The recounting is done (with one exception)  —  The last of the ballots were stored away in Wright County late this morning.  So, except for 133 missing ballots from Minneapolis, the recounting from the U.S. Senate race is over.  —  By Curt Brown cbrown@startribune.com Except for 133 missing ballots …

The Note, 12/05/08: Another Senator Kennedy?  —  ABC News' Jonathan Karl, filling in for Rick Klein today Reports: The Big Three can't win for losing and it seems Barney Frank is already fed up with Barack Obama.  But first, an exclusive from The Note.  —  Another Senator Kennedy?

A Fourth Picture  —  As Dish readers know, there are only three public photographs that I could find of Sarah Palin pregnant with Trig (the McCain campaign insisted there were “loads” and then was forced to retract).  But we now have another.  The date of this photograph …

Shall We Call it a Depression Now?  —  Today's employment report, showing that employers cut 533,000 jobs in November, 320,000 in October, and 403,000 in September — for a total of over 1.2 million over the last three months — begs the question of whether the meltdown we're experiencing should be called a Depression.

A New Attorney Scandal?  Bush-Appointed U.S. Attorney Won't Vacate Office Under Obama  —  Mary Beth Buchanan was appointed by President Bush to serve as U.S. attorney in Pittsburgh in Sept. 2001.  Buchanan has held several significant posts within the Bush/Ashcroft/Gonzales Justice Department …

Justices Take Case on President's Power to Detain  —  WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to decide the most fundamental question yet concerning executive power in the age of terror: Can the president order the indefinite military detention of people living in the United States?

One More Question...  Incoming Obama administration director of speechwriting Jon Favreau (L) and a friend pose with a cardboard cutout of incoming Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at a party.  (Obtained by The Washington Post)  —  Updated 9:22 p.m.  —  By Al Kamen

McCain Campaign Spent $110,000 on Palin's Stylists  —  Gov. Sarah Palin's traveling makeup artist was paid $68,400 and her hair stylist received more than $42,000 for roughly two months of work, according to a new campaign finance report filed with the Federal Election Commission.

O.J. Simpson: 'I was stupid.  I'm sorry'  —  LAS VEGAS, Nevada (CNN) — His voice shaking, O.J. Simpson apologized in court for his role in an armed confrontation over sports memorabilia and insisted he was merely trying to recover property that had been stolen from his family.

‘At Least Bush Kept Us Safe’  —  The two words Democrats don't want tacked onto that sentence.  —  Washington  —  To drive through the suburbs of Northern Virginia is to marvel still at the widespread wealth, the mansions and mini-mansions that did not exist a quarter-century ago and that now thicken the woods and hills.

Obama Birth Certificate Protest at SCOTUS  —  Four days ago, Roger Bredow uploaded a video to YouTube beseeching like-minded people to come to Washington, D.C. and stand with him outside the Supreme Court.  “[Barack] Obama was born a dual citizen,” Bredow said, “British, and a citizen of the United States, at birth.”

Team of Heavyweights  —  President-elect Barack Obama has appointed an extraordinary team for national security policy.  On its face, it violates certain maxims of conventional wisdom: that appointing to the Cabinet individuals with an autonomous constituency, and who therefore are difficult to fire …

Vice President-elect Biden announces Chief Economist and Economic Policy Advisor  —  WASHINGTON, DC — Given the critical nature of the economic challenges facing America, Vice President-elect Joe Biden announced today the creation of a new position in the Office of the Vice President …

Missing atheist sign found in Washington state  —  (CNN) — An atheist sign criticizing Christianity that was erected alongside a Nativity scene was taken from the Legislative Building in Olympia, Washington, on Friday and later found in a ditch.  —  An employee from country radio station KMPS-FM …

Wake Up America  —  Will you pardon an occasional rant?  Isn't that partly what blogs are good for?  My subject today is the failure of Congress and the Bush administration to bail out the American auto industry.  If today's news stories are accurate, any bailout will have to await …

If It's Not Your Fault, Then How Come You're So Rich?  —  One notion gaining in popularity among writers for publications likely to be read by members of the financial elite is that maybe this whole “finding out who's responsible for this giant catastrophe” business is a mistake.

Stuart Taylor: Obama Should Conduct Illegal Surveillance  —  A pretty stunning Stuart Taylor column in the National Journal: … Kicking the term “Bush critics” around is a huge red herring in this context.  Bush is going to be out of office on January 20th.