Public Opposes Troop Surge by 61% to 36% Margin  —  Support primarily among Republican base  —  PRINCETON, NJ — President Bush will address the nation Wednesday night, and according to most reports, he will announce plans for a "surge" or escalation in the number of American troops in Iraq.

America's Boots on the Ground in Somalia  —  AMERICA'S BOOTS ON THE GROUND IN SOMALIA  —  The al-Qaeda affiliated Islamic Courts Union's (ICU) rapid retreat in the face of Ethiopia's military campaign in Somalia has puzzled many observers.  How could the Ethiopians roll up the jihadists so quickly?

Schwarzenegger Proposes Universal Health Coverage  —  California Plan Could Cost State $12 Billion  —  Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) on Monday proposed a system of universal health insurance for Californians that would make the nation's most populous state the third to guarantee medical coverage for all its residents.

DeMint endorses Romney for president  —  COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Sen. Jim DeMint has endorsed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney in the 2008 presidential race, according to a letter the South Carolina senator is sending to state Republicans.  —  The endorsement letter …

RED STAR OVER VENEZUELA  —  Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez has signalled his true intentions with more clarity than ever today, announcing that he would expropriate:  —  1. All the phone lines  —  2. All the electricity  —  As this happened, a provincial governor from Bolivar state …

Now that I have your attention  —  I love it!  First day of Swampitude and the left-wing blogosphere—which is overpopulated by illiberal leftists and reactionary progressives—is already attacking me: 24 mostly mingy comments about my Left Behind post, many of which seem to be steaming off …

ACLU sues state police  —  PROVIDENCE — The Rhode Island Affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union yesterday filed a federal lawsuit against the state police, alleging racial profiling and violation of the constitutional rights of 14 Guatemalan nationals during a July traffic stop …

RIPENS APPLE  —  BELCHING BOG BLAMED FOR CITYWIDE GAS STINK  —  Who cut the cheese?  —  New Jersey, apparently.  —  Across the length and breadth of Manhattan, people were asking, "What's that smell?" after a pungent odor like natural gas or rotten eggs blanketed the borough and northern …

Michelle Malkin's credibility, R.I.P.  —  It's time for warbloggers to find a new conspiracy theory to promote because their most recent one, which involved accusing the Associated Press of manufacturing a source in Iraq and colluding with the insurgents, blew up in their faces.

Geraldo wants to whoop up on Olbermann  —  So here's one I missed over the holidays — Geraldo Rivera coming to town and threatening to beat up on Keith Olbermann.  —  Apparently Geraldo was visiting with 104.1 FM's Monsters just before Christmas, when they asked him about the time he made …

After five years of torture, Bisher is slowly slipping into madness  —  False allegations from MI5 put my clients in Guantánamo Bay and the British government has failed them abysmally  —  G Brent Mickum  —  The day after tomorrow marks the confluence of two ignominious anniversaries.

THE STARTING GATE  —  Evan Bayh was uncharacteristically dispirited when I met him in the Russell Senate Office Building on a quiet Wednesday before Christmas.  For Bayh, who is fifty-one and was first elected to the Senate from Indiana in 1998, December will be recalled as a low moment in an otherwise high-achieving life.

ROSIE BLOWS UP AT 'LIAR' BABS  —  THE tension between "The View" creator Barbara Walters and co-host Rosie O'Donnell, sparked by O'Donnell's feud with Donald Trump, boiled over yesterday morning when the portly comic called Walters "a [bleeping] liar."  —  The fight started around 8:30 a.m …