The Obama Gap  —  “I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible.  If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years.”  —  So declared President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday, explaining why the nation needs …

Unemployment Hits 7.2%, 16-Year High  —  With the recession in full swing, the nation's employers shed 524,000 jobs in December, the government reported Friday, and a rapidly deteriorating economy promised more significant losses in the months ahead.  December's job losses brought the total …

Barack Obama administration ‘prepared to talk to Hamas’  —  The incoming Obama administration is prepared to abandon George Bush's ­doctrine of isolating Hamas by establishing a channel to the Islamist organisation, sources close to the transition team say.

Jan. 1 Attack By CIA Killed Two Leaders Of Al-Qaeda  —  A New Year's Day CIA strike in northern Pakistan killed two top al-Qaeda members long sought by the United States, including the man believed to be behind September's deadly suicide bombing at a Marriott hotel in the Pakistani capital …

Mere Presidents  —  American leaders are mortal, not magical.  —  He didn't seem distracted, like he was thinking about lunch, and he didn't seem to be deflecting responsibility, but taking it.  This was a relief, and rather unusual in a Washington politician, or pretty much any politician.

Eric Holder pushed for controversial clemency  —  As deputy attorney general in 1999, Holder — now attorney general nominee — pressed subordinates to drop objections to clemency for 16 members of violent Puerto Rican nationalist organizations.  —  Reporting from Washington …

Cover-up continues  —  Pro-Israel and conservative blogs have been all over the story of CNN peddling a bit of Hamas theater today.  As you watch this video, take a good look at the supposed “victim” and the medical treatment he receives.  —  After the uproar erupted …

Online, Sarah Palin Has Unkind Words for the Press  —  Sarah Palin, still smarting over coverage of her vice presidential run, calls the media's reporting on her family “very scary” and says there may be “a class issue” that explains the more sympathetic treatment of Caroline Kennedy.

Not Doing Enough  —  Why I worry that Obama doesn't realize just how bad things are.  —  Does Barack Obama understand the seriousness of the economic crisis?  Yesterday, he laid out his economic agenda, and it was filled with all sorts of important exhortations and proscriptions.

What ‘Yes, We Can’ Should Mean for Our Schools  —  In 1994, we founded KIPP, the Knowledge Is Power Program, by starting one middle school in the South Bronx and one in Houston.  Today, KIPP is a growing network of 66 public charter schools serving 17,000 children in 19 states and the District.

Sheriff Accused of Stealing Jail Food Allowance  —  DECATUR, Ala. — The prisoners in the Morgan County jail here were always hungry.  The sheriff, meanwhile, was getting a little richer.  Alabama law allowed it: the chief lawman could go light on prisoners' meals and pocket the leftover change.

FORMER GOPER MIKE WANTS TO GET BACK IN  —  Mayor Bloomberg has begun reaching out to city Republican leaders to gauge whether he could run on the GOP line in his re-election bid this year, several sources told The Post.  —  The maneuvering began in the past two weeks, and sources said the mayor …

Mitch McConnell Lost His Testicles and Now Infects the Senate GOP With a Cancer  —  Allow me to be blunt:  —  There are some of you who have fallen under McConnell's spell in the same way the lefties have fallen under Obama's spell.  McConnell can do no wrong.

Two Endgames for Israel  —  WASHINGTON — Israel's leaders have purposely obscured their war aims in Gaza.  But there are only two possible endgames: (A) a Lebanon-like cessation of hostilities to be supervised by international observers, or (B) the disintegration of Hamas rule in Gaza.

Geithner Preparing Overhaul Of Bailout  —  Obama Team Broadens Scope to Secure Final $350 Billion for Rescue  —  Confronted with intense skepticism on Capitol Hill over the $700 billion financial rescue program, Treasury Secretary nominee Timothy F. Geithner and President-elect Barack Obama's economic team …

A Difficult Road Awaits Panetta at the C.I.A.  —  WASHINGTON — As every previous director could attest, succeeding at the helm at the Central Intelligence Agency requires an uneasy balance: being firm enough to impose a White House agenda without inciting a revolt, while winning allegiance …

Obama Picks CIA Veteran Brennan as Counterterror Adviser  —  Brennan Has Drawn Fire on Interrogations  —  Barack Obama has picked John O. Brennan as his top adviser on counterterrorism, a role that will give the CIA veteran a powerful voice on the government's use of security contractors …

High-Profile Doctor in Gaza Called an ‘Apologist for Hamas’  —  A high-profile Norwegian doctor who has said the September 11 terrorists were justified in their attack is now treating patients in Gaza and is being accused of presenting “hard-core propaganda” to TV interviewers in his telling of the conflict between Hamas and Israel.