'I don't work for Obama'  —  Democrats must be “very, very careful” to avoid overreaching and will not rubber-stamp President-elect Obama's policies, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Tuesday.  —  In an interview with The Hill, Reid said it is essential for Obama …

Obama Warns Trillion-Dollar Deficit Potential  —  WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama on Tuesday braced Americans for the unparalleled prospect of “trillion-dollar deficits for years to come,” a stark assessment of the budgetary outlook that he said would force his administration …

Specter Attacks Choice for Attorney General  —  WASHINGTON — A leading Republican senator issued a broad attack on Tuesday on President-elect Barack Obama's pick as attorney general, Eric H. Holder Jr., questioning his political independence.  —  The senator, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania …

The trouble with Sanjay Gupta  —  So apparently Obama plans to appoint CNN's Sanjay Gupta as Surgeon General.  I don't have a problem with Gupta's qualifications.  But I do remember his mugging of Michael Moore over Sicko.  You don't have to like Moore or his film; but Gupta specifically claimed that Moore …

Many Cubans Expect Obama to End Bilateral Hostilities  —  Many Islanders Expect Better Relationship With U.S. Under New President  —  HAVANA — Vicente González says that although Barack Obama is no Karl Marx — “he is a capitalist and likely an imperialist” — he has high hopes …

‘Senator’ Biden's trip raises concerns  —  Joe Biden has always had a flair for doing things differently - but his upcoming trip to South Asia may set a new standard.  —  The vice president-elect will be traveling to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.  But he won't really be traveling …

How Israel brought Gaza to the brink of humanitarian catastrophe  —  The only way to make sense of Israel's senseless war in Gaza is through understanding the historical context.  Establishing the state of Israel in May 1948 involved a monumental injustice to the Palestinians.

Synagogue set ablaze and anti-Semitic assaults soar in UK following Israel's invasion of Gaza … The number of anti-Semitic attacks in London has risen sharply following Israel's land assault on Gaza, Jewish community groups said today.  —  Their leaders have compiled a dossier of attacks …

Report: Al-Qaida No. 2 blames Obama for Gaza fight  —  CAIRO, Egypt - Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader lashed out at President-elect Barack Obama in a new audio message Tuesday, accusing him of not doing anything to stop Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip, according to an intelligence monitoring center.

Boost Private Investment to Boost the Economy  —  Excessive spending is what got us into this mess in the first place.  —  These days it seems like it is our patriotic duty to consume more.  And if we don't choose to spend more money ourselves, the government will do it for us.  —  But wait a minute.

11 gay bars get letters threatening ricin attacks  —  Eleven gay bars in Seattle were sent letters Tuesday threatening ricin attacks — in what some are describing as a hate crime.  The Seattle Police Department said it takes the threat seriously.  The department has seized the letters …

An economic game plan emerges  —  A closed door-meeting of the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday will be an early test of President-elect Barack Obama's economic plan, with Chairman Max Baucus hoping to use the executive session to judge support for the tax cuts and major health provisions at the heart of the $775 billion package.

Blair House Mystery Solved: It's John Howard  —  The veil is lifted.  We now know who is booked at Blair House, kicking President-elect Barack Obama and his family to the waiting list and across Lafayette Park to the Hay-Adams Hotel.  —  The only overnight visitor at the presidential guest manse …

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.

Charter 08 worries China  —  Police have detained activists behind the democracy petition, which has drawn diverse support.  —  BEIJING -  —  On Dec. 8, the police took Zhang Zuhua into a room in Beijing and sat him in a chair.  —  For 12 hours, they questioned him.  They brought him water, but no food.

Bush wants gate on route to Dallas home  —  Just like his father, President George W. Bush will return to Texas when he leaves office.  —  And just like his father, he wants a gate to be installed along a public street to limit access to his neighborhood.  —  Dallas City Manager Mary Suhm …

Terror in Turkey for Bnei Hasharon team  —  Bnei Hasharon experienced two hours of terror in Ankara on Tuesday evening.  —  Moments before the tip-off of the Israeli team's Eurocup encounter against Turk Telekom some 3,000 Turkish fans shouted ‘Allah Akbar’ and, by some accounts …

Obama's Choice for Solicitor General Has Left a Breach in a Long Paper Trail  —  WASHINGTON — The New Republic called Elena Kagan a “wonderwonk” for her work on tobacco legislation in the Clinton administration.  She was, the magazine said, “a nerd who can talk tough.”

Israel briefly halts Gaza attacks  —  Israel has halted military operations in Gaza for three hours in the first of a daily, planned ceasefire, it says.  —  An Israeli spokesman said it would allow Gazans to “get medical attention, get supplies... whatever they need”.

New poll shows Palin would trail Murkowski big in a Senate race  —  ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Even with the last election barely two months in the rearview mirror, some in the national media have speculated that Gov. Sarah Palin might make a run for the U.S. Senate in 2010 as a prelude to running for president in 2012.

Obama Seeks to Mend Rift Over Panetta  —  WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama and his top aides called lawmakers, deployed surrogates and offered public testimonials on Tuesday as they scrambled to mend a divide in Democratic ranks over the nomination of Leon E. Panetta …