Richardson withdraws as Commerce nominee  —  New Mexico governor cites pending investigation of business dealings  —  New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson on Sunday announced that he was withdrawing his nomination to be President-elect Barack Obama's commerce secretary amid a grand jury investigation …

Leading Democrat: Bush 'the worst president we've ever had'  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) - As the nation prepares for the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama, a leading Democrat is not letting up in his criticism of President George W. Bush.  —  “I really do believe President Bush …

Obama Eyes $300 Billion Tax Cut  —  WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama and congressional Democrats are crafting a plan to offer about $300 billion in tax cuts to individuals and businesses, a move aimed at attracting Republican support for an economic-stimulus package and prodding companies to create jobs.

For Israel, Chance to Strike Before an Ally Departs  —  For nine days, as European and United Nations officials have called urgently for a cease-fire in Gaza, the Bush administration has squarely blamed the rocket attacks of the Palestinian militant group Hamas for Israel's assault …

And there lie the bodies  —  The legend, lest it be a true story, tells of how the late mathematician, Professor Haim Hanani, asked his students at the Technion to draw up a plan for constructing a pipe to transport blood from Haifa to Eilat.  The obedient students did as they were told.

Gaza Update: Cluster Bombs  —  There's more evidence today of Israeli use of cluster bombs, originally noted by Laura Doty at Oxdown.  The Times of London features a photo in it's coverage (see Gaza Conflict slide show) with the following description:

Israel's Gaza strategy  —  In the fog of war, it isn't just the truth that falls casualty.  So does common sense.  Quite a few pundits seem to think that Israel lacks a strategy in Gaza.  But unlike the Lebanon war of 2006, this war has been planned in advance, and every stage has been war-gamed.

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine to head DNC  —  Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine has been chosen by President-elect Barack Obama to head the Democratic National Committee, a Democratic official said.  —  The pick is a bet that an energetic younger leader will help the party capitalize on the historic enthusiasm that swept Obama to his landslide win.

Who says conservative bloggers don't do reporting?  —  Before we fully launch into the action-packed first week of 2009, I want to provide you with a year-end wrap-up of original blog reporting on this site and across the conservative blogosphere.  Why?  Well, over the weekend …

Is NBC going to help Coulter sell this book?  —  As Media Matters for America has noted, author and syndicated columnist Ann Coulter recently announced that she is scheduled to appear on the January 6 broadcast of NBC's Today to promote the release of her new book, Guilty: Liberal “Victims” …

Justices' Ruling in Discrimination Case May Draw Quick Action by Obama  —  WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress are planning swift action to overturn a Supreme Court decision that made it much harder for people to challenge discrimination in employment, education, housing and other fields.

Woefully Misleading Piece on Value at Risk in New York Times  —  The New York Times Sunday Magazine has a long piece by Joe Nocera on value at risk models, which tries to assess how much they can be held accountable for risk management failures on Wall Street.