Sen. Trent Lott to resign  —  NBC News: Minority whip would leave Senate before end of the year  —  NBC News has learned that Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., the minority whip is in the midst of informing close allies that he plans to resign his senate seat before the end of the year.

Rudy: It's time to unmask Romney  —  WINDHAM, N.H. — In a big strategic shift, Rudy Giuliani hammered Mitt Romney's record on three fronts, saying it was time to "take the mask off and take a look at what kind of governor he was."  —  Using some of the toughest language of his campaign …

Short of Funds, G.O.P. Recruits the Rich to Run  —  Confronting an enormous fund-raising gap with Democrats, Republican Party officials are aggressively recruiting wealthy candidates who can spend large sums of their own money to finance their Congressional races, party officials say.

Oprah Set to Campaign for Obama  —  DES MOINES — Oprah Winfrey is coming to town for Senator Barack Obama, his campaign announced today, scheduling a three-state tour beginning here on Dec. 8.  —  Ms. Winfrey, who has been fiercely protective of her extraordinary brand …

Rice's Turnabout on Mideast Peace Talks  —  At President Bush's first National Security Council meeting in January 2001, he announced that he did not want to be drawn into the shattered Middle East peace process, people at the meeting recalled, because he believed that former President Bill Clinton …

Winter of Our Discontent  —  "Americans' Economic Pessimism Reaches Record High."  That's the headline on a recent Gallup report, which shows a nation deeply unhappy with the state of the economy.  Right now, "27% of Americans rate current economic conditions as either 'excellent' or 'good …

Islamists target Arizona base  —  Fort Huachuca, the nation's largest intelligence-training center, changed security measures in May after being warned that Islamist terrorists, with the aid of Mexican drug cartels, were planning an attack on the facility.  —  Fort officials changed security measures …

Bush to Welcome Gore to White House  —  Former Political Rivals Meet as Nobel Prize Winners are Honored  —  Forget the Mideast peace talks.  A meeting that may require even greater diplomacy will take place Monday in the Oval Office, when President Bush receives America's Nobel Prize winners — including his one-time rival, Al Gore.

Flight logs reveal secret rendition  —  THE secret flight plans of American military planes have revealed for the first time how European countries helped send prisoners, including British citizens, to the Guantanamo Bay prison camp.  —  Despite widespread criticism of alleged human rights abuses …

Iraq sets a new trap for Democrats  —  Security in Iraq has improved of late.  Violence is down by about half from its peak.  Victory, whatever that means, is nowhere in sight, to be sure.  Progress, welcome as it may be, must be seen in context - and the broader picture is still too depressing to contemplate.