Dems eye midnight regulations reversal  —  Today's edition kicks off a new focus by Politico's Lobbying team on four issues: the economy; defense and security; energy and the environment; and health care.  Each Tuesday until the Inauguration, we'll have the latest news on policy and personnel …

Senator Takes Initiative on Health Care  —  WASHINGTON — Without waiting for President-elect Barack Obama, Senator Max Baucus, the chairman of the Finance Committee, will unveil a detailed blueprint on Wednesday to guarantee health insurance for all Americans by facilitating sales of private insurance …

Liberal Pranksters Hand Out Times Spoof  —  Sorry, folks, the paper isn't free.  And the Iraq war isn't over, at least not yet.  —  In what appears to be an elaborate hoax, pranksters distributed hundreds or possibly thousands of free copies of a spoof edition of The New York Times …

Lobbyists Swarm the Treasury for Piece of Bailout Pie  —  WASHINGTON — When the government said it would spend $700 billion to rescue the nation's financial industry, it seemed to be an ocean of money.  But after one of the biggest lobbying free-for-alls in memory, it suddenly looks like a dwindling pool.

Heckuva job, McLame  —  From the man whose best-sellers include “Why Courage Matters” and “Character Is Destiny” comes this underwhelming reaction to the cowardly smearing of Sarah Palin by his own unnamed staffers:  —  “These things happen.”  —  Not: “Shame on the leakers.  I denounce and renounce them.”

Mischief in Minnesota?  —  Al Franken's recount isn't funny.  —  You'd think Democrats would be content with last week's electoral rout.  But judging from the odd doings in Minnesota, some in their party wouldn't mind adding to their jackpot by stealing a Senate seat for left-wing joker Al Franken.

Obama surfs through  —  The Obamas are a warm vision for the White House — but he should strive toward full transparency.  Plus: Yes, I still like Sarah Palin!  —  Dazed and confused.  A week after the election of Barack Obama, millions of American news junkies are in serious cold turkey …

ASSIGNMENT DESK: RAMBLING ABOUT KANSAS.  —  Rick writes: … This is a complicated question, and I have nothing definitive to say on it, but the outcome of the 2008 election makes it interesting to dig into.  —  First, you have to somehow handle the methodological dispute between Thomas Frank …

Fred Thompson may try for RNC post  —  Fred Thompson seems to be seriously considering a run for the leadership of the national Republican Party, as the GOP prepares to rebuild from the rubble of the 2008 election.  —  Supporters of Thompson, a onetime presidential candidate and former Tennessee senator …

AP Interview: Foley breaks silence on sex scandal  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Even today, two years after Mark Foley's very public fall from grace, the former congressman can't explain why he sent lurid, sexually explicit computer messages to male teens who had worked as Capitol Hill pages.

Why Palin Still Matters  —  Some readers think my continuing attempt to expose all the lies and flim-flam and bizarre behavior of Sarah Palin is now moot.  She's history - they argue.  Move on.  I think she probably is history.  Even Bill Kristol and his minions in the McCain-Palin campaign …

Dear Mr. President-elect, please take me off your spam list.  —  Dear Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Joe Biden, David Plouffe, John Kerry, Al Gore, et al.:  —  First, I want to congratulate you on last week's astounding victory.  I also want to take a moment to thank each of you for the many …

How to Fix a Flat  —  Last September, I was in a hotel room watching CNBC early one morning.  They were interviewing Bob Nardelli, the C.E.O. of Chrysler, and he was explaining why the auto industry, at that time, needed $25 billion in loan guarantees.  It wasn't a bailout, he said.

Top Two Officials In U.S. Intelligence Expect to Lose Jobs  —  The nation's top two intelligence officers expect to be replaced by President-elect Barack Obama early in his administration, according to senior intelligence officials.  —  A number of influential congressional Democrats oppose keeping Director …

Obama absent in GOP ad  —  This is an image from the end of a new NRSC attack spot in the Georgia senate run-off, and while Obama did feature as a bogeyman in Southern races the fall, he's certainly not the dreaded liberal of choice in a race that Republicans are working to de-link from the Obama surge.

‘Why Believe in a God?’  Ad Campaign Launches on D.C. Buses  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — You better watch out.  There is a new combatant in the Christmas wars.  —  Ads proclaiming, “Why believe in a god?  Just be good for goodness' sake,” will appear on Washington, D.C., buses starting next week and running through December.

Chris Matthews for Senate?  —  Pennsylvania was at the epicenter of the fight for the presidency in 2008 and, just one week after the Barack Obama's victory, the Keystone State is once again caught up in the political buzz with a new poll that tests “Hardball” host Chris Matthews' chances against Sen. Arlen Specter (R).