Carter says U.S. tortures prisoners  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — The United States tortures prisoners in violation of international law, former President Carter said Wednesday.  —  "I don't think it.  I know it," Carter told CNN's Wolf Blitzer.  —  "Our country for the first time in my life …

Judge Bars Bush Crackdown on Illegal Workers  —  Plan Would Have Pressured Firms to Fire Up to 8.7M  —  A federal judge barred the Bush administration today from launching a planned crackdown on U.S. firms that hire illegal immigrants, warning of the plan's potentially "staggering" impact on law-abiding workers and companies.

Frosty reception  —  I tremble to return to the subject of the Frost family, if only because so many e-mailers in the last 72 hours seem to confuse a debate on health care with an analysis of my sexual inadequacy and the accommodational capacity of my posterior.

On CNBC's The Big Idea, Coulter said that "we" Christians "just want Jews to be perfected"  —  During the October 8 edition of CNBC's The Big Idea, host Donny Deutsch asked right-wing pundit Ann Coulter: "If you had your way ... and your dreams, which are genuine, came true ... what would this country look like?"

Paul Krugman, pussycat  —  The Conscience of a Liberal is um...not that polemic.  It's not that shrill.  There is an argument, to be sure, but the book has much more economic history than I had expected, and much more political history.  —  I've already blogged on The Great Compression …

Exclusive: Nearly 90 House Dems Sign Letter Pledging To No Longer Fund War  —  I've just learned that nearly 90 members of the House of Representatives have now added their names to a letter to the President pledging not to vote for any more funding for the war and only to vote for supplementals …

Terror watch: Gonzales lawyers up  —  Still under investigation by Congress and Justice Department lawyers who once worked for him, the former attorney general has turned to a leading Washington attorney to help him beat the rap.  —  No sooner did Alberto Gonzales resign as attorney general …

What Did Hillary Really Say To The Washington Post About Torture?  —  Hillary is taking a pounding in the blogosphere over this passage from today's Washington Post front-page interview with her, in which she appears not to take a firm stand against torture:

Smile, Though Your Head Is Aching  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was in a determinedly good mood when she sat down to lunch with reporters yesterday.  She entered the room beaming and, over the course of an hour, smiled no fewer than 31 times and got off at least 23 laughs.

Canada's Expectant Moms Heading to U.S. to Deliver  —  Mothers in British Columbia are having a baby boom, but it's the United States that has to deliver, and that has some proud Canadians blasting their highly touted government healthcare system.  —  "I'm a born-bred Canadian …

Put Some Steak on the Plate  —  Last night's GOP debate featured strong, pro-growth, supply-side policies from the four major candidates — Rudy, Romney, McCain, and Thompson.  As Steve Moore reports in today's Wall Street Journal political diary, Ronald Reagan was actually the big winner …

Malkin vs. Malkin  —  My first favorite scene in this movie is the one in the beginning where Michelle pees standing up next to Jesse.  But my second favorite scene is this one:  —  Sulkin' Malkin, August 27, 2004: … VERSUS...  Stalkin' Malkin, October 9, 2007: … BONUS QUOTE, BULIMIC CRY-FOR-HELP DEPT.:

Guantánamo Detainees Enjoy Historic Protections, Administration Says  —  The Bush administration, preparing for the next Supreme Court argument on the rights of the hundreds of detainees at Guantánamo Bay, asserts in a new brief that they "enjoy more procedural protections …