The James Logan Courier

By Dave Montgomery and Marisa Taylor
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)

WASHINGTON — Karl Rove's imminent departure as President Bush's closest White House adviser is the latest and most dramatic signal that Bush himself is heading toward the exit as Americans prepare to choose his replacement next year.

Rove's departure — effective at the end of the month — leaves Bush facing the loss of his most trusted political adviser as he heads into the final year and a half of his presidency. The two men have been friends for three decades and have been politically inseparable for the past 14 years.

But Rove, in a telephone interview with McClatchy Newspapers, said he expects to continue to have an advisory role with Bush, who told him, "I know your phone number and you'd better know mine."

By Chris Collins and Leila Fadel
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)

BAGHDAD — A roadside bomb Saturday killed the governor and police chief of an oil-rich southern Iraqi province that's been a bloody and complex battleground for U.S.-Iraqi security forces and powerful Shiite factions.

Elsewhere, Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, added his voice to U.S. claims linking Iran to the deaths of increasing numbers of American troops.