Biden Unbound: Lays Into Clinton, Obama, Edwards  —  Loquacious Senator, Democratic Candidate on Hillary: 'Four of 10 Is the Max You Can Get?'  Edwards 'Doesn't Know What He's Talking About'  —  Senator Joseph Biden doesn't think highly of the Iraq policies of some of the other Democrats who are running for President.

Terror Plot: Ninth Arrest  —  A ninth suspect has been arrested by police investigating an alleged Iraq-style kidnapping and beheading plot in the UK.  —  It follows the detention of eight people at addresses in Birmingham earlier.  —  Assistant Chief Constable David Shaw, of West Midlands Police …

Devices Part Of Cartoon Marketing Campaign  —  (WBZ) BOSTON The suspicious devices which forced bomb units to scramble across Boston today were actually magnetic lights that are part of a marketing campaign for a television cartoon.  —  The reports forced the temporary shutdowns of Interstate 93 …

Gonzales to Release Spy Program Details  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Wednesday he will turn over secret documents detailing the government's domestic spying program, ending a two-week standoff with the Senate Judiciary Committee over surveillance targeting terror suspects.

Honesty in Elections  —  On Election Day last fall in Maryland, fliers were handed out in black neighborhoods with the heading "Democratic Sample Ballot" and photos of black Democratic leaders — and boxes checked off beside the names of the Republican candidates for senator and governor.

Giving Biden the benefit of the doubt?  —  It's sort of ironic that Biden stepped in it big time the same day he announces his exploratory committee for president.  Let's recap: … So some are saying that an editing decision could've made the quote sound worse. … It's within the realm of possibilities.

Slaughter Condemns Military Equipment Shortages as Waste Persists  —  New Pentagon Audit Confirms Troops Sent into Iraq and Afghanistan Without Adequate Equipment, Armored Vehicles, while Reconstruction Funds Squandered by Perpetual Waste, Fraud, and Abuse  —  Washington, DC …

New Blogmaster  —  This is both my first post to the Edwards blog and my announcement that I'm joining the presidential campaign for John Edwards for 2008.  I'll be taking over the job of Blogmaster (mistress?) over the course of the month of February.  —  The main two questions this brings up are: Why me?

Cheney's Handwritten Notes Implicate Bush in Plame Affair  —  Copies of handwritten notes by Vice President Dick Cheney, introduced at trial by defense attorneys for former White House staffer I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, would appear to implicate George W. Bush in the Plame CIA Leak case.

News tips & feedback  —  Manchester - He didn't directly take himself out of presidential contention, but former New York Gov. George Pataki told key Granite State Republicans last night he won't object if they want to closely examine and endorse other candidates.

Obama's Grudge Factor  —  These are chilly days on Capitol Hill ... and on the campaign trail for Fox News journalists — at least when they're anywhere near Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.).  —  Sources tell The Sleuth that the Obama camp has "frozen out" Fox News reporters and producers in the wake …

Columnist Molly Ivins dies  —  AUSTIN — Molly Ivins, whose biting columns mixed liberal populism with an irreverent Texas wit, died at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at her home in Austin after an up-and-down battle with breast cancer she had waged for seven years.  She was 62.

Air Force's role in Iraq could grow  —  More flights are likely along the Iranian border, sources say.  —  WASHINGTON — The Air Force is preparing for an expanded role in Iraq that could include aggressive new tactics designed to deter Iranian assistance to Iraqi militants, senior Pentagon officials said.

Dodd's Showing In Polls Laughable  —  At Least Comedians Have Noticed It  —  WASHINGTON — When pollster John Zogby asked a group of 339 likely Democratic voters earlier this month whom they wanted for president in 2008, one or two mentioned Connecticut's senior senator.

Franken tells DFLers he's running for Senate  —  WASHINGTON - Comedian and radio talk show host Al Franken has begun calling Democratic members of Congress and prominent DFLers to tell them he will definitely challenge Republican Sen. Norm Coleman in 2008, the Star Tribune has learned.