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The government's National Security Agency is building a giant database of all phone calls placed by Americans within the U.S., according to a report published in USA Today. The article says that the spy agency has been helped by major phone companies, including AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth.

A report in Thursday's USA Today reveals that the National Security Agency (NSA) has been secretly collecting records from AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth documenting phone calls within the United States. The agency reportedly wants to create a database of calls to help track terrorist activity. Madeleine Brand speaks with USA Today reporter Leslie Cauley, who broke the story.

The Bush administration says its program to monitor international financial records has a number of safeguards that prevent violation of privacy rights. But critics note that those safeguards are voluntary because this particular type of data tracking isn't covered by U.S. laws against government intrusion into private financial records.

A new proposal coming out of Baghdad would give amnesty to prisoners and insurgents. The 28-point initiative is an attempt by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to bring stability to Iraq. The offer, however, excludes terrorists and those who committed war crimes or crimes against humanity.

President Bush this week is expected to sign a $70 billion tax-cut package into law. It will lower rates for investors and save billions of dollars for families with above-average incomes. Now Republicans in Congress are turning their attention toward the estate tax. They want it repealed permanently.

Germany, the World Cup host country, lost 2-0 to Italy in a semi-final match Tuesday. The Italians scored twice in the match's waning moments after 118 minutes of scoreless play. The defeat left some German fans in a philosophical mood, looking forward to the next World Cup.

With the arrivals of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, the Supreme Court shifted to the right, as expected, in its just-completed term. But the shift was less dramatic because Justice Anthony Kennedy assumed a swing role.

Defense attorneys for former Enron executives Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling make passionate closing arguments on their clients' behalf, ridiculing the prosecution's case. The jury gets the case today.

Hezbollah militants continue to fire rockets from southern Lebanon into Israeli towns and cities across the border. Two Israelis were killed, and more than 100 wounded, in Katyusha rocket attacks on Thursday.

The Bush administration announces that all detainees in U.S. military custody around the world, including those at Guantanamo Bay, are entitled to protections under the Geneva Conventions. It is unclear what the apparent change in policy will mean for people held by the U.S.