Obama Wants Journalist Gupta for Surgeon General  —  President-elect Barack Obama has offered the job of surgeon general to Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the neurosurgeon and correspondent for CNN and CBS, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.  —  Gupta has told administration officials …

Burris Backs Reid Into a Corner  —  Lost amid the scads of cameras and scrambling reporters seeking to get a glimpse or a word from former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris over the last 24 hours is one simple fact: Burris — and, by extension, embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich …

The World's Pornographic Interest in Jewish Moral Failure  —  Okay, yesterday I was depressed.  Today, I'm just pissed off.  It's absolutely astonishing to me how interested the world is in Israel's failings.  This is the source of a bitter but hilarious observation I once heard a Kurdish leader make …

Coleman sues over Minnesota Senate recount result  —  Republican Norm Coleman, who received 225 fewer votes than DFLer Al Franken in the U.S. Senate recount, will challenge the result in court.  He told reporters at a state Capitol news conference that a lawsuit, known as an election contest, would proceed.

Feinstein Explains Her Reticence* About Panetta Nomination  —  Just talked with Dianne Feinstein outside the Senate chamber about her qualms with the Leon Panetta nomination.  The incoming Senate intelligence committee chairman said that both President-elect Obama and Vice President-elect Biden called …

40 Palestinians killed in IDF strike on UN school  —  Israel Defense Forces tank fire killed up to 40 Palestinians at a United Nations school in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, medical sources at two hospitals said.  —  The attack brought the Palestinian death toll to nearly 600 in Israel's 11 …

End Times  —  VIRTUALLY ALL THE predictions about the death of old media have assumed a comfortingly long time frame for the end of print—the moment when, amid a panoply of flashing lights, press conferences, and elegiac reminiscences, the newspaper presses stop rolling and news goes entirely digital.

Stimulus arithmetic (wonkish but important)  —  Bit by bit we're getting information on the Obama stimulus plan, enough to start making back-of-the-envelope estimates of impact.  The bottom line is this: we're probably looking at a plan that will shave less than 2 percentage points off …

Biden will visit Asia hot spots before Jan. 20 inauguration  —  WASHINGTON — Sen. Lindsey Graham said Tuesday he and three other senators will join Vice President-elect Joe Biden this week on a trip to Southwest Asia that will effectively serve as the Obama administration's first foray into volatile Afghanistan and Pakistan.

“We have no grand political scheme”  —  I spent the morning at a lecture organized by GWU's outstanding Homeland Security Policy Institute's Ambassador's Roundtable Series featuring Israel's Ambassador to the United States Sallai Meridor.  It was a profoundly dismaying experience.

FL-Senate: Jeb Bush Will Not Run  —  Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush is expected to make a decision soon about whether he will run for the open Senate seat in Florida in 2010.  —  UPDATED, 3:48 p.m. ET: Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will not run for the open Senate seat of Sen. Mel Martinez …

Was Ike right about the “military-industrial complex?”  —  Remember notorious pacifist...I mean, five-star General Dwight D. Eisenhower's famous warnings about a “military-industrial complex?”  Turns out Ike was pretty darn prescient.  —  Here's why.  If you'd just lost your job …

Obama to ride in style in GM limo  —  Armored '09 Cadillac to carry new president in inaugural parade.  —  WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama is getting a new ride to go with his new address on Jan. 20.  —  General Motors Corp. recently delivered to the U.S. Secret Service a brand …

240,000 dollars awarded to man forced to cover Arab T-shirt  —  NEW YORK (AFP) - An airline passenger forced to cover his T-shirt because it displayed Arabic script has been awarded 240,000 dollars in compensation, campaigners said Monday.  —  Raed Jarrar received the pay out on Friday …

Obama deplores civilian deaths in Gaza, Israel  —  Breaking his silence on the conflict in Gaza, the president-elect deplored the civilian casualties, which have been overwhelmingly on the Palestinian side, after a meeting with fiscal and economic advisors today.

Panetta a ‘Brave’ Choice, Says Former CIA Agent  —  “Ishmael Jones” is a former deep-cover officer with the Central Intelligence Agency.  He is author of The Human Factor: Inside the CIA's Dysfunctional Intelligence Culture, published last year by Encounter Books.

THE FIRST TEN SENATE BILLS.  —  A Democratic aide on the hill passes along the first ten bills that Majority Leader Harry Reid will put in the hopper this evening to kick off the new session of Congress, as sent by leadership to various Senate Legislative Directors.

Bottoming Signs  —  Here and there are some small signs that the economy is at least bottoming — a crucial stepping stone to meaningful recovery.  —  For example, the ISM non-manufacturing services report released today for December came in at 40.6 on the composite index, compared to 37.3 in November.