Fred Wins, Iowa Loses  —  Why Carolyn Washburn should keep her day job.  —  HERE WE WERE on Wednesday, a nation of political junkies gathered around our televisions to watch the candidates debate each other one last time, and we had as a moderator one Carolyn Washburn, the editor of the Des Moines Register.

Clinton insiders question top aide's approach  —  Presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton speaks at a "town hall meeting" in San Francisco December 11.  (McClatchy-Tribune / December 11, 2007)  —  DES MOINES - On the eve of the final Iowa debate before the Jan. 3 caucuses …

Democrats Bow to Bush's Demands in House Spending Bill  —  House Democratic leaders yesterday agreed to meet President Bush's bottom-line spending limit on a sprawling, half-trillion-dollar domestic spending bill, dropping their demands for as much as $22 billion in additional spending …

The Man From Target  —  Huckabee!  Huckabee!  The man of the hour!  What is it that voters love so much about this guy?  Is it a hitherto inchoate yearning for a president who knows less about international affairs than they do?  Hope that a man who can lose 100 pounds could also get rid of the federal deficit?

Misreading the Iran Report  —  The extraordinary spectacle of the president's national security adviser obliged to defend the president's Iran policy against a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) raises two core issues: How are we now to judge the nuclear threat posed by Iran?

Subpoenas for Al Sharpton's aides  —  Teams of federal agents swooped down on up to 10 close associates of the Rev. Al Sharpton Wednesday, demanding the flamboyant clergyman's financial records since 2001.  —  Sharpton's former chief of staff said he was roused at his Harlem home about 6:30 …

The Cartoon Mitt Romney Doesn't Want You To See [VIDEO]  —  Posted by Oliver Willis, Oliver Willis.com at 4:32 AM on December 12, 2007.  —  That it's got over 500,000 views on YouTube can't help someone like Mitt Romney  —  I don't know enough about Mormon theology to know if this bit …

December 13, 2007 - Clinton Up, But Giuliani Slips In New Jersey Primaries, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Voters Want A Tough Stand On Illegal Immigrants  —  New York Sen. Hillary Clinton has increased her Democratic presidential primary lead in New Jersey while former …

Muslim helps Jews attacked on New York subway  —  NEW YORK (CNN) — A Muslim man jumped to the aid of three Jewish subway riders after they were attacked by a group of young people who objected to one of the Jews saying "Happy Hanukkah," a spokeswoman for the three said Wednesday.

Secular Europe's Merits  —  The cathedral here, on which work began in the 12th century, was once the largest in Scotland, until a mob of reformers bent on eradicating lavish manifestations of "Popery" ransacked the place in 1559, leaving gulls to swoop through the surviving facade.

C.I.A. Agents Sense Shifting Support for Methods  —  WASHINGTON — For six years, Central Intelligence Agency officers have worried that someday the tide of post-Sept. 11 opinion would turn, and their harsh treatment of prisoners from Al Qaeda would be subjected to hostile scrutiny and possible criminal prosecution.