Plutonium found in Iran waste facility  —  VIENNA, Austria - International Atomic Energy experts have found unexplained plutonium and highly enriched uranium traces in a nuclear waste facility in Iran and have asked Tehran for an explanation, an IAEA report said Tuesday.

Pelosi 'will ensure' Murtha win, Murtha ally says  —  House Speaker-to-be Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) will ensure that Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) wins his race for majority leader, a key Murtha ally said Monday night.  —  "She will ensure that they [the Murtha camp] win.

The Military Commissions Act in action  —  The Bush administration's treatment of Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri ought to be shocking and horrifying.  Instead, it is now not only depressingly familiar, but also something that is formally sanctioned by the U.S. Congress.

The Media Are the Enemy  —  You're not going to believe this one.  —  All our suspicions about mainstream media slanting and distorting the news from the Middle East are confirmed in a bombshell of a post by Bruno Stevens, at the Lightstalkers pro photographers' forum: The Lebanon 'garbage dump' story: complete explanation.

Dated Kerry, Married Dean  —  Who won the election for Democrats last week?  Apportion a large measure of credit to the national environment and to Republican mistakes.  Give the Democratic grassroots, who cultivated candidates, knocked on doors and raised money for people and causes ignored (at first) by the national party.

Dozens Are Kidnapped at College Office in Baghdad  —  Several dozen employees of a university office were kidnapped here today, in a methodical daylight raid that prompted the minister of higher education to berate Parliament and threaten to shut the nation's universities until security improves.

Get Jim in Here, Pronto!  —  If I told you that there was something in Washington called the Baker commission but didn't tell you what it was about, you still could probably name many of its members.  If you are of a certain age, you might wonder, "Jim or Howard?"  And you might have a quibble or two.

The Karl Rove crush … My favorite article from the just-completed campaign season appeared in the October 9 issue of Time, in which Mike Allen and James Carney wrote a detailed piece about why Republicans were not worried about the upcoming elections.  "The G.O.P.'s Secret Weapon," read the bold headline.

Mo. Panel's Report Links Immigration To Abortion  —  A Republican-led legislative panel says in a new report on illegal immigration that abortion is partly to blame because it is causing a shortage of American workers.  —  The report from the state House Special Committee on Immigration Reform …

Bring On the Seinfeld Congress  —  A do-nothing Congress is bad for the local economy.  But it's fine for the rest of the country.  —  To continue reading this article, you must be a subscriber to TimesSelect.  Log in now.  —  What is TimesSelect?  —  Newspaper subscribers, upgrade to TimesSelect for free now.

Update: In FL-13, Court Battle Begins As Counting Continues  —  Lawyers for Democratic House candidate Christine Jennings threw down the gauntlet yesterday, asking a state court to secure electronic voting machines and data used in the election.  —  The move would preserve the equipment …

EXCLUSIVE-UN report links Somali Islamists, foreign militants  —  A web of nations and armed groups are fuelling Somalia's march to war, according to a U.N. commissioned report that offers detailed evidence of cooperation between Somali Islamists and established Islamic militants.

Al-Qaida plotting nuclear attack on UK, officials warn  —  Vikram Dodd  —  British intelligence officials believe that al-Qaida is determined to attack the UK with a nuclear weapon, it emerged yesterday.  The announcement, from an officially organised Foreign Office counter-terrorism briefing …