A Fatah Friend Writes: I'm Supporting the Israeli Air Force  —  It's a strange world, but there you have it.  I've been talking to friends of mine, former Palestinian Authority intelligence officials (ejected from power by the Hamas coup), and they tell me that not only are they rooting …

‘Magic Negro’ flap might help Saltsman  —  The controversy surrounding a comedy CD distributed by Republican National Committee chair candidate Chip Saltsman has not torpedoed his bid and might have inadvertently helped it.  —  Four days after news broke that the former Tennessee GOP chairman …

From the left, a call to end the current Dutch notion of tolerance  —  AMSTERDAM: Two years ago, the Dutch could quietly congratulate themselves on having brought what seemed to be a fair measure of consensus and reason to the meanest intersection in their national political life …

Add Up the Damage  —  Does anyone know where George W. Bush is?  —  You don't hear much from him anymore.  The last image most of us remember is of the president ducking a pair of size 10s that were hurled at him in Baghdad.  —  We're still at war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Reading Into Bush's Book List  —  In what without a doubt is the most astounding op-ed piece of the year, Karl Rove reveals that his friend and former boss, George W. Bush, has read probably hundreds of books over the course of his presidency.  One of them was Albert Camus' “The Stranger,” …

Stimulus Will Test Remaining GOP Clout  —  How much clout do Republicans have left in this town?  The first and best test of that question should come quickly next month, as congressional Democrats start moving an historically huge, Barack Obama-backed stimulus package under the wary eye of the minority.

2008 Weblog Awards Finalists  —  Here is a complete list of the finalists for The 2008 Weblog Awards.  Finalists badges (hosted by Imageshack) will be available Wednesday.  Voting is scheduled to begin on January 5, 2009.  —  Please note that the names of the Technorati Autority categories have changed …

White House adds $6 billion to auto bailout  —  The White House upped its commitment to bail out the American auto industry, moving late on Monday to send General Motors Corp. and its financing arm another $6 billion in federal money.  —  The new money brings the total of taxpayer-backed support to the carmakers to $23.4 billion.

Farewell to All That: An Oral History of the Bush White House  —  The threat of 9/11 ignored.  The threat of Iraq hyped and manipulated.  Guantánamo and Abu Ghraib.  Hurricane Katrina.  The shredding of civil liberties.  The rise of Iran.  Global warming.  Economic disaster.

Fallout begins after dismal holiday season  —  ‘The downturn has been catastrophic,’ according to one retail analyst  —  Fallout from the dismal holiday sales season promises to have a lasting impact on how the retail industry operates.  —  Retailers slash prices

Bristol Palin's baby makes Sarah Palin a grandma.  And he's a Republican  —  Sarah Palin's oldest daughter, Bristol, has had a baby boy — 7 pounds 7 ounces.  —  His name weighs in at only four pounds — Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston.  —  “The baby is fine.  Bristol is doing well.