Obama goes for the capillaries  —  Barack Obama delivers a rousing speech in Iowa on Saturday night, all but calling out Hillary Clinton, and then gets weak-kneed on Sunday morning.  —  Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., speaks during the Iowa Democratic Party's Jefferson Jackson Dinner on Nov. 10 in Des Moines.

Al Gore's next act: Planet-saving VC  —  The recovering politician is teaming with a legendary venture capitalist and bigtime moneyman to make over the $6 trillion global energy business.  A Fortune exclusive  —  (Fortune Magazine) — It's lunchtime on Sand Hill Road, and Al Gore wants answers.

Iran has a right to seek nuclear capability  —  is a writing fellow with International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, the 1985 Nobel Peace laureate  —  Some call it "the nuclear double standard;" others, "nuclear apartheid;" still others, "America's nuclear hypocrisy."

Michelle Obama: Inferiority Complex Prevents Blacks From Supporting Obama  —  Guess I won't be calling Mika Brzezinski a "newsreader" again anytime soon.  She went to Iowa over the weekend and scored an in-depth interview with Michelle Obama that included a highly-controversial suggestion from the candidate's wife.

A New Channel for Soft Money Starts Flowing  —  The so-called Wounded Warriors Act, legislation intended to improve health care for veterans, has attracted nearly unanimous, bipartisan support in Congress.  So why would the newly formed Foundation for a Secure and Prosperous America begin running …

'24' chief scoffs at Hillary  —  SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Hollywood producer Joel Surnow dismissed as "nuts" the notion that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton can be elected president and said he and other conservatives in the entertainment industry are leaning toward supporting Republican Rudolph W. Giuliani's presidential campaign.

TOP SPITZ MAN TOLD AIDE TO LIE: INSIDER  —  Gov. Spitzer's former communications di rector, Darren Dopp, asked another Spitzer aide to lie about the origins of the Dirty Tricks Scandal - including the governor's own allegedly extensive knowledge of the plot to smear the Senate's GOP leader, a well-placed source told The Post yesterday.

Lions for Lambs...Slaughtered  —  Looks like the Saturday night box office estimates are in and while Lions for Lambs basically doubled its take from Friday, $6.7 million in box office is only good for 4th place.  —  A distant 4th place: Bee Movie grossed $26 million, American Gangster $24 million, and Fred Claus $19 million.

A Failed Congressional Ploy  —  WASHINGTON — The ploy had been hatched behind closed doors by Democratic leaders of both houses.  A pork-laden appropriations bill filled with $1 billion in earmarks would combine with veto-proof spending for veterans.  Instead, the two measures were decoupled in a Senate party-line vote last Tuesday.

Security Guard Fires From Convoy, Killing Iraqi Driver  —  An Iraqi taxi driver was shot and killed on Saturday by a guard with DynCorp International, a private security company hired to protect American diplomats here, when a DynCorp convoy rolled past a knot of traffic on an exit ramp in Baghdad …

Even ascendant, Dems wary of 'liberal' label  —  The Democratic front-runner shied away, saying the "word" — noticeably not using the word — has taken on a connotation that "describes big government.  —  "I prefer the word 'progressive,'" she said.  It has a "real American meaning."

Ron Paul's record in Congress  — by Dave  —  In the comments thread to my previous post on Ron Paul, the indispensable Trefayne compiled a series of posts on Paul's track record as a congressman, particularly those bills he sponsored or co-sponsored.  —  Here's Trefayne:

Hurdles Stall Plan For Iraqi Recruits  —  Shiite Leadership Wary of Bringing Fighters Into Ranks  —  BAGHDAD — The U.S. effort to organize nearly 70,000 local fighters to solidify security gains in Iraq is facing severe political and logistical challenges as U.S.-led forces struggle to manage …

Colorado Springs and the Politics of Conformity  —  What are the effects of the Internet on democracy?  The answer depends, of course, on how people use the Internet.  But let's begin with a possible clue, coming from a small experiment in democracy, held in Colorado in 2005.

Rothenberg: The GOP's Not Dead Yet  —  If you listen to some election prognosticators, you get the sense that the 2008 election is already over.  It sometimes seems as if the only questions left are whether the Democrats will have 60 Senate seats and if so, how long it will take to approve single-payer health care.