Obama Picks Arne Duncan for Education Post  —  President-elect Barack Obama will name Arne Duncan, the superintendent of schools in Chicago, to be his Secretary of Education, a senior Democratic official and a second person close to the decision said.  —  Mr. Duncan is a Harvard graduate whose friendship …

Caroline Kennedy Is Seeking Seat Held by Clinton  —  ALBANY — Caroline Kennedy, the deeply private daughter of America's most storied political dynasty, will seek the United States Senate seat in New York being vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton.  —  Ms. Kennedy ended weeks of silence …

Urgent, just reported: Al-Zaidi in U.S. run Camp Cropper prison  —  Iraqi TV al-Sharqiya just reported on the news that AL-Zaidi is transferred to Camp Cropper prison [the Airport prison, managed by the American forces].  —  The TV Channel announced that Al-Zaidi is in a difficult condition …

Sarah Palin: Blagojevich's nerve?  —  Sarah Palin, Republican governor of Alaska, says she has wondered how long Rod Blagojevich, Democratic governor of Illinois, thought he might “get away with” an alleged scheme to sell the Senate seat of President-elect Barack Obama of Illinois.

Biden TIME  —  Outgoing newsmag bureau chief Jay Carney to be assistant to the vice president and his director of communications.

OBAMA'S PRESS CONFERENCE  —  At today's press conference, Barack Obama introduced his environmental team.  He then took some questions.  The only news that has come out of the event was Obama's exchange with a reporter who asked him whether Rahm Emanuel was in contact with Governor Blagojevich.

On Making Mitch McConnell Wet His Pants  —  User B.R. writes in: … B.R. raises several interesting points, but they ultimately point back to one thing: Harry Reid has been exceptionally ineffective as the Democrats' majority leader.  —  The number of cloture votes skyrocketed …

PATERSON IN A BLIND RAGE OVER ‘SNL’ SKIT  —  Gov. Paterson didn't see the humor in a “Saturday Night Live” bit that mocked his blindness.  —  During the “Weekend Update” segment of NBC's irreverent comedy show, actor Fred Armisen played Paterson, imitating his wandering eye, gravelly voice and blunt, self-effacing demeanor.

Gay penguins expelled from zoo colony for stealing eggs are given their own to look after following animal rights protest … A pair of gay penguins thrown out of their zoo colony for repeatedly stealing eggs have been given some of their own to look after following a protest by animal rights groups.

The Future of the Internet III  —  A survey of internet leaders, activists and analysts shows they expect major tech advances as the phone becomes a primary device for online access, voice-recognition improves, artificial and virtual reality become more embedded in everyday life, and the architecture of the internet itself improves.

Kidnapping Negotiator Is Now a Victim in Mexico  —  MEXICO CITY — An American security consultant who has helped negotiate the release of scores of kidnapping victims in Latin America was himself kidnapped last week in northern Mexico after delivering a seminar there on how to avoid that fate, officials said Monday.

Transcript: Cheney Defends Hard Line Tactics  —  In Exclusive Interview With ABC News, Vice President Dick Cheney Opens Up About His Hard Line Tactics  —  KARL: Did you authorize the tactics that were used against Khalid Sheikh Mohammed?  —  CHENEY: I was aware of the program, certainly …

Secret Service Shows Unusual Restraint in ‘Bizarre’ Shoe Incident  —  ABC News' Ann Compton Reports: U.S. Secret Service officials in Washington say they are satisfied their agents responded with “the appropriate level of reaction” when an Iraqi journalist hurled two shoes directly at President Bush during a Baghdad news conference.

It's official: Barack Obama elected 44th president  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  RICHMOND, Va. - As 13 electors cast ballots Monday for the nation's first black president in the Confederacy's old Capitol, Henry Marsh emotionally recalled the smartest man he ever knew …

In Bush vs. Flying Shoes, Viral Video is the Winner  —  President Bush has had to overcome many obstacles during the past 8 years, but nobody ever expected him to have to avoid an international crisis involving flying shoes.  And yet, this is the exact situation he faced on Saturday …

Cheney: Obama ‘not likely to cede authority’  —  Vice President Dick Cheney said Monday that President-elect Barack Obama will “appreciate” the expansions of executive power achieved during the Bush administration and is unlikely to cede authority back to Congress.

Orwell in Bailoutland  —  Oh, FireDogLake: … Did we all follow that one?  Failing to funnel billions to a failing business is a form of authoritarian punishment.  As an alternative, we're offered the proposition that we “want affordable, safe, fuel-efficient, environmentally sound cars built …

Accelerant poured around Palin's church  —  Arson: entrances and exits were targeted; the senior pastor says he's not aware of any threats.  —  WASILLA — Whoever torched Gov. Sarah Palin's home church tried to start fires in several places around the building, the federal agency assisting in the investigation said Monday.

Obama to tap Arne Duncan as Sec. of Education  —  President-elect Barack Obama will name Chicago Public Schools chief Arne Duncan as his Secretary of Education at a West Side news conference Tuesday morning, a transition official said.  —  The two men are friends and often play basketball together.

Résumé Long on Politics, but Short on Public Office  —  She has not held a full-time job in years, has not run for even the lowliest office, and has promoted such noncontroversial causes as patriotism, poetry and public service.  Yet Caroline Kennedy's decision to ask Gov. David …