The California State Assembly became the second legislative body behind Colorado Tuesday to approve their plan to change the way Americans elect a president.

It started as a dream for these two bay area men. Now, people are actually listening.

Barry Fadem of The National Popular Vote: "If a bill were to be passed and signed into law in California, then we think that would provide significant momentum for this effort."

Like most states, California currently has a "winner-take-all" approach, giving 55 electoral votes to the presidential candidate who wins in this state. The proposal would instead give those 55 electoral votes to whoever won the popular vote nationwide, regardless of who Californians voted for.

Assemblyman Tom Umberg sponsored the bill to make the golden state count.

Tom Umberg: "The 11 or 12 battleground states largely determine who's president of the United States. So a very small number of people in the country make a decision for all of us."

“That's the last time, Bender. That's the last time you ever make me look bad in front of those kids, you hear me? I make $31,000 a year and I have a home and I'm not throwing it all away on some punk like you. But someday when you're outta here and forgotten about this place and they've forgotten about you, and you're wrapped up in your own pathetic life, I'm gonna be there. That's right. And I'm gonna kick the living shit out of you.”

---Paul Gleason as Principal Vernon in 'The Breakfast Club'

Pentagon sources said the killings began after a roadside bomb killed 20-year-old Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas at 7:15 a.m. on November 19 in Haditha, a city along the Euphrates River in western Iraq.

The Marines originally reported that 15 civilians also died in that blast. But according to the Pentagon sources' account, the Marines immediately suspected four Iraqi teenagers in a taxi and fatally shot them, along with the driver, when the Marines said they failed to lie on the ground as ordered.

The hunt for the bombers then moved to a nearby house, where seven people -- including two women and children -- were killed. Then eight people, including six women, were shot and killed next door, while women in a third house were not harmed, the sources said. In a fourth house, four men were killed.

Rep. John Murtha, appearing Sunday on ABC's "This Week," alleged a cover-up and said the fallout could be "worse than Abu Ghraib."

"We don't know how far it goes," said Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat and a retired Marine colonel. "Who ordered the cover-up?"

Bush shared some of his regrets in how he handled the war in Iraq, namely that he wishes he hadn't told the terrorists to "bring it on."

"I think in certain parts of the world it was misinterpreted," Bush said, adding that he has learned how to express himself in a more "sophisticated" manner.

Federal officials say the Congressional bribery investigation now includes Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, based on information from convicted lobbyists who are now cooperating with the government.

Part of the investigation involves a letter Hastert wrote three years ago, urging the Secretary of the Interior to block a casino on an Indian reservation that would have competed with other tribes.

The other tribes were represented by convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff who reportedly has provided details of his dealings with Hastert as part of his plea agreement with the government.

The two top Republicans in the state Senate conceded upset defeats tonight.

State Sen. Robert Jubelirer, (R., Blair), the state's longest-serving president pro tempore, conceded defeat to Blair County Commissioner John Eichelberger, who led in a three-way primary.

Earlier, Senate Majority Leader David J. Brightbill, (R., Lebanon) who helped pass the legislative pay raise that spurred an anti-incumbency movement, conceded his loss shortly before 10 p.m. He was defeated by Mike Folmer.

In a new poll comparing President Bush's job performance with that of his predecessor, a strong majority of respondents said President Clinton outperformed Bush on a host of issues.

The poll of 1,021 adult Americans was conducted May 5-7 by Opinion Research Corp. for CNN. It had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Respondents favored Clinton by greater than 2-to-1 margins when asked who did a better job at handling the economy (63 percent Clinton, 26 percent Bush) and solving the problems of ordinary Americans (62 percent Clinton, 25 percent Bush).

On foreign affairs, the margin was 56 percent to 32 percent in Clinton's favor; on taxes, it was 51 percent to 35 percent for Clinton; and on handling natural disasters, it was 51 percent to 30 percent, also favoring Clinton.

Moreover, 59 percent said Bush has done more to divide the country, while only 27 percent said Clinton had.

When asked which man was more honest as president, poll respondents were more evenly divided, with the numbers -- 46 percent Clinton to 41 percent Bush -- falling within the poll's margin of error. The same was true for a question on handling national security: 46 percent said Clinton performed better; 42 percent picked Bush.

We all hope nothing happens to Arlen Specter, the Republican head of the Senate Judiciary Committee, cause he might be all that stands between us and a full blown dictatorship in this country. He's vowed to question these phone company executives about volunteering to provide the government with my telephone records, and yours, and tens of millions of other Americans.

Yes, it is not great to necessarily hear they're collecting our phone records, but it's a heck of a lot better than collecting our remains.

Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher was indicted Thursday on misdemeanor charges alleging that his administration hired and fired state workers on the basis of politics, not qualifications.

The first Republican governor since 1971, Fletcher is the first Kentucky governor to be indicted. He entered office on a pledge to cut “waste, fraud and abuse” in state government.

The charges: Criminal conspiracy, official misconduct in the first degree and violating the prohibition against political discrimination.

U.S. President George W. Bush told a German newspaper his best moment in more than five years in office was catching a big perch in his own lake.

"You know, I've experienced many great moments and it's hard to name the best," Bush told weekly Bild am Sonntag when asked about his high point since becoming president in January 2001.

"I would say the best moment of all was when I caught a 7.5 pound (3.402 kilos) perch in my lake," he told the newspaper in an interview published on Sunday.

According to Tim Russert, this is all perfectly normal, a CIA director suddenly resigning with no advance warning to anyone and without a replacement chosen.