...or has this felt like a really long week?

Up (on the) Hill Battle

Some Republicans on Capitol Hill say Americans need to give President Bush's ideas on Iraq time to work. But skeptical lawmakers say sending more troops gives the wrong message when Iraqis need to solve their own sectarian problems.
• CNN's Dick Uliano joins us to talk about the President's plan. Click to hear the interview.
• Megan Scully, Congress Daily Defense and National Security Reporter, assesses reaction on The Hill. Click to hear the interview.

Guantanamo Bay: Five Years Later

Five years after the first prisoners arrived at the U.S. Navy base in southeast Cuba, the detention camp commander says aggressive interrogation tactics are gone. But world outrage over the detention center has grown.
• Cully Stimson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Detainee Affairs, gives us an update. Click to hear the interview.
• Rear Adm. Harry Harris, Joint Task Force Guantanamo Commander, joins us as well. Click to hear the interview.
• Brig. Gen. Thomas Hemingway, Legal Counsel for military commissions, on the legal rights of the detainees. Click to hear the interview.
• "Navy Commander" (name withheld) Naval Expeditionary Guard Battalion Commander, responsible for sailors guarding detainees inside Camps 1,2,3,4, & 6 talks about life inside the prison. Click to hear the interview.

Operation Vigilant Sentry

Coast Guard recently held a drill to prepare for what could be a mass exodus from Cuba once Fidel Castro dies. How did it work out? Luis Diaz, Miami Coast Guard Spokesman, fills us in. Click to hear the interview.

Redepositing

What are redeposits, and what do people coming back into the Federal government need to know about them? Federal Benefits Specialist John Elliott explains. Click to hear the interview.

Friend or Foe?

On today's Intel Briefing, National Security Correspondent JJ Green examines why we're friends with the Saudis. Click to hear the briefing.

OPM Partnership

There's an effort underway to recruit retirees into federal service. FederalNewsRadioCorrespondent Austin O'Neill reports. Click to hear the interview.

Other Stories We're Following

Parental Leave Revisited (Washington Post)

DOD Posts Final NSPS 2007 Pay Rates (FedNewsOnline)

Fedblog: GAO Weighs Freezes and Furloughs (GovExec)

Bush moves to retain recess-appointed ICE chief (GovExec)

FBI Seminar Hosts H'wood Scribes (The Hollywood Reporter)

No Charges to Be Filed in Air Force Case

Forget 'Snakes on a Plane' Mike and Jane talk about the story of a man who is stung by a scorpion while on a plane. Click to hear the conversation.