Clinton's camp fires first salvo  —  WASHINGTON — Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's pollster fired an opening salvo at Sen. Barack Obama and John Edwards yesterday, claiming their campaigns are "stalled or falling" — and suggesting Obama isn't tough enough to withstand GOP attacks in 2008.

State of the Union: Unhappy With Bush  —  Bush's 33 Percent Approval Rating Lowest Since Nixon for President Entering State of the Union Speech  —  President Bush faces the nation this week more unpopular than any president on the eve of a State of the Union address since Richard Nixon in 1974.

U.S. Toll in Iraq Is 27 for Deadly Weekend  —  The United States military said that two marines died Sunday in western Iraq and that an additional seven service members died Saturday.  The deaths brought the weekend toll to 27 and made Saturday the third-deadliest day for United States forces since the war here began.

Rush of Entries Gives '08 Race Early Intensity  —  Two years before the next president is inaugurated and a full year before the first vote is cast, the contest for the White House is off to a breathtakingly fast start, exposing an ever-growing field of candidates to longer …

Bombs kill at least 65 people in Baghdad  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq - At least 65 people were killed and 113 wounded after two nearly simultaneous bombs struck a predominantly Shiite commercial area in central Baghdad Monday, police said.  —  The first blast occurred shortly after noon when a bomb left …

BREAKING: Sen. John Warner To Introduce Resolution Opposing Iraq Escalation  —  Sen. John Warner (R-VA) will introduce a resolution today "making clear that he does not support the President on increasing the troop levels in Iraq" and calling escalation "a mistake," CNN's Dana Bash reports.

McCain May Oppose Pick For Army Staff Chief  —  Senator Says Casey Led A 'Failed Policy' in Iraq  —  Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said yesterday that he is inclined to oppose President Bush's appointment of Gen. George W. Casey Jr. as the new Army chief of staff, on the grounds …

Facing the Islamist Menace  —  Mark Steyn's new book is a welcome wake-up call.  —  In the prologue to his new book, America Alone: The End of the World As We Know It, Mark Steyn sarcastically alludes to two people whom, in different ways, I know well.  The first is novelist Martin Amis …

Campaign Allegation A Source of Vexation  —  Days after Barack Obama jumped into the presidential sweepstakes, he was hit with a thinly sourced story from his past—39 years in his past, to be exact.  —  The allegation, by a conservative magazine, raised questions about whether the Illinois senator …

Documentary on beastiality premieres at Sundance Film Festival  —  PARK CITY, Utah — "Zoo" is a documentary about what director Robinson Devor accurately characterizes as "the last taboo, on the boundary of something comprehensible."  But remarkably, an elegant, eerily lyrical film has resulted.

We Can Win the White House  —  To build on our midterm gains, Dems should follow my '50 Percent Solution.'  —  I am blessed.  I love my job.  I wake up every Monday morning excited about the week ahead.  The one downside is how consuming it is.  I don't have much time for leisure activities.

Fragile Hopes for Bipartisan Rescue of Social Security  —  President Bush is renewing his call for a bipartisan effort on Social Security, but few other issues so clearly highlight the limits of bipartisanship these days, the mistrust and ideological division just barely below the surface.

Room For 1 More?  Kerry May Join Mix For President  —  (CBS4) BOSTON A John Kerry spokeswoman told WBZ's Jon Keller Sunday that he is in the final stages of his decision-making process regarding a run for president and an announcement is expected soon.  —  Another source close to Kerry …

D'Souza Mania  —  I've received a few emails noting that the New York Times Book Review gave Dinesh D'Souza's "The Enemy at Home" a pretty rough go of it.  It's my way to viciously wield a sort of velvet hammer.  Even when I'm being mean, I tend to leaven the festivities with jokes and wisecracks.

Blue Monday: The unhappiest day of the year  —  If you are feeling a little down then you can take solace in the thought that things are unlikely to get any worse.  —  Today, say experts, is the unhappiest day in the entire year.  —  Unpaid Christmas bills, nasty weather …

In Raw World of Sex Movies, High Definition Could Be a View Too Real  —  The XXX industry has gotten too graphic, even for its own tastes.  —  Pornography has long helped drive the adoption of new technology, from the printing press to the videocassette.  Now pornographic movie studios …