become South Africa’s first polygamous president. Political experts say the role of first lady isn’t defined in South Africa as it is in the U.S., and that Zuma will probably rotate his wives through official occasions, bring them all along, or even have one of his daughters take on the role.

They didn't teach this at finishing school: Thomas Patrick Gilbert Cholmondeley, scion of one of Kenya’s most influential white families, has been convicted of murdering a Kenyan poacher trespassing on his land. The high-profile story captured the racially divided nation's attention, since Cholmondeley was acquitted before of killing a black Kenyan—and many argue his wealth and race were his saving graces. Cholmondeley faces life in prison for manslaughter, and has already spent close to three years behind bars in one of Kenya’s toughest prisons. The convicted claimed he had been trying to shoot the poacher’s dogs, and accidentally shot the victim instead.

The GOP’s effort to rebrand itself through a series of town hall meetings led by the newly-formed National Council for a New America—starting last night with a pizza party-slash-press conference in Virginia—is drawing fire from social conservatives who think the group is avoiding hot-button issues like abortion, gay marriage, and immigration. Led by Minority Whip Eric Cantor, Mitt Romney, and Jeb Bush, the group is already raising rancor in the Republican ranks. "The moderates have been saying the same thing all these years, and now they're just seeing a renewed opportunity to push their ideas," Congressman Steve King said. Politico reports that the New America council invited some, but not all, Republicans to join. Uninvited presidential candidate-turned-Fox News personality Mike Huckabee said the rebranding effort marked a "sad day" for the Republican party.

The $17 billion in program cuts that President Obama recommended in his federal budget is, in the grand scheme of things, pretty small, but some Democrats are raising hell about it anyway, as congressmen scramble to protect their favorite government program. Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) refused to let any agricultural cuts pass, and Rep. Maurice Hinchy (D-NY) is forcing Obama to accept a helicopter the president doesn’t want because it supports 800 jobs in his district. The cuts would affect only one-half of one percent of next year’s budget.

After the stress tests, the banks' shorftfall of $75 billion was better than expected, but “Under regulators’ worst-case assumptions, the 19 banks might suffer $600 billion in losses through 2010, on top of the hundreds of billions that have already vaporized in this financial crisis," writes The New York Times. "About 9 percent of all loans might sour—a figure that is even higher than it was during the Great Depression. One in five credit card loans could go unpaid, more than double the typical loss rate. Approximately one in 10 mortgages could sour.” The results likely mean that “bailouts for the banks are over,” but a recovery is contingent on the banks resuming lending and, accordingto Reuters, the results “are unlikely to spur a major pick-up in lending.” Demand remains low, and “While banks may be less hesitant to lend to each other if they feel their rivals' books have been credibly vetted, that does not translate into confidence to make new loans to small businesses and consumers.”

Looks like New York Federal Reserve Chairman won’t be following in Tim Geithner’s footsteps. New York Fed Chairman Stephen Friedman–who assumed more power after Geithner went to D.C.–will be stepping down. Friedman fell under fire this week for his purchase of shares from his old employer Goldman Sachs. Turns out he’s an active alum: Friedman agreed to sit on Goldman’s board following its transition to a bank holding company this fall, but now acknowledges that the position conflicts with his one at the Fed. “Today, although I have been in compliance with the rules, my public service-motivated continuation on the Reserve Bank Board is being mischaracterized as improper,” he said in a letter. “The Federal Reserve System has important work to do and does not need this distraction.”

Another sign that President Obama is an elitist Muslim terrorist: The President ordered a cheeseburger with Dijon mustard. "What kind of man orders a cheeseburger without ketchup but Dijon mustard?” asked Laura Ingraham after the president’s visit to an Arlington, Virginia burger joint with Vice President Joe Biden. Sean Hannity played a Grey Poupon commercial and said "I hope you enjoyed that fancy burger, Mr. President." Mark Steyn, filling in for Rush Limbaugh, said Obama was trying "to enlighten us" through his order. The blog Gateway Pundit wrote “They're just two ordinary metrosexual guys going out for a burger.” Sean Hannity prefers his burgers completely raw, wrapped in steak instead of a bun, and with cow blood as the only condiment.

Client No. 9 and Ashley Dupre seemed ancient history when former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer and his wife, Silda, stepped out together this week. The couple attended the annual Children’s Benefit Gala featuring music by violinist Joshua Bell—their first public outing since the news that Spitzer was having an affair with a high-end escort broke last year. The duo “occasionally cast lovey-dovey looks” at each other during the Ball, and left holding hands.