India has right to protect itself: Obama  —  Text:  —  WASHINGTON: Sovereign nations have the right to protect themselves, US president-elect Barack Obama said on Monday, when asked if India could follow the same policy he advocated during his election campaign — of bombing terrorist camps …

Report Sounds Alarm on Threat of Weapons of Mass Destruction  —  The odds that terrorists will soon strike a major city with weapons of mass destruction are now better than even, a bipartisan congressionally mandated task force concludes in a draft study that warns of growing threats from rogue states …

Franken May Ask Senate to Intervene in Minn. Recount  —  Democrat Al Franken's campaign said Monday that as many as 1,000 absentee ballots were improperly disqualified in Minnesota's Senate race, and that it may appeal to courts or the U.S. Senate to order that those ballots be counted.

NO MANDATE FOR LIBERAL-NDP-SEPARATIST BACKROOM COALITION  —  On October 14, 2008 Canadians rendered a clear judgment in the Federal Election.  —  Stephen Harper and the Conservatives promised strong, certain leadership to protect Canada's future in a time of unprecedented turmoil.

Pardon Is Back in Focus for the Justice Nominee  —  WASHINGTON — In the much praised career of Eric H. Holder Jr., President-elect Barack Obama's choice to be attorney general, there is one notable blemish: Mr. Holder's complicated role in the 2001 pardon of Marc Rich, a billionaire financier …

Bill Clinton mentioned for wife's Senate seat  —  CNN Deputy Political Director  —  (CNN) — After eight years as senator from New York, Hillary Clinton is trading places, moving from Congress to the incoming administration.  —  On Monday, President-elect Barack Obama announced that he asked …

David Gregory To Moderate “Meet The Press”  —  David Gregory will take the reins as moderator of NBC's “Meet the Press,” the Huffington Post has learned.  Gregory has been a leading contender for the permanent spot since Tom Brokaw stepped in as interim moderator following Tim Russert's death in June.

Sink not running against Martinez  —  One of the Democrats' leading candidates to challenge Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) in 2010 has decided to pass up the opportunity, according to a source familiar with her decision.  —  Florida's chief financial officer, Alex Sink, has decided to run …

Better Questions, Please  —  Watching the Obama rollout of his national security team from overseas—I'm in Europe, on my way to Afghanistan—I was struck by the inanity of most of the questions from my colleagues.  Granted, these are political reporters, not national security or foreign policy specialists …

Broader medical refusal rule may go far beyond abortion  —  The Bush administration plans a new ‘right of conscience’ rule that would allow more workers to refuse more procedures.  Critics say it could apply to artificial insemination and birth control.  —  Reporting from Washington …

Fiscal Policy Puzzles  —  As a student of Alan Blinder, Larry Summers, and Stanley Fischer, I was trained to view the short-run effects of fiscal policy through the lens of Keynesian macroeconomic theory.  I am sure that many of the economists in the new Obama administration share that intellectual framework.

Congratulations, It's A Recession  —  Economists give birth to a 1-year- old downturn.  So when do things get better?  —  Good news.  The keeper of the business cycle books, the National Bureau of Economic Research, announced Monday what economists have been saying for a long time—this is a recession.

Bailout Monitor Sees Lack of a Coherent Plan  —  The head of a new Congressional panel set up to monitor the gigantic federal bailout says the government still does not seem to have a coherent strategy for easing the financial crisis, despite the billions it has already spent in that effort.

Statement by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates  —  Statement by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates  —  “I am deeply honored that the President-Elect has asked me to continue as Secretary of Defense.  —  Mindful that we are engaged in two wars and face other serious challenges at home and around the world …

Nominee Would Lead ID Program She Opposed  —  WASHINGTON — As governor of Arizona, Janet Napolitano, President-elect Barack Obama's choice for homeland security secretary, pledged that her state would not cooperate with a major domestic security initiative, the Real ID drivers' license program.

Bush says some voters backed Obama ‘because of me’  —  President Bush says he wants to be remembered as a president who stuck to his values.  (GETTY IMAGES)  —  (CNN) - President Bush told an interviewer that his presidency may have helped Barack Obama win the White House.

Britney Spears more popular than Barack Obama on Yahoo searches  —  Barack Obama will make history by becoming the first black US president, but in the world of internet search he trails the singer, Britney Spears.  —  Of the billions of searches carried out on the portal, Yahoo.com …