It is the second time the Federal Election Commission (news - web sites) has rejected allegations that interest groups were formed by party leaders to continue collecting the big checks after a law barred the national party committees from collecting such "soft money" themselves. The law, which took effect in November 2002, also broadly bans the use of soft money in federal elections.

In a vote taken earlier this month and announced Wednesday, the FEC decided there was no reason to believe the law was broken. It voted 5-1 to dismiss the matter, with only Republican Commissioner Michael Toner opposing the move.

Those named in the inquiry included the Democratic Issues Agenda, Americans for a Republican Majority, the Democratic Senate Majority Fund, the PAC for a Democratic House, and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, among others.

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[AP Politics]    By HOPE YEN

WASHINGTON - The federal commission reviewing the Sept. 11 attacks expressed disappointment Wednesday with national security adviser Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites) for refusing to testify in public.

Although we have met privately with Dr. Rice, we believe the nation would be well-served by the contribution she can make to public understanding of the intelligence and policy issues being examined by the commission," the 10-member panel said in a statement.

The bipartisan commission also urged President Bush (news - web sites) and Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites) to talk to the full commission instead of just the chairman and vice chairman.

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