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 …

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:

Orwell, blinding tribalism, selective Terrorism, and Israel/Gaza  —  (updated below)  —  Former McCain-Palin campaign spokesman and current Weekly Standard editor Michael Goldfarb notes that Israel, a couple of days ago, dropped a 2,000-pound bomb on a Gazan home which killed a top Hamas leader …

George H. W. Bush: I'd like to see Jeb elected president.»  —  This morning on Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace asked former President George H.W. Bush about the possibility of his son, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, running for Senate.  The former president expressed his hope …

Reid cracks Senate door open for Burris  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) indicated Sunday that there is a chance that controversial Illinois Senate appointee Roland Burris could be seated in the upper chamber.  —  Reid, who appeared on NBC's “Meet the Press,” …

THE HONEYMOON: OVER BEFORE IT BEGAN!  —  Many liberals have what strikes me as a touching faith that the election of Barack Obama will cause America to be better loved by people around the world, including those who are ideologically hostile to the United States.

Hoyer Says Don't Expect Stimulus Package Soon  —  Representative Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the House majority leader, expressed doubt on Sunday that the Jan. 20 goal set by some for getting a stimulus package before the new president could be met.  —  “It's going to be difficult to get the package together that early,” he said.

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.

Charity homes built by Hollywood start to crumble  —  RESIDENTS of a model housing estate bankrolled by Hollywood celebrities and hand-built by Jimmy Carter, the former US president, are complaining that it is falling apart.  —  Fairway Oaks was built on northern Florida wasteland by 10,000 volunteers …

The End of the Financial World as We Know It  —  AMERICANS enter the New Year in a strange new role: financial lunatics.  We've been viewed by the wider world with mistrust and suspicion on other matters, but on the subject of money even our harshest critics have been inclined to believe that we knew what we were doing.

Pro-Israeli rally draws thousands to Paris  —  French capital sees 12,000 demonstrators gather in show of support for Israel, Operation Cast Lead.  'Israel is simply fighting for its freedom, the survival of its people," says France's chief rabbi  —  Several thousand demonstrators waved Israeli flags …