Emanuel Was Director Of Freddie Mac During Scandal  —  New Obama Chief of Staff, Others on Board, Missed “Red Flags” of Alleged Fraud Scheme  —  President-elect Barack Obama's newly appointed chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, served on the board of directors of the federal mortgage firm Freddie Mac …

A Butler Well Served by This Election  —  For 34 Years, Eugene Allen Carried White House Trays With Pride.  Now There's Even More Reason to Carry Himself That Way.  —  For more than three decades Eugene Allen worked in the White House, a black man unknown to the headlines.

Plouffe to the Senate?  —  Obama campaign manager David Plouffe speaks to the media in the spin room after the vice presidential debate at the Field House of Washington University's Athletic Complex on October 2, 2008 in St. Louis, Missouri.  (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Obama Victory Alters the Tenor of Iraqi Politics  —  BAGHDAD — Barack Obama may have been elected only three days ago, but his victory is already beginning to shift the political ground in Iraq and the region.  —  Iraqi Shiite politicians are indicating that they will move faster toward …

Franken's deficit: 236 votes  —  Sen. Norm Coleman's Democratic challenger is vowing to push ahead with a recount.  —  Just as Secretary of State Mark Ritchie was explaining to reporters the recount process in one of the narrowest elections in Minnesota history, an aide rushed in with news …

Dems split over Treasury choice  —  As Barack Obama faces mounting pressure to announce his economic team, Democrats are split over two of the leading candidates for Treasury secretary: New York Federal Reserve Chairman Timothy Geithner and former Clinton Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers.

‘Rock-bottom’ Republicans begin inquest  —  Senior Republicans were gathered in a secluded location in the Virginia countryside yesterday for an inquest into Tuesday night's devastating elections losses and discussion of how to rebrand the party.  —  The meeting in Shenandoah Valley …

The Great Debates  —  McCain bridled at reducing his opinions to sound bites.  Obama prepped as if he were taking the bar exam—nothing was left to chance.  —  This is part six of a seven-part in-depth look behind the scenes of the campaign, consisting of exclusive behind-the-scenes reporting …

Palin Aide Fires Back at Reported McCain Camp Slams  —  Says RNC, Not Palin, Responsible for Wardrobe Missteps; Rejects Other Complaints  —  Now that the defeated Republican presidential team of Sen. John McCain and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin have gone their separate ways, the knives are out and Palin is the one who is getting filleted.

Gays Hit Back at Mormons — Please Join Us  —  Given their history, Mormons know about being targeted for being different.  Yet in a full-on offensive, the LDS Church mobilized in favor of California's Proposition 8, a ballot initiative that bans gay marriage.

Georgia Claims on Russia War Called Into Question  —  TBILISI, Georgia — Newly available accounts by independent military observers of the beginning of the war between Georgia and Russia this summer call into question the longstanding Georgian assertion that it was acting defensively against separatist and Russian aggression.

Juicy Bits Surfacing in Rather Case: In 2004, CBS Considered Matt Drudge, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter Independent Panel  —  This week, Dan Rather's legal team submitted a memorandum to the judge overseeing Mr. Rather's $70 million civil lawsuit against his former employers …

Transition Rumint: Security Posts  —  As advisors to President-Elect Obama move swiftly into transition mode, speculation on possible appointments is heightened while those under consideration for the jobs have gone quiet.  But here are some names I am hearing and reading for national security posts:

69% of GOP Voters Say Palin Helped McCain  —  Sixty-nine percent (69%) of Republican voters say Alaska Governor Sarah Palin helped John McCain's bid for the presidency, even as news reports surface that some McCain staffers think she was a liability.  —  Only 20% of GOP voters say Palin hurt …

No hidden white bias seen in presidential race  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  WASHINGTON - Whether whites supported Barack Obama or not, they don't seem to have lied to pollsters about it.  —  Obama's election triumph on Tuesday presented no evidence …

America Serves … The Obama Administration will call on Americans to serve in order to meet the nation's challenges.  President-Elect Obama will expand national service programs like AmeriCorps and Peace Corps and will create a new Classroom Corps to help teachers in underserved schools …

www.change.gov smells like a fund-raising front  —  Government domain names (".gov") for websites are supposed to be restricted to eligible government organizations and programs.  —  Does Barack Obama's transition website, www.change.gov — which is basically a souped-up version of his campaign site — qualify?

THE REAL STORY?  —  I'm not sure whether this American University analysis is correct or not, but if it is, turnout was not the real story of the 2008 election: … A caveat: the AU study left out California and several other states.  Whether that projection proves right or not, this chart is noteworthy; click to enlarge: