More oddities in the U.S. “debate” over Israel/Gaza  —  (updated below)  —  This Rasmussen Reports poll — the first to survey American public opinion specifically regarding the Israeli attack on Gaza — strongly bolsters the severe disconnect I documented the other day between (a) …

9 Muslim Passengers Removed From Jet  —  Others on Flight Say a Remark Was ‘Suspicious’  —  Officials ordered nine Muslim passengers, including three young children, off an AirTran flight headed to Orlando from Reagan National Airport yesterday afternoon after two other passengers overheard what they thought was a suspicious remark.

Aides: Democrats have plan if Burris shows up  —  (CNN) — Senate Democratic leaders think Roland Burris, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's pick to fill President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat, will likely show up on Capitol Hill Tuesday for the opening day of Congress …

HAPPY #*%!  NEW YEAR TO YOU, TOO!  —  COMIC KATHY LASHES OUT AT HECKLER ON CNN  —  Comedienne Kathy Griffin may be doomed to life on CNN's S-list after answering a heckler with a shrieking, vulgar tirade during the network's live New Year's Eve broadcast.  —  “Screw you,” she told the heckler.

Governor may be leaning toward Kennedy  —  Two people close to Paterson tell AP they believe she'll be his choice  —  ALBANY, N.Y. - Officials say the daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy will be the governor's choice to fill the New York Senate seat being vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Bigger Than Bush  —  As the new Democratic majority prepares to take power, Republicans have become, as Phil Gramm might put it, a party of whiners.  —  Some of the whining almost defies belief.  Did Alberto Gonzales, the former attorney general, really say, “I consider myself a casualty …

Two Advisers Reflect on Eight Years With Bush  —  White House Chief of Staff Joshua B. Bolten and national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley remember conferring with President Bush during the darkest days of the Iraq war, in 2005 and 2006, when violence was out of control.

Republicans to flee DC for inauguration  —  While millions descend on Washington for the historic inauguration of Barack Obama on January 20, some Republicans see it as an occasion to get out of town.  —  Out of power on both ends of Pennsylvania Ave and mostly out of favor on K Street …

Sources: Bennet will be Colorado's new senator  —  Denver Public Schools superintendent Michael Bennet is expected to be named Saturday as the future U.S. Senate replacement for Interior Secretary nominee Ken Salazar, according to two Democratic sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Some Conservatives Fear Obama Advisers Lean Too Far Left  —  To Some Conservatives, Advisers Are Alarmingly Liberal  —  To some staunch conservatives watching President Bush relinquish the reins of power to President-elect Barack Obama, a few too many ardent liberals are now crashing the gates.

Moderate Republicans may be in big demand in Senate  —  There are fewer of them, but Democrats may need them to break potential GOP filibusters.  —  Reporting from Washington — Congress has so few moderate Republicans that at least in the Senate they could squeeze into a Volkswagen Beetle.

End of the Year Brings A Burst of Settlements With Justice Department  —  The Justice Department has reached more than a dozen business-related settlements since the presidential election, with more in the pipeline for January, prompting lawyers and interest groups to assert that companies …