“Why are the letters ‘NIG’ on the child's pajamas?”  —  Asks a commenter — “Tom” — on my post about the new Hillary Clinton commercial, the one that shows several children sleeping and then Clinton taking a national security phone call in the middle of the night.

Reuters/C-SPAN/Houston Chronicle Poll - Democrats Locked in Tight Races: Clinton Closes on Obama in Texas; Pair Deadlocked in Ohio  —  Republican John McCain retains wide leads in Ohio and Texas in advance of Tuesday's primaries  —  UTICA, New York - Democrat Hillary Clinton stemmed her losses …

46 Killed in Israeli Strikes on North Gaza  —  GAZA — Israeli aircraft and troops attacked Palestinian positions in northern Gaza on Saturday, killing at least 46 people and wounding more than 100 in the deadliest day of fighting in more than a year.  Two Israeli soldiers were killed and seven wounded, the military said.

Obama Calls for Help from NATO Allies in Afghanistan  —  US presidential candidate Barack Obama began sketching his position toward Europe on the campaign trail this week.  He said the US needs more support from its NATO allies in Afghanistan and implied Germany should lift its ban on combat operations in the dangerous south.

House Democrats may move to split spy bill  —  Under pressure to end an impasse over espionage legislation, House Democrats are considering a plan to vote on a bill next week that would give the government broad new eavesdropping authorities but strip out a provision that would protect phone companies from lawsuits.

Marion Cotillard's 9/11 conspiracy theory  —  Oscar-winning Marion Cotillard was facing embarrasment with her new American public last night after it emerged that she doubted the official account of the September 11 attacks.  —  The 32-year-old French star has swept this year's best actress awards …

Send in the Celebrities  —  In case the Democratic voters of Texas, Ohio, Vermont and Rhode Island are still having trouble making up their minds after nearly two weeks of uninterrupted campaigning in those states, the celebrities are here to help.  —  Two new videos are out on YouTube …

Feminist Infighting  —  There is a lot of discussion about “feminist in-fighting” of late, spurred by the election.  Jessica Valenti of Feministing.com is doing a piece on the subject for The Nation.  Here is my response to her query:  —  1. The fact is there have always been many …

Obama Ad In Texas: Are We Rounding Up Arab-American Families?  —  Update: Seems official - Out of many, One.  —  I haven't had time to look into this stuff from John Batchelor implying even more links between Obama and some dubious figures in, or with links to the Middle East.

As Developer Heads to Trial, Questions Linger Over a Deal With Obama  —  Tony Rezko was obviously in trouble.  He was a defendant in at least a dozen lawsuits, federal investigators in Chicago were poking around and his name was in newspaper stories about corruption and fraud.

'72 McGovern Team Rallies for One of Its Own: Clinton  —  AUSTIN, Tex. — Frank Herrera, a prominent lawyer in Texas, was sitting at home two Saturdays ago when he received a telephone call.  —  The voice at the end of the line was that of an old friend from Senator George McGovern's 1972 …

Ahmadinejad on historic Iraq trip  —  BAGHDAD - President Bush's last trip to Iraq was kept secret until he arrived at a U.S. military base.  Eight hours later he left, after Iraq's leaders traveled to meet him there.  —  In sharp contrast, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit …

Mondale's Red Phone Ad  —  Clinton always plagiarizes, doesn't she?

Day of Reckoning  —  A visitor to Clinton HQ sees signs of serious trouble.  —  The day of reckoning for Hillary Clinton is almost here.  The voters in Ohio will either deal a final blow to her campaign or provide a much needed victory that at best will give her a reprieve in the long march to the nomination.

Throw Out the Maps in 2008  —  It's time to throw out that old map with the red states and blue states.  The map that implies that all but a handful of states will definitely vote Republican or Democratic and that the real contest will be decided in Florida or Ohio or whatever.

Ship built with WTC steel christened  —  AVONDALE, La. - The USS New York, an amphibious assault ship built with scrap steel from the ruins of the World Trade Center, was christened Saturday as a source of strength and inspiration for the nation.  —  Thousands of people …