Lieberman: Suck On That, Liberals! … I hope this puts to rest the notion that this is all some master stroke of kumbayah, of keeping your friends close and your enemies closer.  —  This is about telling you that you mean nothing.  That democracy is a nice word, but it should never threaten …

Obama's Attorney General  —  President-elect Obama has decided to tap Eric Holder as his attorney general, putting the veteran Washington lawyer in place to become the first African-American to head the Justice Department, according to two legal sources close to the presidential transition.

Hillary could reject State offer  —  Hillary Rodham Clinton isn't certain she would accept the Secretary of State post even if Barack Obama offers it to her, several people close to the former first lady say.  —  Press reports that portray Clinton as willing to accept the job …

Hagel takes aim at Limbaugh, Senate colleagues  —  (CNN) — As his Senate career nears its end, Republican Chuck Hagel isn't holding back when it comes to criticizing members of his own party — including conservative talk radio hosts.  —  “We are educated by the great entertainers like Rush Limbaugh …

Administration Protects Bush Appointees by Converting Positions to Career Civil Service Jobs  —  Political Positions Shifted To Career Civil Service Jobs  —  Just weeks before leaving office, the Interior Department's top lawyer has shifted half a dozen key deputies …

AFTER KRISTOL … It's time for the newspaper to move on.  For Pinch Sulzberger and Andy Rosenthal to renew Kristol's one-year contract, in 2009, would be for the Times to reward failure—and look where that got Wall Street and General Motors.  It's not just that Kristol isn't another Safire …

Zogby Engages in Apparent Push Polling for Right-Wing Website  —  The conservative website HowObamaGotElected.com reports that it has commissioned Zogby International to conduct a poll of 512 Barack Obama voters as part of what can best be described as a viral marketing effort to discredit the intelligence of Obama supporters.

TRAILER: Star Trek gets a sexy makeover in new film with love scenes, motorbikes and hunky stars … The eagerly anticipated Star Trek film is set to cast off the geeky associations of the sci-fi genre with a handsome cast, vicious fights and sex scenes.  —  A trailer for the new movie …

Obama To Name Peter Orszag As Budget Director  —  President-elect Barack Obama is preparing to tap Congressional Budget Office Director Peter Orszag, once a veteran economic adviser in the Clinton White House, to become his budget director, according to several National Journal sources.

Bad blood for Musgrave  —  It's no surprise Rep. Marilyn Musgrave is taking her recent loss to Betsy Markey really, really hard.  —  Musgrave, a Republican who's been representing Colorado's 4th District since 2002, became part of the Republican Casualty List when she lost in a landslide …

Obama Girls Get a White House Tour  —  After trips to two D.C. private schools, Malia and Sasha Obama are getting a special personal tour of the White House this afternoon, accompanied by grandma Marian Robinson and their mother.  —  “Mrs. Obama greatly appreciated this invitation to provide …

Victory in Iraq Day  —  We won.  The Iraq War is over.  —  I declare November 22, 2008 to be “Victory in Iraq Day.”  (Hereafter known as “VI Day.")  —  By every measure, The United States and coalition forces have conclusively defeated all enemies in Iraq, pacified the country …

Beau Biden Will Not Accept Senate Appointment  —  Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden will not accept an appointment to the Senate to replace his father, according to knowledgeable state sources, a decision that scrambles the race to to replace the vice president-elect in the Senate next year.

Web Sites That Dig for News Rise as Watchdogs  —  SAN DIEGO — Over the last two years, some of this city's darkest secrets have been dragged into the light — city officials with conflicts of interest and hidden pay raises, affordable housing that was not affordable, misleading crime statistics.

THE TRAGIC PREDICTABILITY OF THE JEWISH VOTE  —  Back in the 1980s, during the euphoria of the Reagan-era, Neo-cons like Norman Podhoretz and Irving Kristol predicted a seismic shift in Jewish voting patterns.  —  Once American Jews discovered that voting Republican was crucial for the survival …

OBAMA'S TOP NSA AND CIA PICKS: HARSH ON ISRAEL, SYMPATHETIC TO IRAN AND HEZBOLLAH  —  Well that was totally unpredictable wasn't it? … Totally, totally unpredictable: … The US should exercise “strategic patience” with Iran - who as of today has four navy bases in the Gulf …

McCain owes GOP a second concession speech  —  ANALYSIS/OPINION:  —  As is customary on election night, Republican presidential nominee John McCain called his rival, Barack Obama, to concede defeat and graciously wish the Illinois Democrat well as he prepares to move into the White House in January.

Jonestown reflections: 30 years later  —  The other evening I turned on the TV and came across this CNN documentary entitled “Escape from Jonestown.”  I watched for the next two hours, because to my surprise it turned out to be riveting.  —  Even though I recall Jonestown well and thought …