By ZACHARY COILE, San Francisco Chronicle

WASHINGTON -- It's a scramble for the spoils of global warming as the rapid melting of Arctic sea ice is opening access to previously unreachable deposits of oil and gas, setting off a race by northern nations -- including the United States, Canada and Russia -- to claim them.

WASHINGTON -- There's a reason Republican Sen. John McCain, President Bush and even Republican Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida all abruptly endorsed plans to expand offshore drilling last week -- and it's not just $4-a-gallon gasoline.

WASHINGTON -- Hold to review with Kate

Fed up with TV ads so loud that they send viewers scrambling to hit mute on their remotes, a San Francisco area lawmaker is pushing a new bill that would force federal regulators to ratchet down the volume of commercials.

WASHINGTON -- House Democratic leaders are putting together the largest Iraq-war spending bill yet, a measure that is expected to fund the war through the end of the Bush presidency and for nearly six months into the next president's term.

WASHINGTON -- There's a reason House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is smiling despite a contentious Democratic presidential primary that seems as if it will never end.

WASHINGTON -- It was supposed to be a quick war and a cheap one. Five years later, 160,000 U.S. troops are still in Iraq. And the costs keep piling up -- $12 billion every month -- putting a strain on an already faltering economy.

WASHINGTON -- After the campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination took a rancorous turn last week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stepped in, calling on the leading Democrats to cease their bickering -- or risk hurting the party's chances of retaking the White House.

WASHINGTON -- California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger told Bush administration officials this week that he is tired of the Pentagon treating the California National Guard like a stepchild by using its equipment in Iraq and Afghanistan without returning or replacing it.

WASHINGTON -- For Arizona Sen. John McCain, it was a week he won't soon forget.

He spent much of it defending himself against charges that he did special favors for a female telecommunications lobbyist, whom his top aide had urged to stay away from the senator.

WASHINGTON -- The first major report on the San Francisco Bay oil spill praises the work of response crews in cleaning up the oil, but criticizes the Coast Guard for failing to alert local authorities in a timely way and involve local volunteers.