Clinton Rules Redux  —  Man are these catty little MSNBC snots enjoying their full-on Demo bitch fest.  They are partying like it's 1999.  Norah O'Donnell, Lawrence O'Donnell, Mary Ann Akers and some other person I don't know have just spent half an hour discussing the fact that Nancy Pelosi ruined …

Free market economist Milton Friedman dead at 94  —  SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Milton Friedman, one of the most influential economists of the past century and winner of a 1976 Nobel Prize, died on Thursday morning of heart failure at a San Francisco area hospital, a spokeswoman for his family said.

Violence in Iraq Called Increasingly Complex  —  Attacks in Iraq reached a high of approximately 180 a day last month, reflecting an increasingly complicated conflict that includes sectarian clashes of Sunni and Shiite militias on top of continuing strikes by insurgents …

Boehner, Blunt take top GOP House posts  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans chose Rep. John Boehner as minority leader Friday, succeeding Speaker Dennis Hastert in the top GOP leadership post for the Democratic-controlled House that convenes in January.  —  Boehner defeated Indiana conservative Mike Pence.

OUR ENEMIES' GLEE  —  ISLAMISTS DREAM BIG AFTER U.S. ELEX  —  RADICAL elements across the Middle East see last Tuesday's defeat of President Bush's Republican Party as their victory.  —  Calling the election "the beginning of the end for Bush," Ayatollah Imami Kashani told a Friday congregation …

Why Iraq Is Crumbling  —  "A republic, if you can keep it."  — Benjamin Franklin, upon leaving the Constitutional Convention, in answer to "What have we got?"  —  We have given the Iraqis a republic, and they do not appear able to keep it.  —  Americans flatter themselves that they are the root of all planetary evil.

Military may ask $127B for wars  —  WASHINGTON — The Bush administration is preparing its largest spending request yet for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, a proposal that could make the conflict the most expensive since World War II.  —  The Pentagon is considering $127 billion to $160 billion …

Details of the AP-Ipsos poll on President Bush and Iraq  —  Demographics and details from the AP-Ipsos poll on President George W. Bush, Iraq and the United States' direction.  The poll was conducted by Ipsos, an international polling firm:  —  OVERALL: Bush's approval on his handling …

Sen. Baucus Says Outsourcing Fact of Life  —  In India, Sen. Max Baucus Calls Outsourcing of White-Collar Jobs a Fact of Life America Must Deal With  —  BANGALORE, India Jan 13, 2006 (AP)— Sen. Max Baucus, the top Democrat on the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, said Friday …

Bush: Vietnam war offered lessons for Iraq  —  HANOI, Vietnam — President Bush, on his first visit to a country where America lost a two-decade-long fight against communism, said Friday the Vietnam War's lesson for today's confounding Iraq conflict is that freedom takes time to trump hatred.

Hibernating Moose  —  For now, the Moose bids adieu to his Mooseketeers.  —  It's been a good run.  The Moose has tremendously enjoyed musing, observing and holding forth on the issues of the day.  But, for the time being, this cervine creature will not be seen in cyberspace.

Student Protests Patriot Act  —  The following video has been making the rounds, so let's all watch it, shall we?  At the beginning, the tased student is heard shouting: "Here's your Patriot Act, here's your f[vowel omitted]cking abuse of power."  —  He is referring, of course …

Let Them Eat Bullets  —  Foreign Affairs: A nation that's defended Europe from aggression in the 60 years since World War II is asking why Iraq can't defend itself.  The fact is, Iraqis risk their lives for their country every day.  —  Clearly the days when Democrats warned of a long twilight struggle …

Senate Dems plan overhaul of military tribunals bill  —  Gearing up for a major clash with the Bush administration and Republicans in Congress, several key Senate Democrats are planning to overhaul the newly minted legislation governing military tribunals of detainees.

Baron Cohen comes out of character to defend Borat  —  He is a comedian whose alter ego - a racist, sexist homophobe - has delighted many, appalled some and is selling out cinemas across Britain and America.  —  Now, after staying resolutely in boorish persona during previous interviews …

Bush Choice for Family-Planning Post Criticized  —  The Bush administration has appointed a new chief of family-planning programs at the Department of Health and Human Services who worked at a Christian pregnancy-counseling organization that regards the distribution of contraceptives as "demeaning to women."

Four Americans Kidnapped in Iraq, Austrian Civilian Killed  —  Four American and one Austrian civilian have been kidnapped in Iraq.  The five men were part of a convoy heading through the Shia dominated south of Iraq, but are thought to be held in a Sunni area.  That part of Iraq is generally patrolled by British forces.