Judge Orders Five Detainees Freed From Guantánamo  —  In the first hearing on the government's justification for holding detainees at the Guantánamo Bay detention camp, a federal judge ruled Thursday that five Algerian men were held unlawfully for nearly seven years and ordered their release.

Recount, Day 2: Coleman, Franken trade gains, losses  —  Today is Day 2 in the Minnesota recount of ballots in the overtime election struggle between Republican incumbent Norm Coleman and Democratic rival Al Franken.  The candidates traded modest gains and losses throughout the day.

Antiwar groups fear Barack Obama may create hawkish Cabinet  —  Activists note that most of the candidates for top security posts voted for the 2002 resolution authorizing President Bush to invade Iraq or otherwise supported launching the war.  —  Reporting from Washington …

Bum Rush  —  Obama's secret plan to muzzle talk radio.  Very, very secret.  —  Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, and other friends have spent the past year screaming about the horrors of Barack Obama.  And, while it's true that they talked ad nauseam about socialism and the Weathermen and Jeremiah Wright …

Waxman dethrones Dingell as chairman  —  California Rep. Henry A. Waxman on Thursday officially dethroned longtime Energy and Commerce Chairman John Dingell, upending a seniority system that has governed Democratic politics in the House for decades.  —  In a secret ballot vote in the Cannon Caucus Room …

GOP Takes Another Image Hit Post-Election  —  Republicans favor tacking right; independents offer mixed guidance  — USA - Democrats - Favorability - Government and Politics - Political Parties - Republicans - Americas - Northern America  —  PRINCETON, NJ — The Republican Party's image …

Why Arizona Dems Don't Want Napolitano at DHS  —  Arizona governor Janet Napolitano looks likely to be secretary of Homeland Security (thank you, leaky transition team).  Though many are applauding her candidacy, her pending appointment is raising anxiety among Arizona Democrats.

Obama Throws No Bones to Progressive Base  —  When is Obama going to appoint someone who reflects the progressive base that brought him to the White House?  —  He won the crucial Iowa caucuses on the strength of his anti-Iraq War stance, and many progressive peace and justice activists worked hard for him against John McCain.

Obama Raised Half a Billion Online  —  Barack Obama raised half a billion dollars online in his 21-month campaign for the White House, dramatically ushering in a new digital era in presidential fundraising.  —  In an exclusive interview with The Post, members of the vaunted Triple O …

McCain Pollster Explains Loss, Calls Frank Luntz A Moron  —  The chief pollster for John McCain's presidential campaign offered a candid diagnosis of how his candidate was done in, on occasion reserving harsh words for fellow Republicans.  —  Bill McInturff, speaking at a National Journal breakfast …

Mad Max and the Meltdown  —  How we went from Christmas to crisis.  —  Notwithstanding the cardboard Santas who seem to have arrived in stores this year near Halloween, the holiday season starts in seven days with Thanksgiving.  And so it will come to pass once again that many people …

Zogby won't duplicate Obama poll  —  Pollster John Zogby has rejected a conservative commentator's offer to sponsor a poll to test the knowledge of people who voted for John McCain.  —  The commentator was proposing to mirror a poll of Obama voters that caused a political uproar when it suggested …

World Leaders Don't Shake Bush's Hand At G20 Summit (VIDEO)  —  It appears in this video that President Bush's approval is in a sorrier state than polls indicate.  In a video taken at the G20 summit, Bush walks across a line of world leaders without shaking or being asked to shake any of their hands.

Joe the Plumber Lands Book Deal  —  Samuel J. Wurzelbacher, the presidential campaign fixture and John McCain advocate better known as Joe the Plumber, won't have to open his own plumbing business just yet: he has signed a deal to write “Joe the Plumber: Fighting for the American Dream.”

Conservative Transportation Policy  —  Politico reports on conservatives trying to think of some ideas: … I'm not sure exactly what Strassel has in mind, but to my way of thinking an enormous amount of good could be done if conservatives were more interested in applying really basic free market principles to transportation policy.

First Steps to GOP Recovery  —  How can the Republican Party rebound?  The first step would be to quit letting Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham set its agenda.  —  A second step would be for Congressional Republicans to actually try to help President-elect Barack Obama succeed …

The Bank Terrorist  —  Housing: For years, a self-described “bank terrorist” blackmailed banks into making bad home loans in our inner cities.  Now those loans are defaulting by the millions, and he's blaming banks.  —  Bruce Marks, founder of the leftist Neighborhood Assistance Corp. of America …

Modernity, Faith, And Marriage  —  Reading this piece by Rod Dreher is saddening to me.  What separates Rod from many others on the right is his passionate sincerity.  Even when he goes overboard, it's all real.  He's not a cynic; and he grapples in ways many others on the social right …

Exclusive: Pritzker turns down Commerce  —  Chicago businesswoman Penny Pritzker, national campaign finance chairwoman for the Obama campaign, has taken herself out of the running to be secretary of Commerce because of vetting issues, a Democratic official said.