Geithner, Summers among key economic team members announced today  —  Chicago — President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden officially announced key members of their economic team today, naming Timothy Geithner as Secretary of the Treasury and Lawrence Summers as Director of the National Economic Council.

Bush pardons 14 individuals  —  Outgoing president also commutes the prison sentence of two others  —  WASHINGTON - The Associated Press has learned that President George W. Bush has granted pardons to 14 individuals and commuted the prison sentences of two others.

Holy Land Foundation defendants guilty on all counts  —  jtrahan@dallasnews.com  —  A jury on Monday determined that the Holy Land Foundation and five men who worked with the Muslim charity were guilty of three dozen counts related to the illegal funneling of at least $12 million to the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

GOP senator: We haven't learned  —  The Republican U.S. senator sits glumly across the restaurant table.  —  “I don't think we have learned much from the election in terms of what people want to see,” he says.  “We have the same gridlock.”  —  By the “same gridlock,” he means that party hard-liners …

Minner naming Ted Kaufman to fill Biden's seat  —  Gov. Ruth Ann Minner said today she will appoint Ted Kaufman, a longtime, close adviser to Sen. Joe Biden, to fill the senator's seat until a 2010 special election, a move that some warned could leave Delaware Democratic Party feelings bruised for years to come.

ANATOMY OF A MELTDOWN  —  Ben Bernanke and the financial crisis.  —  Bernanke says that he was “mistaken early on in saying that the subprime crisis would be contained.”  Photograph by Platon.  —  Some are born radical.  Some are made radical.  And some have radicalism thrust upon them.

Rice Likely to UN for Obama (Susan, Not Condi)  —  From Jake Tapper, George Stephanopoulos, and Martha Raddatz:  —  ABC News has learned that Dr. Susan Rice has emerged as the leading candidate to be President-elect Obama's nominee as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

Paulson May Ask for Remaining $350 Billion of TARP  —  Nov. 24 (Bloomberg) — Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, less than a week after indicating he would let the Obama administration decide how to use the second half of the $700 billion financial fund, is considering asking for the money.

The Odd Lies Of Sarah Palin XXV: The Turkey Massacre  —  The wack-job is once again denying reality.  Here's a sane person: … But Palin is now denying all of it, and implicitly calling the photographer a liar: … Who are you going to believe: Palin or your lyin' eyes?

Alan Colmes to Depart Top Rated Hannity & Colmes  —  FOX News Channel's (FNC) Alan Colmes will relinquish his role as co-host of Hannity & Colmes at the end of the year.  —  In announcing his decision, Colmes said, “I approached Bill Shine (FNC's Senior Vice President of Programming) …

Hillary Clinton and the Emoluments Clause: There's been talk about whether Sen. Hillary Clinton is disqualified from a position as Secretary of State by the Emoluments Clause: … Adam Bonin's Daily Kos blog has a bit more on this, but the short version is that a Jan. 2008 executive order …

POLITICAL NOTEBOOK: Freedom's Watch effort winding down  —  Conservative group's future undecided  —  Freedom's Watch, the conservative group backed by Las Vegas Sands Corp. Chairman Sheldon Adelson, is pretty much kaput, sources with knowledge of the organization said.

Perriello Wins House Seat  —  The State Board of Elections certified Virginia's Nov. 4 election results, which includes a win for Democrat Tom Perriello over Rep. Virgil H. Goode Jr., a longtime incumbent in southern Virginia.  —  Goode has not conceded the close race and has 10 days to ask for a recount.

Candidate For RNC Chair Was Member Of Whites-Only Country Club  —  Now here's a good way for the GOP to make the case that it hasn't been reduced to a southern regional rump party that's held hostage by intolerant crackpots: Elect as the new chairman of the Republican National Committee …

Markets Surge for a Second Day; Dow Up Nearly 400  —  A rescue plan for Citigroup turned into a boon for Wall Street on Monday, as stocks surged higher on the strength of financial firms buoyed by the government's sweeping plan to assist the ailing banking giant.

Bigotry on the Bus  —  A week after the election, I was riding the bus home in Santa Monica when we went past one of the many protests around the city against the narrow passage of Proposition 8, which amended the California constitution to eliminate marriage rights for an entire class of people.

CONSERVATIVE LADIES PRETTY IN MINK  —  Pretty in Mink: Conservative Leading Ladies  —  Ann Coulter is the author of six New York Times best-sellers, a popular syndicated columnist and a frequent TV pundit.  She is the 2004 recipient of the Luce Policy Institute's Woman of the Year Award …