The Two Words That Strike Fear Into The GOP  —  They aren't Hillary Clinton, nor are they Ron Paul.  The two words that will haunt the early primary states are "brokered convention", and we may be heading towards it.  At Heading Right, I review the McClatchy analysis of what looks to be a Rudy Giuliani slide.

Reid: The American people are losing  —  If this is what winning looks like, then Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid wants no part of it.  —  Tired of Republican crowing about winning on Iraq funding, the budget battle and the energy bill, Reid (D-Nev.) shot back on Tuesday afternoon.

Huckabee Adviser Clarifies Remark About Homosexuality And Necrophilia: They're Both "Aberrant Behavior," But They're At "Opposite Ends Of The Spectrum"  —  By Greg Sargent - December 18, 2007, 4:57PM  —  Oh, man.  One of Mike Huckabee's chief advisers has just attempted to clarify …

Dems mull ousting Byrd as chairman  —  A group of Senate Democrats has begun quietly exploring ways to replace the venerable Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) as chairman of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, believing he's no longer physically up to the job, according to Democratic senators …

Elder Bush nixes Clinton trip idea  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Former President George H.W. Bush has shot down his successor Bill Clinton's idea of a diplomatic mission under a Hillary Clinton presidency that would send him and other notables abroad to assure other nations that "America is open for business and cooperation again."

New York Times in Iraq: "Blackwater shot our dog"  —  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S. embassy in Iraq is investigating another deadly shooting incident involving its Blackwater bodyguards — this time of the New York Times's dog.  —  Staff at the newspaper's Baghdad bureau …

F.C.C. Eases Media Ownership Rule  —  WASHINGTON — By the narrowest of margins, the Federal Communications Commission adopted proposals by its chairman to tighten the reins on the cable television industry while loosening 32-year-old restrictions that have prevented a company from owning …

Senate OKs $70B for Iraq, Afghanistan  —  WASHINGTON - The Senate voted Tuesday to provide $70 billion for U.S. military efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, handing a victory to President Bush and his GOP allies on Capitol Hill.  —  The 70-25 roll call paved the way for the Senate to pass …

Yes, Mrs. Clinton Was There, Too  —  IN THE CLINTON HELICOPTER ABOVE IOWA - Hillary Rodham Clinton finally had a friend who could sympathize with her: Even Magic Johnson was not a big enough star to steal back the attention that was showered on former President Bill Clinton at a campaign event in Des Moines this morning.

BBC's censorship of The Pogues: Reader fury  —  The BBC's decision to remove the word "faggot" from the classic Christmas song Fairytale of New York has roused the ire of Telegraph readers.  —  Music lovers of all political stripes and sexual orientations have posted messages …

A Brutalist Bargain  —  How many dollars does it take to change a light bulb?  Well, if the defunct bulb you're replacing has been illuminating the Third Church of Christ, Scientist in downtown Washington, you could be looking at a bill of up to $8,000.  That's because unscrewing a blown bulb …

Newsweek and MBA create a Ruckus on Newsweek.com  —  in - MBAMajorNews - MBANewsweek - MBAPressRelease  —  MEDIA BLOGGERS ASSOCIATION JOINS WITH NEWSWEEK TO LAUNCH 'THE RUCKUS,' A NEW GROUP POLITICS BLOG  —  THE RUCKUS FEATURES GUEST BLOGGERS FROM THE LEFT, RIGHT AND CENTER-PLUS KEY PRIMARY STATES

New Fred Thompson Video: Kill.  Protect.  Punch.  —  If Fred wants to win the election, all he has to do is put this in constant rotation in Iowa and his victory would be guaranteed...or he would actually drop into last place.  One or the other.

NATIONAL ENQUIRER WORLD EXCLUSIVE: JOHN EDWARDS LOVE CHILD SCANDAL!  —  The woman linked to Presidential candidate John Edwards in a cheating scandal is more than six months pregnant and telling a close confidante that Edwards is the father of her unborn child, The NATIONAL ENQUIRER has learned exclusively.

The Sound of a Million Elves Celebrating  —  To my surprise, I find I'm on New Line Cinema's PR list, so let me pass on this bit of news: Peter Jackson's gonna make two films from The Hobbitt: … Why did this happen now, after many years of bitterness between Jackson and New Line over the Lord of the Rings payouts?