Former Treasury Secretary to Lead Economic Council  —  President-elect Barack Obama is expected to name Lawrence H. Summers as his pick to head the National Economic Council, an aide to Mr. Obama said Saturday.  —  The position is considered one of the top three economic posts in the administration …

Halperin at Politico/USC conf.: ‘extreme pro-Obama’ press bias  —  Media bias was more intense in the 2008 election than in any other national campaign in recent history, Time magazine's Mark Halperin said Friday at the Politico/USC conference on the 2008 election.

Barack Obama doesn't fear the enraged, impotent Netroots  —  Barack Obama isn't even President yet, and he's already angering some of his most devoted followers on the party's left wing.  This is the mark of what could be a very successful presidency.  —  “With its congressional majority …

A Letter to My Brother Newt Gingrich  —  I recently had the displeasure of watching you bash the protestors of the Prop 8 marriage ban to Bill O'Reilly on FOX News.  I must say, after years of watching you build your career by stirring up the fears and prejudices of the far right …

Barack Obama accused of selling out on Iraq by picking hawks to run his foreign policy  —  Barack Obama has been accused of selling out his promises of change in US foreign policy by putting national security policy in the hands of establishment figures who supported the Iraq war.

U.S. Muslim leaders denounce al Qaeda's slur toward Obama  —  NEW YORK (CNN) — Spiritual leaders of New York's African-American Muslim communities lashed out Friday at a purported al Qaeda message attacking President-elect Barack Obama and, using racist language, comparing him unfavorably to the late Malcolm X.

Barack Obama's aides believe he has made a mistake in hiring Hillary Clinton  —  Of all the appointments Barack Obama is making to his new cabinet, none has attracted as much attention as that of Hillary Clinton.  The way it has been handled says more about the future of his presidency than any other.

Ringed by Foes, Pakistanis Fear the U.S., Too  —  ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A redrawn map of South Asia has been making the rounds among Pakistani elites.  It shows their country truncated, reduced to an elongated sliver of land with the big bulk of India to the east, and an enlarged Afghanistan to the west.

Obama says he'll keep Chicago home  —  The Obama family will keep their home in Chicago's Hyde Park when they move to Washington in January, the president-elect told someone in a local deli.  —  A news camera caught Barack Obama saying in Manny's Deli on Friday afternoon the real estate market makes …

Citigroup Pays for a Rush to Risk  —  “Our job is to set a tone at the top to incent people to do the right thing and to set up safety nets to catch people who make mistakes or do the wrong thing and correct those as quickly as possible.  And it is working.  It is working.”

Obama to Take On Torture?  —  A torture protester during a rally on Capitol Hill  —  From the magazine issue dated Dec 1, 2008  —  Despite the hopes of many human-rights advocates, the new Obama Justice Department is not likely to launch major new criminal probes of harsh interrogations …

Time for Him to Go  —  Thanksgiving is next week, and President Bush could make it a really special holiday by resigning.  —  Seriously.  We have an economy that's crashing and a vacuum at the top.  Bush — who is currently on a trip to Peru to meet with Asian leaders who no longer care what he thinks …

Despite Army's Assurances, Violence at Home  —  On Christmas Day two years ago, Sgt. Carlos Renteria, recently back from his first tour in Iraq, got drunk and, during an argument, began to choke his wife, Adriana.  He body-slammed her.  He threw her onto the couch, grabbed a cushion and smothered her …

Obama outlines job-creation plan  —  (CNN) — President-elect Barack Obama on Saturday offered an outline of his economic recovery plan and jobs were the top priority.  —  American workers will rebuild the nation's roads and bridges, modernize its schools and create more sources of alternative energy …

Of Endings and Beginnings and Bailouts  —  I recently left my job of 12 years at Freescale Semiconductor (née Motorola Semiconductor Products Sector) and started with a new company, essentially out of the semiconductor industry and into the realm of making money by licensing intellectual property.

Sounding the Nuclear Alarm  —  The U.S. will not have a credible arsenal unless Washington acts soon to replace aging warheads.  —  New York  —  Gen. Kevin Chilton, a former command astronaut, is no stranger to cutting-edge technology.  But these days the man responsible for the command …