Romney for President  —  Many conservatives are finding it difficult to pick a presidential candidate.  Each of the men running for the Republican nomination has strengths, and none has everything — all the traits, all the positions — we are looking for.  Equally conservative analysts can reach …

DEMS HOLD FIRE ON HUCKABEE; SEE 'EASY KILL' IN GENERAL ELECTION  —  Democrat party officials are avoiding any and all criticism of Republican presidential contender Mike Huckabee, insiders reveal.  —  The Democratic National Committee has told staffers to hold all fire, until he secures the party's nomination.

InsiderAdvantage/Majority Opinion Weekend Survey: Obama Extends Lead in South Carolina  —  Compiled from InsiderAdvantage and Southern Political Report staff reports  —  An InsiderAdvantage/Majority Opinion survey conducted December 8-9 of likely voters in South Carolina's presidential …

House Democrats Pull Budget Offer  —  The GOP Is Negotiating In Bad Faith, Obey Says  —  A Democratic deal to give President Bush some war funding in exchange for additional domestic spending appeared to collapse last night after House Appropriations Committee Chairman David R. Obey (D-Wis.) …

Liberal views could haunt Obama  —  When Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) was seeking state office a dozen years ago, he took unabashedly liberal positions: flatly opposed to capital punishment, in support of a federal single-payer health plan, against any restrictions on abortion …

Larry O'Donnell admits he's afraid to criticize Islam publicly  —  Consider this post a companion post to Allah's, about the Muslim man who murdered his daughter because she wouldn't wear the hijab.  If you criticize the man and/or his religious motivation, consider yourself more courageous than one of the MSM's prominent pundits.

Huckabee to Romney: Grow Up, This Isn't Third Grade  —  (And even if it was, no one would like you...)  —  Just to pick up on what I wrote about last night and earlier today, Huckabee held a longish press conference here this morning after canceling some local events due to weather.

Bush to tap Glassman to shape US image  —  WASHINGTON - President Bush intends to name a well-known conservative commentator and journalist to lead the State Department's struggling efforts to improve the U.S.'s image abroad, replacing long-time confidante Karen Hughes, who is leaving government …

Dad charged in teen's death  —  A 16-year-old girl is dead and her father has been charged with murder after an attack in a Mississauga home.  —  Aqsa Parvez, a student at Applewood Heights Secondary School, had been on life support in hospital since yesterday morning.

How Ron Paul Can Ruin Fred Thompson  —  There's been a lot of buzz over Des Moines Register columnist David Yepsen's crusade against the possibility of campaigns organizing non-Iowa resident college students to caucus.  Most of the talk has been about whether Obama will pull in loads of Illinois college kids.

Sentencing Commission votes in favor of crack cocaine retroactivity  —  WASHINGTON, D.C.: Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), the nation's leading sentencing reform organization with 13,000 members - many of whom are incarcerated people and their families - praises the U.S. Sentencing Commission …

NBC refunds advertisers as ratings plunge  —  NEW YORK (Media Week) - Fourth-ranked broadcaster NBC has quietly begun reimbursing advertisers an average of $500,000 each for failing to reach guaranteed ratings levels, the first time a network has taken such a step in years, media buyers said.

GOP Tries to Avoid Unpleasant Surprise in Ohio  —  The reliably Republican nature of Ohio's 5th district would seem to make it an unlikely target for Democrats, but a target it is in Tuesday's special election.  —  And while political operatives from both parties scramble to downplay expectations …

Bush issues 29 pardons but Libby not among them  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush granted pardons to 29 people on Tuesday but Lewis "Scooter" Libby, a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney, was not among them.  —  There has been speculation that before he leaves office …