Hackers and Spending Sprees … The computer systems of both the Obama and McCain campaigns were victims of a sophisticated cyberattack by an unknown “foreign entity,” prompting a federal investigation, NEWSWEEK reports today.  —  At the Obama headquarters in midsummer …

EMANUEL ACCEPTS TOP SLOT IN OBAMA WH  —  From NBC's Andrea Mitchell  —  A senior Obama advisor confirms to NBC News that Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel has accepted the job of Chief of Staff for the Obama White House.  —  *** UPDATE *** In an email to NBC News, Emanuel spokeswoman Sarah Feinberg denies …

Obama considers stars for Cabinet  —  President-elect Barack Obama is strongly considering Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Environmental Protection Agency, a Cabinet post, Democratic officials told Politico.  —  Obama's transition planners are weighing several other celebrity-level political stars …

Gay-rights advocates to challenge Proposition 8 in court  —  Supporters of the measure, which passed Tuesday by a margin of about 52%, are outraged and say the voters have spoken.  —  After losing at the polls, gay-rights advocates filed a legal challenge today in California Supreme Court to Proposition 8 …

McCain's verdict on Palin: more trouble than a pitbull  —  The British ambassador reveals what the defeated presidential candidate really thinks of his running mate  —  So now we know what John McCain really thinks of his running mate Sarah Palin - and that's not just because of the awkward …

Notes from the collapse  —  This morning, after having absorbed the substantial victory of Barack Obama, I noticed a couple of interesting items in the data.  Barack Obama certainly won this race, but he won it with just a little more votes than George Bush won in his re-election bid, and the turnout models came up short.

Reid, Lieberman to meet  —  (CNN) — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will likely meet later this week with Joe Lieberman to discuss whether the Democrat-turned-Independent will be stripped of his Senate committee chairmanship, a senior Democratic leadership aide tells CNN.

EXCLUSIVE: Podesta Announces He Will Not Be Joining New Obama Administration  —  Today, President-elect Barack Obama announced his new transition team, which includes Center for American Progress Action Fund (CAPAF) President and CEO John Podesta as one of three co-chairs.

Election 2008: what really happened  —  After a quick look at the election results and exit polls (from www.cnn.com), some thoughts:  —  1. The election was pretty close.  Obama won by about 5% of the vote, consistent with the latest polls and consistent with his forecast vote based on forecasts based on the economy.

Voter turnout best in generations, maybe a century  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — America voted in record numbers, standing in lines that snaked around blocks and in some places in pouring rain.  Voters who queued up Tuesday and the millions who balloted early propelled 2008 to what one expert said was the highest turnout in a century.

Let's Make Sure We Keep it Clean in Oregon, Shall We?  —  Matt Lewis of Town Hall has caught wind of some questionable activity out in Oregon, where the tight, contested Senate race between Jeff Merkley and Gordon Smith is going to a recount this week.

The Treatment of Bush Has Been a Disgrace  —  What must our enemies be thinking?  —  Earlier this year, 12,000 people in San Francisco signed a petition in support of a proposition on a local ballot to rename an Oceanside sewage plant after George W. Bush.

Fight  —  Now back to the real world.  It's traditional that a new president get a honeymoon of some indefinite length.  It's also traditional for Republicans (and many conservatives) to act as Charlie Brown to Lucy with the football.  —  Obama will get the most lavish and extended honeymoon in history.

The McCain Belt  —  Interesting map available on the NYT home page shows the places where McCain did better than Bush did in 2004:  —  You can see why John McCain's principled stand against higher taxes on the wealthy would have a special resonance in this region.

A Way Out of the Wilderness  —  Well, we Republicans have just made history.  Not the type of history we wanted to make, mind you, but history nonetheless.  Not only did we lose the White House but, after losing our House and Senate majorities in 2006, we followed it up last night with even steeper losses in Congress.

Bittersweet  —  As thrilled as I am that the country has begun to shake off the curse of the GOP, this still hurts: … And naturally, the first words out of many of the gasbags' mouths were that this means the country is still “center-right” and that there is no mandate for progressive change.

Suddenly, it may be cool to be an American again  —  VIENNA, Austria - She was a stranger, and she kissed me.  Just for being an American.  —  It happened on the bus on my way to work Wednesday morning, a few hours after compatriots clamoring for change swept Barack Obama to his historic victory.

How He Did It  —  A team of NEWSWEEK reporters reveals the secret battles and private fears behind an epic election.  —  Barack Obama had a gift, and he knew it.  He had a way of making very smart, very accomplished people feel virtuous just by wanting to help Barack Obama.

The Man in the Arena  —  McCain concedes.  —  John McCain seemed oddly self-assured as he walked to the podium to deliver the final address of his 2008 presidential campaign—a concession speech.  He wore a blue suit, a light blue shirt and a gold tie that matched his wife's dress.

Stocks fall as investors ponder Obama presidency  —  Wall Street falls sharply as investors ponder impact of Obama presidency on business, economy  —  NEW YORK (AP) — A case of post-election nerves sent stocks plunging Wednesday as investors, again anxious about a recession …