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Arnold: California is going broke: Schwarzenegger declares emergency, calls legislature into special session.

CHENEY INDICTMENT DROPPED: CHENEY INDICTMENT DROPPED

Judge to rule on telco immunity: Bush admin. in courtroom showdown to secure legal protection for spying telcos.

Pirate attack on cruise ship foiled: A bid by Somali pirates to hijack a luxury cruise ship was foiled by an international taskforce, officials said on Monday, as ransom negotiations for a Saudi super-tanker stretched into overtime.

Dr.: Most dead in Mumbai were tortured: They said that just one look at the bodies of the dead hostages as well as terrorists showed it was a battle of attrition that was fought over three days at the Oberoi and the Taj hotels in Mumbai.

High tide floods historic Venice: enice could use a bailout. The city built on water has too much of it.

Citigroup drops $10b on Spanish company: Spanish real estate developer Sacyr Vallehermososaid Monday that it has agreed to sell its toll road operating firm Itinere Infraestructuras to a Citigroup Inc. fund for 7.9 billion euros ($10.0 billion).

Relative arrested in Hudson slayings: Police arrested the estranged brother-in-law of Jennifer Hudson on Monday in the deaths of the entertainers mother, brother and young nephew, taking him from a prison where he had been held on a suspected parole violation.

Pakistani 'element' behind assault, India demands action: Pakistani element behind assault, India demands action

US plans 'diplomacy 2.0' for 'war of ideas' on Internet: US plans diplomacy 2.0 for war of ideas on Internet

Canada pols to topple conservative gov't.: A Liberal-NDP coalition agreement that would replace the minority Conservative government was being fleshed out Sunday night, the CBC has learned.

Morgan: Fed rate cut to zero in '09: The Federal Reserve will lower its policy rate to zero percent by January in its attempt to avert a prolonged recession and to revive the struggling credit market, according to J.P. Morgan Securities analysts.

Study: Meditation beats depression: Group-taught meditation is as effective as staying on drug treatments for stopping people slipping back into depression, say UK scientists.

'Gay bible,' movie, riles Christians: A gay version of the Bible, in which God says it is better to be gay than straight, is to be published by an American film producer.

Franken may appeal to courts, Senate: Democrat Al Frankens campaign said Monday that as many as 1,000 absentee ballots were improperly disqualified in Minnesotas Senate race, and that it may appeal to courts or the U.S. Senate to order that those ballots be counted.

Detaining Chinese at Gitmo a power play?: Pity the Uighurs. Originally known best in this country for their unusual name (pronounced WEE-gurz), the group of 17 Chinese Muslims has been locked up at Guantanamo Bay for the past seven years. That has contributed to the Uighurs new-found

Column: What's wrong with right-wing radio: Milwaukees right-wing talk radio clique, personified by WTMJ/AMs Charlie Sykes and Jeff Wagner, is still smarting over the tell-all piece that the radio stations former news director authored for the most recent issue of Milwaukee Magazine...

Fed's rate power 'limited': Bernanke: The Federal Reserve has limited scope to cut interest rates further to stimulate the economy but other tools are available, such as the purchase of long-term Treasury securities, chairman Ben Bernanke said Monday...

Blast wounds many at Bangkok airport: One person was killed and 20 anti-government protesters wounded by a bomb blast at Bangkoks domestic airport early Tuesday, in the latest incident targeting the demonstrators, local reports said...

Supremes still mulling case of detainee: The US Supreme Court on Monday delayed a decision on whether to take up the case of Ali al-Marri, a Qatari who is the only enemy combatant detained on US soil...

Daily Kos

On The Clinton Appointment: More Facts, Less Drama, Please!: Finally, someone says it. John Isaacs, the Executive Director of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, has written a great piece about how much Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton agree on many critical defense

GA-Sen: Election Day is tomorrow: Tuesday is election day in Georgia, and voters will go to the polls to either choose newer, progressive representation in the United States Senate, or return a man to the Senate so embarrassing to Republicans that even FOXs own Chris

Late Afternoon/Early Evening Open Thread: What you missed on Sunday Kos ... Devilstower explored the cult of selfishness at the core of conservative beliefs and how that will promote ditching environmental efforts in the months ahead in No Dark Cloud without a Darker Lining. DemFromCT

Really?: While I wont argue that Barack Obamas vast email list isnt going to be a powerful tool during his presidency, this article seems to miss the obvious: the 13 or so million people on that list dont march in lockstep.

A New Spot of Blue in Wyoming: One of the greatest disappointments of November 4 was Wyoming, where one of our best Congressional candidates--Gary Trauner--couldnt overcome the Republican flood of a presidential election vote. But theres a very good bit of news out of that state with

Midday Open Thread: Today marks the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day, and while progress has been made over the past 20 years, there remains much to be done, from research to training, and of course, access and affordability. John Coles take on

Defending The Media From Halperin's Tin-Foil Attack: As you may have heard, a little over a week ago Mark Halperin accused the media of extreme bias, extreme pro-Obama coverage, claiming that reporters wanted to see his face etched in stain glass and on Mt. Rushmore simultaneously. Since

Just a reminder on that MN Senate seat...: As Scout Finch pointed out in yesterdays Midday Open Thread, the ultimate arbiter of the Minnesota Senate election (and indeed every Senate election) is... the Senate itself. So heres a little reminder of what looms in the background of the

New national security team takes a bow: As announced earlier, Barack Obama rolled out his new national security team this morning in a press conference in Chicago. Via press release, here are his prepared remarks: Good morning. Last week, we announced our economic team, which is working

Another RNC Candidate: Republicans just dont get it. Katon Dawson, the chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party, the latest candidate to throw his hat into the ring to become the next head of the Republican National Committee, is disappointed that his party

Obama Set To Announce Security Team: According to several reports, Senator Clinton will be in Chicago today to be formally named as the nominee for Secretary of State. According to Beth Fouhy with the AP, the Obama team negotiated with Bill Clinton to set the following

Cheers and Jeers: Monday: From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE... Morning Eve Recommended diaries goddess nyceve graduated from Barnard College (Columbia University), where she majored in Economics. She spends some of her time learning about the healthcare crisis first-hand at a hospital in Manhattan,

Your Abbreviated Pundit Round-up: Monday... time to go back to work, pundits. Paul Krugman: The idea that tight fiscal policy when the economy is depressed actually reduces private investment isn’t just a hypothetical argument: it’s exactly what happened in two important episodes in history.

Open Thread and Diary Rescue: Tonights rescue team is dadanation, grog, HansScholl, jlms qkw, sunspark says, and vcmvo2, with srkp23 editing. A Siegel writes in detail about the need for legislation to be passed like, H.R. 3021 the 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities

Next Year's Model: 2010 Races, Florida through Kansas: In the second installment of our look at coming 2010 races, we look at potentially hot races in Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Kansas. Florida The Sunshine State ought to have one of the most exciting, highest-profile,

Midday Open Thread: The U.S. Senate could intervene in the Minnesota election. Ultimately, the Senate has complete authority to determine who was elected, Washington University political scientist Steven Smith told the broadcaster, citing the canvassing boards decision this week to disallow disputed absentee

Polls and The Election – A Revisit: This is a good day to reflect and look back (theres a winter advisory here in CT), as we move into the holidays and look to January 20th and beyond (is Bush still here? Damn.) One of the hot topics

Can the GOP Find the 97 Electoral Votes It Needs?: John McCain pieced together just 173 electoral votes this year. Thats the 8th-worst showing by a Republican since 1916. (Interestingly, all seven weaker GOP showings came at the hands of just three men: FDR, LBJ and Bill Clinton.) To win

Recession And Children's Health Care – A Revisit: Ten months ago, we wrote this piece because we were concerned about what might be coming down the road. Like hurricanes and pandemics, recessions are inevitable, and preparing for them makes more sense than ignoring them. But how to prepare?

No Dark Cloud without a Darker Lining: President Elect Obama wasnt alone in seeing the economic collapse as a final judgment on the effectiveness of conservative fiscal policies. The idea that the personal greed of executives, the profit motive of corporations, and the overall health of society

Think Progress

After 9/11, Rove pressured the entertainment industry ‘to produce propaganda.’: The New York Times reports today that shortly after 9/11, the White House met several times with “a delegation of high-level media executives, including the heads of every major studio,” in order to discuss how “the entertainment industry could play

Ford CEO will drive to Washington for auto bailout hearings.: The CEOs of the Big Three automakers were heavily criticized for flying private jets to D.C. when they appeared on Capitol Hill a couple of weeks ago. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY) commented, “It’s almost like seeing a guy show up

O’Reilly Whitewashes Torture At Gitmo: ‘There’s Certainly No Proof That Ever Happened’: Today on the Radio Factor, a listener called in to tell Bill O’Reilly that she had “zero confidence” in Obama’s ability to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. In the course of her call, the listener expressed mock

Chris Matthews: Obama’s cabinet looks like ‘the many faces of Benetton.’: Following President-elect Obama’s morning press conference announcing his national security team, MSNBC’s Chris Matthews praised the diversity of Obama’s cabinet, comparing it to a Benetton ad. “Clearly it has the picture we’re looking for, the many faces of Benatton or

Bush admin. proffers the ‘Chuck and Larry’ defense to deprive gay federal employees of heal(...): In September, the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee considered legislation that would provide federal benefits to same-sex domestic partners of federal employees. Howard Weizmann, the deputy director of the U.S. Office Of Personnel Management, objected to the bill because it “could

For Nearly A Year After Recession Started, Bush White House Insisted That ‘We’re Not In A R(...): Earlier today, the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) announced that “the U.S. has been in a recession since December 2007, making official what most Americans have already believed about the state of the economy.” The group, which the White

Jeb Bush: GOP needs to set up ‘a shadow government.’: In an interview with the conservative online publication NewsMax, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said the GOP must broaden its appeal to avoid becoming “the old white-guy party,” and recommended that Republicans create a “shadow government” to work on its

Palin Recycles Old Stump Speech In Georgia, But Replaces ‘McCain’ With ‘Chambliss’: Today, Gov. Sarah Palin traveled to Georgia to campaign for Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R), who faces a tough runoff election tomorrow against Democratic challenger Jim Martin. In the first of four stops today, in Augusta, Palin told the crowd, “The

Leahy: ‘Torture will be a major issue’; ‘All that’s going to be reviewed.’: During a press conference today, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, echoed President-elect Obama’s vow to end torture and pledged to continue investigating the Bush administration’s torture policies. “All that is going to be reviewed,” he

NBER: U.S. economy in recession since December 2007.: The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) announced today that the U.S. economy has been in recession since December 2007. NBER’s Business Cycle Dating Committee — “which maintains a chronology of the beginning and ending dates of U.S. recessions” —

Obama: ‘I Believe That 16 Months Is The Right Time Frame’ For Getting Out Of Iraq: At a press conference today where President-elect Barack Obama announced his national security team, a reporter asked Obama if he still intended to “withdraw all U.S. forces from Iraq in 16 months after Inauguration.” “I believe that 16 months is

Fox News shut out again at Obama press conference.: Fishbowl DC has been keeping tabs of which media outlets have been allowed to ask a question at President-elect Barack Obama’s five press conferences so far. They report Fox News is 0-5. “Questions instead went to such outlets as ABC,

Bush admits ‘I was unprepared for war.’: In an interview with ABC News that will air tonight, President Bush admits that he was unprepared to be Commander-in-Chief when he was elected:“I think I was unprepared for war,” Bush told ABC News’ Charlie Gibson in an interview airing

Note to CNN: There is no Assistant Secretary of State for African American Affairs.: A CNN chyron from this morning’s press conference:Susan Rice, the Obama administration’s new U.N. Ambassador, was not the “Assistant Secretary of State for African American Affairs.” There is no such position at the State Department. From 1997-2001, Susan Rice was

Obama trying to avoid picking intel officials associated with Bush’s policies.: The Wall Street Journal reports that Obama is “moving more slowly on his intelligence picks in an attempt to find experienced officials who aren’t associated with the Bush administration’s controversial interrogation policies.” After former CIA official John Brennan withdrew his

Bush to receive first-ever International Medal of Peace.: To mark World AIDS Day, Saddelback Pastor Rick Warren is hosting a Civil Forum on Global Health at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. Warren will present President Bush with the first “International Medal of PEACE” from the Global PEACE Coalition

ThinkFast: December 1, 2008: Later today, President-elect Barack Obama will name some members of his national security team. The appointments will reportedly mark “a sweeping shift of priorities and resources” by greatly expanding a “corps of diplomats and aid workers that, in the vision

Former interrogator slams torture: Torture has cost nearly as many lives as 9/11.: In a Washington Post op-ed today, a former Special Operations interrogator who worked in Iraq in 2006 sharply criticizes American torture techniques as ineffective and dangerous. “Torture and abuse cost American lives,” he writes:I learned in Iraq that the No.

Will: Economic Crisis May Only Be ‘A Financial Problem,’ ‘Rest Of Economy Is Doing Rather(...): Today on ABC’s This Week roundtable, conservative columnist George Will claimed it is possible that the economy may only be suffering from a “financial problem” while the rest of the economy is performing “rather well”:WILL: All will be forgiven if

Bush’s last-minute rule gutting worker protections may violate his own guidelines.: The Labor Department is attempting to complete a rule which “would add a step to the lengthy process of developing standards to protect workers’ health” and would thus make it more difficult to regulate toxic substances and chemicals that affect

Little Green Footballs

Jindal: Political Meteor or Meteorite?: Is Bobby Jindal the next Barack Obama?No less an aspiring kingmaker than Steve Schmidt, the chief strategist of McCain’s failed presidential bid, sees Jindal as the Republican Party’s destiny. “The question is not whether he’ll be president, but when he’ll

Ya'alon: Turning the Oslo Approach On Its Head: Former IDF chief of staff Moshe Ya’alon has a thoughtful piece in Azure Magazine: Israel and the Palestinians: A New Strategy.Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German priest executed by the Nazis, once wrote, “If you board the wrong train, it is no

Video: Surveillance Footage of Captured Mumbai Terrorist: A Sky News report from Mumbai has footage from a cellphone camera showing a furious crowd beating terrorist Azam Amir Kasav (aka Ajmal Qasab) before he was arrested and taken away.(Hat tip: Gateway Pundit.)

Financial Crisis Watch: No, it’s still not over. The Dow index was down by nearly 700 points at the end of trading today, approaching the 8,000 line.

Hillary at the State Department: No surprises here, just the expected announcements: Obama announces Clinton, Gates for Cabinet.CHICAGO – President-elect Barack Obama picked a national security team headed by former campaign rival Hillary Rodham Clinton and Bush administration holdover Robert Gates on Monday, and said

Obama Quietly Reinstates Another Fired Adviser: Yet another adviser that Barack Obama tossed under the bus during his campaign has been quietly reinstated: Adviser Who Insulted Clinton Has Role in Transition.Samantha Power, the Harvard professor who was forced to resign from Barack Obama’s presidential campaign last

Zombie: Moonbats Stalk Shopping Mall on Black Friday: Zombie’s latest photo essay shows us that the election of Barack Obama won’t change the ever-loveable antics of the moonbat left, as “Iraq Veterans Against the War” stages a demonstration in San Francisco’s Union Square the day after Thanksgiving, complete

Video: Why Texas Shouldn't Let Creationists Mess with Science Education: Dr. Barbara Forrest is the author (with Paul Gross) of Creationism’s Trojan Horse: The Wedge of Intelligent Design, and here’s a really informative presentation she gave recently at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, on the roots of the intelligent

Live Shuttle Landing Video: NASA TV is streaming live video of the Space Shuttle’s landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California, returning from a successful mission to the International Space Station.Backdropped against Earth’s horizon and the blackness of

Nail

Mumbai Terrorist's Confession: The confession of Azam Amir Kasav, the only terrorist captured alive in Mumbai, has apparently been leaked to the press. The Malaysian Insider has a detailed report on the story told by Azam, and it’s chilling: Terrorists posed as Malaysian

Muslim-Christian Carnage in Nigeria: Following a disputed local election in Jos, Nigeria, fighting between Christian and Muslim gangs has left at least 400 people dead.JOS, Nigeria (Reuters) – Residents took more bodies to the main mosque in the Nigerian city of Jos on Sunday,

'They Didn't Spare Women or Children': The murderers who staged the Mumbai attacks were ruthless: Scene of Unimaginable Carnage Inside Taj Majal Hotel.The scene Saturday night inside the Taj Majal hotel was one of unimaginable carnage in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist onslaught across Mumbai.Two

Finally, the Pressing Issue of Tubers: The headline says it all: USDA Official Takes Courageous Stand Against Interstate Countercyclical Potato Pricing.

And Now, the Greatest Man That Ever Lived

Tech Note: Live Comments, 2: I had to take down the front page live comment updates for a couple of days to figure out why MySQL was deadlocking. We all know how painful that can be.Turns out that MyISAM tables suffer from an obscure problem

Rather Defensive: As we’ve written previously, the mainstream media seem to be slowly but surely re-legitimizing the “Rathergate” documents, casting doubt on whether they really were fraudulent. Matthew Hoy points out the latest example, a column at the Miami Herald by Edward

Video: Mumbai Police Cleaning Up: Here’s a Reuters video clip on the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks.

Mumbai Terrorism Updates: The terrorist attack in Mumbai is finally over.Indian commandos killed the last remaining gunmen holed up at a luxury Mumbai hotel Saturday, ending a 60-hour rampage that killed 195 people in India’s financial capital, as authorities shifted their focus to

Breaking: Battle at the Taj Hotel: The bottom floors of the Taj Hotel are on fire, and a gun battle is raging at this minute; the IBNLive.com stream is working well here, on a Mac with Flip4Mac installed.

Crooks and Liars

What's A Posse Comitatus?: Can anyone say mission creep? The military always can, which is why a new initiative to give the Pentagon an ability to surge a combat-ready force for domestic security is so worrying.The U.S. military

McCain's Cabinet: A new talking point coming from the Villagers today is that Obamas new team looks just like a McCain cabinet, God forbid. I surely doubt Hillary Clinton, Eric Holder or Samantha Powers would have been named to a McCain team.

James Dobson vs Kathleen Parker for the Soul of the GOP: Download | Play Download | PlayLets get ready to RUMBLE!The stage is set. Conservatives are fighting one another to see who will dominate the now defunct Republican

Saxby Chambliss Is Creepier Than Previously Thought: Watch the end of this Saxby Chambliss commercial, and keep a close eye on Sexbys -- I mean Saxbys -- right hand at the end:He totally goes all second-base on that pre-pubescent girl. And at the very end he looks

Obama continues to shun FOX News: Today Barack Obama held his fifth news conference since winning the presidency, and for the fifth time, he refused to call on a reporter from FOX. Fishbowl DC has been keeping track.As weve been

As Palin campaigns in Georgia, Alaskans wonder where their governor went: Download | Play Download | PlaySarah Palins out in Georgia today, ostensibly campaigning for the execrable Saxby Chambliss with her usual brand of right-wing

Grover Norquist blames economic crisis on the 2006 mid term election results: Guys like Grover Norquist are one of the reason America faces financial ruin. His insane positions on tax cuts and how government should function have resulted in what we have today. He once said:My goal is to cut government in

"A new dawn of American leadership": President-Elect Obama announces National Security team: Download | Play Download | PlayPresident-Elect Barack Obama held a news conference this morning to announce his core group of National Security appointments.

Torture isn't just morally sick -- it's also ineffective and counterproductive: Download | play Download | play (Warning-Disturbing images. NSFW) Video courtesy Amnesty International. A man using the pseudonym Matthew Alexander has written a truly remarkable op-ed for the Washington Post

Chris Wallace Asks If Robert Gates Will Follow Orders: Download | Play Download | PlayOn Fox News Sunday Nov. 30, 2008. Chris Wallace talks to Lindsey Graham and Clair McCaskill about the pick of Robert Gates to continue as Secretary

Mike's Blog Roundup: VetVoice: Interrogator who located Zarqawi rips U.S, torture policy Attackerman: A one man military-industrial complex Ken Silverstein: Accountability, there and here The Mahablog: Neal Gabler explains why Joe McCarthy — not Barry Goldwater, and certainly not Saint Ronald — was

Why Bush's presidency was an Epic Fail: Karen DeYoung at the WaPo had an interesting report on the change of style that Obama is bringing to the White House, particularly in how it approaches the military:Obama has been careful to separate

Headzup: Bush's View Of Success: From Headzup Nov. 28, 2008.President Bush talks about how hes very pleased with the Iraq war.Read more about it here--Bush very pleased with Iraq war outcome: report.

Ted Nugent loves him some Malkin and says a "Conservative revolution is brewing": The Republican party is in shambles and wingnut/washed up rocker Ted Nugent knows just how to fix the party.Make no mistake, conservative values and ideologies are embraced by Americans. The polls all indicate Americans

Mike's Blog Roundup: Faithful Progressive: Is the Civil War really over after all? Only ten percent of white voters in Alabama voted for Obama Connecting.the.Dots: Changing deck chairs on the Titanic. Now that the Republicans have handed us a socialist agenda, and branded Obama

Palin: Bringing up associations with extremists fine for thee, not for me: Download | Play Download | PlaySarah Palin was really good at talking out both sides of her mouth during her interview with

John McCain Visits The Tonight Show: Download | Play Download | PlayThe Tonight Show Nov. 11, 2008: John McCain does his first interview since losing the Presidential election.

Open Thread: Open Thread below...

C&L's Late Nite Music Club: Mitch Mitchell RIP: I met Mitch in LA a couple of times through some music friends, but that was a long time ago. RIP.Mitch Mitchell, drummer for the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience of the 1960s and the groups last surviving member, was found

Report: Obama To Stand Up For Iraq Withdrawal: TPMs Josh Marshall asks Why Gates? Tuesday.Gareth Porter at IPS has been talking to (anonymous, as ever) Obama transition team folks who tell him that the chances of Robert Gates staying on as SecDef "are now about 10 percent". The

Common Dreams

National Security Experts Grim on Terror War: National Security Experts Grim on Terror War

Study: Prison Population on the Rise: Study: Prison Population on the Rise

Lebanon Slides Towards Civil War as Anniversary of Hariri's Murder Looms: Lebanon Slides Towards Civil War as Anniversary of Hariris Murder Looms

Britain and US: Worst of Wealthy Nations for Children: Britain and US: Worst of Wealthy Nations for Children

US Briefing on Iran Discredits the Official Line: US Briefing on Iran Discredits the Official Line

Doubts Raised on Linking of Iran to US Deaths in Iraq: Doubts Raised on Linking of Iran to US Deaths in Iraq

Korea Deal Marks Big Victory for Realists: Korea Deal Marks Big Victory for Realists

Michelle Malkin

Deadbeat watch: Troopers still owed overtime for DNC: CBS 4 in Denver reports that law enforcement officers have gone three months without getting paid for overtime costs related to policing the Democratic National Convention. Read the rest »

Obama admits: I was just a random campaign quote generator: Blowing smoke.

California declares “fiscal emergency:” Arnie’s gonna come begging: Ill be back...for a bailout.

Juan Hernandez is bummed: Read this post »

Palin power in Georgia; Democrats counter with…Ludacris: Cuda vs. Luda.

European eco-zealots want international enviro-crimes court: Green World Order. (Photoshop source)

Mumbai and the media: BBC follows CNN: Read this post »

The Washington Monthly

Monday's Mini-Report: MONDAYS MINI-REPORT.... Todays edition of quick hits: * If readers would take a moment to comlpete the BlogAds reader survey, wed appreciate it. * Another very painful day on Wall Street, with the Dow closing down nearly 680 points, or...

They were warned: THEY WERE WARNED.... Its common now to hear Bush administration officials, asked about the financial crisis, insist that they had no idea this meltdown was coming. Unfortunately, they were warned, but ignored the concerns. The Bush administration backed off proposed...

How we learned to stop worrying and love deficit spending: HOW WE LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE DEFICIT SPENDING.... The federal governments annual budget deficit is poised to hit $1 trillion, about the double the previous record. Paul Krugman explains today that Barack Obama really shouldnt care about addressing...

A change in intelligence: A CHANGE IN INTELLIGENCE.... The Wall Street Journal reported a few weeks ago that the upcoming Obama administration is unlikely to make major changes to the governments intelligence-gathering operations. The WSJ said this could lead to tension within the Democratic...

Holder is aware of our laws and traditions: HOLDER IS AWARE OF OUR LAWS AND TRADITIONS.... At this mornings press conference in Chicago, I suspect most eyes were on Hillary Clinton. Thats certainly understandable -- shes a national political powerhouse poised to become the presidents most prestigious cabinet...

An official recession: AN OFFICIAL RECESSION.... The announcement was only a matter of time. The National Bureau of Economic Research said Monday that the U.S. has been in a recession since December 2007, making official what most Americans have already believed about the...

Bush says he was 'unprepared for war': BUSH SAYS HE WAS UNPREPARED FOR WAR.... Weve heard Bush express some various regrets in recent years, but I think this one is a first. Looking back on his eight years in the White House, President George W. Bush pinpointed...

Cabinet presser: CABINET PRESSER Barack Obama held his fourth press conference in seven days this morning, introducing his national security team. As expected, Hillary Clinton will be Secretary of State, Robert Gates will stay on as Defense Secretary, Eric Holder will be...

Monday's campaign round-up: MONDAYS CAMPAIGN ROUND-UP....Todays installment of campaign-related news items that wouldnt generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers. * After a procedural setback last week on counting absentee ballots, Al Frankens chances of victory...

International man of 'peace'?: INTERNATIONAL MAN OF PEACE?.... Mike Allen reported this morning, Pastor Rick Warren will present President George W. Bush with the first International Medal of PEACE from the Global PEACE Coalition in recognition of his contribution to the fight against HIV/AIDS...

Say goodbye to the Hummer?: SAY GOODBYE TO THE HUMMER?.... Rick Wagoner, CEO of General Motors, has a plan on how hed proceed to help secure a government rescue plan. It includes shedding some GM brands. GM is studying eliminating brands, with Pontiac and Saab...

Why CNN is hosting a 'newspaper summit': WHY CNN IS HOSTING A NEWSPAPER SUMMIT.... This should be interesting. CNN, in the afterglow of an election season of record ratings for cable news, is elbowing in on a new line of business: catering to financially strained newspapers looking...

Dysfunction on the Hill: DYSFUNCTION ON THE HILL.... We knew, shortly after Democrats reclaimed the congressional majority in 2006, that governing might be a little, shall we say, tricky. The Bush White House didnt really have a policy agenda, and even if it did,...

Torture doesn't work, redux: TORTURE DOESNT WORK, REDUX.... One would like to think that the debate over torture policies is over. Torture doesnt work, its illegal, it undermines our global standing, and its fundamentally, morally repugnant. And yet, the argument persists. The leader of...

Change we can believe in: CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN.... Hilzoy mentioned this overnight, but its worth re-emphasizing, since its likely to be todays big story. At 10:40 a.m., the president-elect will introduce the leaders of his national security team, and while they come from...

The Next FEMA: THE NEXT FEMA.... The Washington Post reported the other day that the incoming Obama administration has been scrutinizing the beleaguered Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and plans to give it a faceleft. It was a reminder that Obama, on top...

Tanta: Tanta From the NYT (via Calculated Risk): The blogger Tanta, an influential voice on the mortgage collapse, died Sunday morning in Columbus, Ohio. Tanta, who wrote for Calculated Risk, a finance and economics blog, was a pseudonym for Doris Dungey,...

Shifting Resources: Shifting Resources From the NYT: When President-elect Barack Obama introduces his national security team on Monday, it will include two veteran cold warriors and a political rival whose records are all more hawkish than that of the new president who...

Auto Industry Bleg: Auto Industry Bleg Ive been trying to understand the problems of the auto industry, and on a couple of points I cant quite seem to figure out whats going on. So I thought: why not ask? (1) A quote from...

Senators who move to the cabinet: SENATORS WHO MOVE TO THE CABINET.... Much has been made of the fact that sitting senators have very rarely won the presidency. Barack Obama is the first since JFK 48 years ago, and only the third in American history, following...

Wonkette

JIM GIBBONS DIVORCE INSANITY: America's worst ...: JIM GIBBONS DIVORCE INSANITY: Americas worst governor and alcoholic adulterous sex-assaulter crook Jim Gibbons and his power-crazed wife Dawn are finally getting the divorce everybody always knew...

Scott McClellan Can't Ruin George Bush Junior's Day: The great George W. Bush delivered the commencement address at Colorados Air Force Academy today, the same day that his former hobbit slave was publicizing mean books about him. Here he is this...

John McCain's Biggest Fan: 'Your Name': Ooh looky its another Kustomized Kampaign Trinket for you, the reader! For just $250, you can show the world that YOUR NAME totally supports JOHN MCCAIN. But are there any names or phrases that...

Even Little-Girl Hillary Was A Conniving Monster: We usually dont like to encourage the comedy YouTube jokes because none of them are funny, or its something you can watch on the TeeVee, later, on your sofa or whatever, eating your carry out....

Scott McClellan's A Big Hit!: SEE WHAT EVERYONES SAYING ABOUT SCOTT MCCLELLANS NEW #1 BOOK, GEORGE BUSH JR. MADE VAGUE ERRORS!I would think if he harbored such deep feelings about things he wouldnt have and shouldnt have...

Your Wonkette Is Moving, Tonight!: Hello Peoples! Remember that whole thing about your Wonkette getting a new home, and all that? Well, it is still true — and tonight, Wonkette will suffer the miracle of transmigration. What...

BARRY OBAMA'S RACIST POETRY: "Under water ...: BARRY OBAMAS RACIST POETRY: Under water grottos, caverns/ Filled with apes/ That eat figs./ Stepping on the figs/ That the apes/ Eat, they crunch./ The apes howl, bare/ Their fangs, dance,/ Tumble...

McCain Fundraiser Tour Fails Its Way Through Mormon World Capital: Ever since John McCain pissed all over Mitt Romney in a debate, and even before then, Mormons havent taken kindly to the foul-mouthed, unhandsome, twice-married atheist grumpus. So its no surprise...

Karl Rove Calls Scott McClellan Gay Woodsman: Wonkette comical typos operative Ron sends us this screen shot of a CNN.com article in which Karl Rove lets slip a revelation of his own about terrible snitch Scott McClellan. McClellans syntax in...

Clinton-Press Relationship Is More Dysfunctional Than Your Tragic Marriage: Hillary Clinton continued the Enfranchisement Tour 2k8 today in South Dakota, which is fully franchised and will likely go for Obama on June 3 but doesnt matter. While there she visited the only...

Dunkin' Donuts Nixes Terrorist Rachael Ray Ad: Remember when those nuts on the right, Michelle Malkin and Charles Johnson, condemned beloved fast food bakery Dunkin Donuts for letting teevee chef Rachael Ray wear a Palestinian scarf in this ad?...

Dana Perino Confused By Most Things, But Specifically McClellan's Criticism: The White House has issued a Papal Bull in response to former press secretary Scott McClellans new book, in which he makes bland accusations about the Bush administration like they may not have...

'MY FIRZT VOTE IN MY WHOLE EFFEN LIFE ..AND ITZ FOR HILLARY': Way back in the early 1990s, America learned the hard way that strange e-mails from people with AOL e-mail addresses like krazi hott lucey are not hott even if they are krazi. In other words,...

John McCain Gets No Love From Hollywood: John McCain is doing his best to romance The Hollywoods, but he has found few wealthy gay liberals willing to listen to his uplifting message of war without end. As a result, he has only been able to...

Barack Obama To Puerto Rico: I'm Mexican, Too!: Heres Barry Obamas latest pitch to the Puerto Ricans, which he delivers in their native language. He seems to be mentioning, once again, that he was born on an island too. And then he says that...

Kwame Kilpatrick Vetoes His Own Removal: Things havent gotten much better since we last checked in on Kwame Kilpatrick, the comical mayor of Detroit and a leading contender for Barack Obamas black vice presidency. You may recall that his...

Somebody Got An Obama Tattoo On His/Her Leg!: Hey people, if you are in the Fort Wayne, Indiana area, you might stop by Studio 13 Creative Skin Design and ask Ryan Hadley for one of these sweet Barack Obama tattoos. Now GO GO GO, FIND US PHOTOS...

Brave Anti-O'Reilly Crusader Fired: Remember Barry Nolan, the cable news guy who courageously took a stand against some backwater TV organization giving Bill OReilly a prize for working once in the greater Boston metropolitan area?...

Poisoning The Well: New regulations make it harder than ever to go bankrupt these days — but that hasnt stopped many hard-working Americans from rising to the challenge. A U.S. businessman says...

Bush Propagandist Complains Of Bush Propaganda: Scott McClellan, one of approximately 200 Bush Administration spokesmen since 2001, left the White House a few years ago. During his tenure, he lied about Iraq, Katrina, Terror, and whatever else was...

Talking Points Memo

TPMtv: The Day in 100 Seconds

D'oh! (Anyone Noticing This?): Did Canadian PM Stephen Harper (attempted tamperer in the Dem primary election) manage to bumble his way out of a job? Looking more likely.

Go Joan!: What a pro ... Joan Walsh administers a nice smackdown to Christopher Hitchens on Hardball. Well grab the video. Late Update: Heres the video:

Bunning's the Guy?: Is Sen. Bunning (R-KY) the Republican senator who secretly blocked the confirmation of an Inspector General to oversee the $700 billion weve forked over to stabilize the financial sector? Our readers have gotten hard or soft nos from Sens. Coburn,

Deep Thought: I hate Obama for nominating so many people whove served in government before. Late Update: I think its a telling sign of the moment that the sarcasm of this remark was lost on more than a few readers. Later Update:

Trouble on the Horizon: Theres a lot of speculation about what Obamas foreign policy picks mean. But what was and remains clear to me is that Obama, like most but by no means all Democrats, believes that settling the mess of interconnected messes in

TPM Hires Capitol Hill Reporter-Blogger: Just after the November election, I told you how we were expanding our original reporting capacity in Washington by hiring two new reporter-bloggers, one to focus on Capitol Hill and another on the White House

TPMTV: Sunday Show Roundup Extra: More on the Mumbai attacks and on the group emerging as most likely responsible for them:

Bush: I was "unprepared for war": I thought it was an article of faith that they would have done it anyway.From ABC ...A lot of people put their reputations on the line and said the weapons of mass destruction is a reason to remove Saddam Hussein,

Your Help Needed: You may not know this. But an anonymous Republican senator has put a hold on the nomination of the nomination of Neil Barofsky, President Bushs appointee to serve as the Treasury Departments Inspector General for the $700+ of bailout money.

TPMtv: Sunday Show Roundup: After Mumbai: Its being called Indias own 9/11. After a 3-day terrorist siege in Mumbai resulting in nearly 200 people dead, the question now is who is responsible and what are the challenges for the international community to prevent a further escalation

Election Central Morning Roundup: Obama rolls out his national security team this morning at a Chicago press conference, while Sarah Palin campaigns for Sen. Saxby Chambliss in Georgia. That and the other transition and political news in the TPM Election Central Morning Roundup.

Not Good: I shudder to think that the charlatan Netanyahu could soon again be Prime Minister of Israel.

Election Central Sunday Roundup: Barack Obama is set to announce his whole national-security team tomorrow, most notably including Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State. That and other political news in todays Election Central Sunday Roundup.

Another Take: Neal Gabler in the LAT ...But there is another rendition of the story of modern conservatism, one that doesnt begin with Goldwater and doesnt celebrate his libertarian orientation. It is a less heroic story, and one that may go a

Walking a Fine Line: The Pentagon confirms to TPM Election Central that military officials told the Obama campaign he could not visit Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany yesterday with campaign aides in tow because that would violate DOD regs. We informed the Obama

Last Chance: Todays the deadline for applications for our Fall cycle TPM internship. Find all the details here.

Election Central Morning Roundup: CQ changes its ratings on 14 House races -- 12 in the direction of the Dem. That and the days other political news in the TPM Election Central Morning Roundup.

No title: Confessore in the Times ...Four Spitzer administration officials violated the states ethics law when they used the State Police last summer to gather travel documents they hoped would tarnish Joseph L. Bruno, then the State Senate majority leader, according to

An Ominous Growth: In the post immediately below I referred to Obamas audition for the role of head of state/commander-in-chief. And as a potential wartime president and in the rhetorical universe were now living in, this CINC test is inevitable and important for

Power Line

"Our Friends In Bombay": Thats the title of this essay by Christopher Hitchens. Hitchens clarifies something that I missed, for some reason: the origin of Mumbai. I first realized that Bombay had been renamed within the last year or two when, on an airplane,

Lessons from Mumbai: Arthur Herman, the distinguished historian, argues that two illusions (along with scores of innocent people) died as a result of the 60-hour terrorist rampage in Mumbai, India. The first illusion is that formal agreements between peoples and governments -- whether

An open door policy: When one door closes, another usually opens. The skillful politician is the one who, instead of trying to pry the closed door open, breezes through the newly opened one.As we have suggested In previous posts, this principle applies to the

Stormy Monday: I think it was Robet Christgau who coined the admonition: Dont ever count an old soul man out. Its an admonition that seems to be one of the lessons of the career of Lou Rawls, who died in January 2006

Beyond category: Macleans hails Mark Steyn as the new Bing Crosby. Mark earns the appelation in connection with Its a Marshmallow World, the single he recorded with his old pal Jessica Martin. Mark is selling the single for $1.00 together with his

William Katz: Tina Fey, Kingmaker: Occasional contributor Bill Katz holds down the fort at Urgent Agenda This morning he considers the intersection of show business and politics in the recent election:We do it after every election. We try to gauge the impact that Hollywood, and

From Hollywood to Bollywood: Andrew Breitbart writes:On the evening of Nov. 26, the biggest names in Bollywood walked the red carpet at the Bombay premiere of The President Is

A Culture of Weakness: We may never fully understand how ten armed men were able to terrorize a city of 19 million, but this is at least part of the explanation:In the first wave of the attacks, two young gunmen armed with assault rifles

It's honeymoon time and long may it last: Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post reports that Adm Michael Mullen, chairman of the joint chiefs, felt very good, very positive about his initial meeting with Barck Obama. That one-on-one encounter lasted 45 minutes.Mullen has every incentive to give a

Ambiguous tea-leaves, Part Two: Victor Davis Hanson detects in Barack Obamas early personnel decisions the outline of one of most profound bait-and-switch campaigns in our political history, predicated on the mass appeal of a magnetic leader rather than any principles per se. In this

Muslims "Worry About Image": Thats what the Associated Press says. Somehow, it seems like weve been down this road before:Muslims from the Middle East to Britain and Austria condemned Sunday the Mumbai shooting rampage by suspected

Ambiguous tea-leaves: Melanie Phillips takes little comfort from Obamas centrist appointments. In this post, she makes what I think is an indisputable point -- the president-elects selection of Hillary Clinton, Rahm Emanuel, Robert Gates, Jim Jones, etc. is consistent with either of

The message from Mumbai: Melanie Phillips takes a look at the atrocities committed in Mumbai and finds that they told us very clearly a number of things. Here is one message that should be hard to mistake: Doctors working in a hospital where all

Black Friday: We have finally entered (I think) what must be historys longest- and most eagerly-awaited recession. News reports and commentary have been so relentlessly negative for so long that it is easy to lose sight of the actual performance of the

"In the ranks of honour": Ron Radosh is the superb historian and author of The Rosenberg File (with Joyce Milton) and, most recently, Red Star Over Hollywood: The Film Colonys Long Romance with the Left (with Allis Radosh). Radosh now presides over his own aptly

Thinking about Mumbai: India's test, part 2: Our favorite State Department correspondent writes to comment:Excellent post on India. Too few people think clearly on India because were not used to dealing with them. I just wanted to comment on one small thing in the below paragraph:Meanwhile the

Why has Obama avoided the Georgia race?: The runoff between incumbent Republican Senator Saxby Chambliss and Democratic contender Jim Martin takes place this Tuesday. Barack Obama has avoided appearing in Georgia on behalf of Martin. Turnout is always a challenge in a runoff election. Obamas appearance would

A question for football fans: The Washington Redskins have a situation with their offensive line that to me raises an interesting question. The situation, probably not unique to the Redskins, is this: our starting right tackle, veteran Jon Jansen, is considered an excellent run-blocker but

Moderately misguided: Im a bit surprised by the equanimity, at a minimum, with which many conservatives have greeted Obamas decision to appoint the likes of Hillary Clinton, Tom Daschle, and Rahm Emanuel to key positions in his administration. But I probably shouldnt

Somebody Get Me A Gun: This post should be read in conjunction with the one immediately below. It describes a microcosm of Indias failure to defend itself aggressively against Islamic terrorism. The hero of the story is Sebastian DSouza, a picture editor at the Mumbai

Eschaton

Run, Toomey, Run!: One of the mostly ignored stories of 2004 was just how close wingnut Pat Toomey came to picking off Arlen Specter in the 2004 primary.Im in for $50 if you run, Pat!

Dessert Thread: Heres something from the youtubes.

Dinner Thread: enjoy.

Nobody Could Have Predicted: Except that they, you know, did.WASHINGTON – The Bush administration backed off proposed crackdowns on no-money-down, interest-only mortgages years before the economy collapsed, buckling to pressure from some of the same banks that have now failed. It ignored remarkably prescient

"She Never Goes Away": The Clintons just drive the press insane.

Meanwhile: Over there.BAGHDAD (AP) -- A series of bombs struck U.S. and Iraqi security forces in Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul on Monday, killing at least 32 people and wounding dozens more, Iraqi officials said.

Overnight: chat away

THREE HEADED MONSTER

Gerald Ford 1913-2006: Former President Gerald Ford passed away on December 26, 2006. We would like to take the time to reflect on this man who had

The First 100 Hours: Democratic leaders in the House have promised to pass several items on their legislative agenda in their first 100 hours in power. Potential items

Will Frederick Kagan's December 14, 2006, "Choosing Victory: A Plan for Success in Iraq" be the(...): Will Frederick Kagans December 14, 2006, Choosing Victory: A Plan for Success in Iraq be the option that President Bush pursues? If so, should

Are the Holocaust deniers something we should be concerned with?: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has convened approximately 70 researchers such as ex-Klansman David Duke to discuss their doubts about the extent of the Holocaust,

Where do we stand now with regard to Iraq?: There has been a flurry of diplomatic efforts in recent weeks to end the violence in Iraq. With the naming of a new defense

Dear Mahmoud,: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sent a letter to the American people. Here is your chance to respond.MRB:Dear President Ahmadinejad and Noble Iranians,Thank you for

Are Republicans happy or disappointed that Rep. Pelosi decided Rep. Hastings would not be Chair(...): Even before the election results were final, Republicans began voicing their outrage at the possibility that Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Fla., might become Chairman of

What role should Iran and Syria play in a post war Iraq ?: With the Bush administration being pushed toward a regional resolution to the war in Iraq, the question becomes what role, if any, should Iran

What should US economic policy be toward Asia?: With President Bush wrapping up his latest Asian tour, should any changes be made to US economic policy in regard to Asia, or are

What do we do about Iran's impending nuclear capability ?: President Bush has mainly been talking about economic and diplomatic isolation, however, the administration is also leaving open the option of military action. The

Can Lady Liberty's message be the same in an age of Islamic extremists ?: Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless,

Is Europe lost already?: With a history of lax immigration policies and emphasis on tolerance, has Europe already been lost to radical Islam? Is the United States headed

Which Presidential hopefuls are in the best position for 2008? Which ones are not ?: With the midterm elections behind us now, which candidates are best positioned for a Presidential run in 2008, and whose Presidential aspirations may have

2006 Election Post Mortem: The real question today is not just who won which race, but what the election results mean for each one of us and the

Exercise your right to vote !: Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a

Time to predict the outcome of the November 2006 election: Each of us will now set forth our respective predictions of the final overall outcome of tomorrows election. We will also predict the specific

Is going Negative a Positive ?: In the last few days before the election it seems like there are no political campaigns left that have not gone negative. The research

Can Barack Obama be elected President ?: In his victory speech, Senator Barack Obama said regarding his long shot candidacy... (When I announced my campaign) at the time, as many of

Should Iraq be Partitioned ?: President Bushs position is that partition as a solution in Iraq is a non-starter. Nevertheless, the idea of partition being part of the solution

Kerry gaffe: November gift ?: You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be

AMERICAblog

Trump Entertainment to miss $53.1 million payment: You dont really think Donald Trump would be treated the same as an individual homeowner, do you? Of course not. While people at the low end of the real estate market continue to be scape-goated by the Republicans for the

People make shit up during campaigns. Get over it already.: Im getting annoyed with the medias ill-informed questions about but, Obama said Hillary wasnt qualified during the campaign, and she said he wasnt qualified, so how, oh how, could he choose her and she choose him?Uh, because during a campaign

Paulson talks, markets tank almost 700 points: My goodness, another horrible day on Wall Street. Can he just shut his mouth and stay away from a microphone until the grownups arrive? It seems like every time he says something - anything - the market drops hard. There

Deconstructing Mark Halperin, quite possibly the biggest tool in the political punditry: John wrote a post last week about Mark Halperins hissy fit over election coverage. The guy who gets paid by Time Magazine to call Obama the Land of Lincolner thought media coverage was biased towards Obama. Halperin thinks if he

Lobbying and blissful ignorance led Bush to back off regulation: The Republicans continue to spin the credit crisis as the fault of the poor and minorities. Yes, the global credit crisis had nothing to do at all with repackaging complex securities where Wall Street made trillions in a program that

Dow closes down 679.95: 8,149.09Krugman on CNBC just said were in an economic free fall. It looks worse than Japan. He recommended a $600bn stimulus in the first year. The crisis will likely go on into 2010, and he wouldnt be surprised seeing the

Tina Fey on Sarah Palin and sexism: Theres a ridiculous article I just read on AP or Reuters (I dont know which, and dont plan to link), talking about how both Hillary and Sarah Palin were both victims of torrid sexism. Puhleez. First off, dont dare put

Tina Brown: Give "Meet the Press" job to Rachel Maddow: Huh. I dont disagree, but suspect NBC would find her too partisan. As if Stephanopoulos didnt face the same problem, and overcome it mightily.The Meet the Press panel needs fewer David Broders and more Christopher Hitchenses—irresponsible wits who can challenge

NBER: US recession started in December 2007: Theyre confirming what many of us already knew. This is going to be a long recession but at least the grownups are ready to take over from the kids.The U.S. economy entered a recession in December 2007, a committee of

'Twelve days of Christmas' up almost 11%: Bah humbug!Given the economic downturn, even the most romantic might balk at the $86,609 price tag for the items in the carol The Twelve Days of Christmas.Thats this years cost, according to the annual Christmas Price Index compiled by PNC

Obama on Clinton and Gates: Barack Obama is doing his news conference to announce his national security team right now. Heres the excerpt from the speech on Hillary Clinton and Robert Gates:I have known Hillary Clinton as a friend, a colleague, a source of counsel,

Calif. priest tells Obama supporters to confess because voting for Obama was a mortal swin: And the Catholics wonder why their membership is declining.A Roman Catholic priest has told parishioners they should confess if they voted for Barack Obama because the president-elect supports abortion.The Rev. Joseph Illo says his parishioners at St. Josephs Catholic Church

GOP's New Leader, Sarah Palin, is campaigning in Georgia today for Chambliss: While many GOP elected officials and pundits cringe at the concept of Sarah Palin as their partys leader, she is. Theres no doubt about it. Today, Palin is in Georgia to meet the GOP faithful. Ostensibly, this is a campaign

Monday Morning Open Thread: Good morning.I was traveling on Saturday so didnt get to post Bob Geigers compilation of the weeks best editorial cartoons. There were so many good ones that Im posting them now. Start the week with a few good laughs at

UK gives two week deadline to credit card companies: Hank Paulson was surely about to do this as well but somehow it slipped his mind. The US continues to allow the banks to get away with profiteering despite being saved from total failure, but thats the Republican way. As

Factories in Asia see decline in demand: Of course, how could the economies not be so tightly linked and dependent on each other? Now that credit has stopped in the West, who can afford to shop til they drop? The decoupling theory takes yet another hit as

My friend Tom wishes you a belated Happy Thanksgiving from Egypt: Dear Friends,Happy Thanksgiving.This year I find myself away from family and friends but after more than a week in the Middle East I feel closer to

Tomorrow, Obama announces the National Security Team: Tomorrow morning at 10:40 a.m. Eastern, Obama and Biden will hold a press conference in Chicago to announce their national security appointments. The big news is, of course, that Hillary Clinton will be named Secretary of State. Shell be at

Virginia is blue -- and getting bluer: Losing Virginia was a devastating blow to the Republicans this year. But, it wasnt a fluke. As the demographics of Virginia, particularly the ever-expanding Northern VA suburbs change, the state is turning even bluer. All that GOP immigrant bashing, and

Hitmen charge $100 a victim as Basra honor killings rise: Smells like... victory:Authorities in the southern Iraqi city of Basra have admitted they are powerless to prevent honour killings in the city following a 70 per cent increase in religious murders during the past year.There has been no improvement in

TPMCafe

Understanding Saddam: Whose Facts? And Which Ones?: The law is anything I write on a piece of paper. Saddam Hussein had a way with words. I came across this quote of his relatively early on in my research into Saddam and his inner circle for

The evolution of American liberal internationalism: Id like to thank the Book Club for hosting this discussion of The American Way of Strategy: U.S. Foreign Policy and the American Way of Life, which is now out in paperback just in time for the change

This Week At Cafe: We have two projects running at TPMCafe this week, both focused on Iraq. First well be running a discussion between TPMs own Josh Marshall and Alex Holmes, a co-writer of House of Saddam, a four-part miniseries documenting the rise and

Roger Cohen to HRC: Time for Tough Love in Israel: From Roger Cohen on todays NYT site, a timely recommendation:I think Olmerts words should be emblazoned on the wall of Hillary Clintons eighth-floor State Department office: We must reach an agreement with the Palestinians, meaning a withdrawal from nearly all,

Where the Bush-Cheney Power Grab Went Wrong: This will be my final post in this discussion, so let me once again offer my thanks to the participants, and to everyone who posted comments. One of my big complaints about the bulk of the columns and

Deadskins: It all starts with the owner. The Redskins play in an ugly stadium, built before the owner acquired the team, but the price gouging on every good and service, the lack of decent transportation, the terrible sound system, and exploitative

Get Ready for the Post-Mumbai Muslim Bashing: The Mumbai terror attacks were appalling. That should go without saying.But we all need to be on guard as the usual Muslim bashers go rushing to the barricades to indict Pakistan (with no evidence of its involvement) and Muslims in

The Iraq Pact: A Challenge for the Anti-War Movement: What does the US-Iraq Pact mean for the anti-war movement? It certainly may cement an American perception that the war is finally over, stranding the peace movement as public opinion turns its attention to the economy and the Obama administration.

Maybe Your Social Security Payments Weren't Such a Bad Investment: Yeah, the stock meltdown of 401Ks is making the Bush-McCain proposals for social security privatization look idiotic, but the Wall Street Journal of all places has a nice quantification of how valuable social security is for most families:The U.S. government

Michiko Kakutani Lists "America & The World" with Brzezinski, Scowcroft, and Ignatius in her TOP TEN: Hot damn! I am very excited today. A book, America and the World: Conversations on the Future of American Foreign Policy that I was very involved in helping to hatch

We Need A Weaker Executive: I appreciate Charles Homans concerns regarding the unintended consequences of criminal investigation and prosecution. The fear of an excessively restricted executive, however, does not seem to me to be one of those consequences. To the extent that the

A New Federalist Recovery: Just before the election, Michael Porter, the Harvard Business School expert of competitiveness, wrote an article for Business Week entitled Why America Needs an Economic Strategy. Although this would seem to be obvious, Porter points out that for 30 years

Paper Wealth and the Economic Crisis: Back when President Bush wanted to privatize Social Security he visited the office in West Virginia where the government bonds owned by the Social Security trust fund are stored. After viewing the bonds, Bush held a press conference and announced

Palestine First, Then Syria & Hebron Settler Outrage: Gershom Gorenberg, of the American Prospect, takes on the developing conventional wisdom to pursue Israeli-Syrian peace before moving to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Im with Gorenberg. An Israeli-Syrian agreement would be a good thing. But it would not resolve the bleeding

Congressional Inquiry Needed on Surveillance: When considering what to do about abuses of the past seven years, it is worthwhile taking stock of how far weve come. When President-elect Obama takes office, the worst abuses of the Bush administration will be at an

Sorting and Consensus: My thanks to Bill, TPM, and all the book club contributors and readers this week. This weekend, share a copy of Bills book with your favorite political opponent. Its readable, funny, and enlightening, and you will feel smarter,

Should universities profit from secret deals with credit card companies?: In 2002, the Ohio State alumni association, acting with the universitys approval, signed a contract to give MBNA the email addresses, mail addresses and phone numbers for 55,000 undergraduate students in exchange for a guaranteed minimum-payment and credit-card royalties from

Should we let communities "be themselves"?: No description.

Maybe It Should Be Obama-Clinton After All: I know we are supposed to ignore the polls -- especially when we dont like what they tell us -- but I cant. And they dont look especially good. Despite a disastrous month of July, John McCain is still only

McCain: The Foam on the Surge: The Columbus Dispatch has an interview with John McCain yesterday, in the course of which he doubled down on his bet that the only thing he has to say is smear itself:I will repeat my statement again, that would rather

All credits go to the authors of these sites. Without their hard work Original Signal would not exist. Last updated on December 2nd 2008 05:10 | Contact