History will show that George W Bush was right  —  The American lady who called to see if I would appear on her radio programme was specific.  “We're setting up a debate,” she said sweetly, “and we want to know from your perspective as a historian whether George W Bush was the worst president …

‘War on terror’ was a mistake, says Miliband  —  The foreign secretary, David Miliband, today argues that the use of the “war on terror” as a western rallying cry since the September 11 attacks has been a mistake that may have caused “more harm than good”.  —  In an article in today's Guardian …

New official portrait released  —  Today we are releasing the new official portrait for President Barack Obama.  —  It was taken by Pete Souza, the newly-announced official White House photographer.  —  It is the first time that an official presidential portrait was taken with a digital camera.

WARREN COUNTY, N.J. NEWS  —  Real-time news for Belvidere, Phillipsburg and more  —  Boy named Adolf Hitler, his sisters removed from parents' home by New Jersey authorities … State authorities have removed Adolf Hilter Campbell and his two sisters from their parents' home in Holland Township …

Obama to End Military's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Policy  —  WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama will allow gays to serve openly in the military by overturning the controversial “don't ask, don't tell” policy that marred President Clinton's first days in office, according to incoming White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.

Inaugural Freak Show  —  Blogs and Stories  —  You'll never believe how a Christian right congressman and two anti-abortion protestors have prepared the Capitol for the Obama's inauguration.  —  On January 7, second-term Republican Rep. Paul Broun of Georgia and two friends prayed over a door.

Sorry, No Details  —  Lots of emails from readers asking about the chat with the president-elect this morning.  It was totally off the record and I'm a stickler for those rules.  I can say, however, the following: it's hard to express the relief I feel that this man will be the president soon.

The Minnesota Recount Was Unconstitutional  —  There's still plenty of time for the state to get it right.  —  You would think people would learn.  The recount in the contest between Norm Coleman and Al Franken for a seat in the U.S. Senate isn't just embarrassing.  It is unconstitutional.

Geithner's Skill May Trump Tax Issue  —  WASHINGTON — If Timothy F. Geithner were a bank, he might well be considered “too big to fail.”  —  In better economic times, Mr. Geithner's confirmation to be President-elect Barack Obama's Treasury secretary might be in danger after the disclosure …

Gannett to Furlough Workers for Week  —  The Gannett Company, the nation's largest newspaper publisher, said on Wednesday that it would force thousands of its employees to take a week off without pay in an effort to avoid layoffs.  —  Gannett, which owns 85 daily newspapers across …

War on Hamas Saps Palestinian Leaders  —  JERUSALEM — Israel hoped that the war in Gaza would not only cripple Hamas, but eventually strengthen its secular rival, the Palestinian Authority, and even allow it to claw its way back into Gaza.  —  But with each day, the authority, its leader …

AP Slammed Bush's ‘Extravagant’ Inaugural in '05, But Now It's Spend, Baby, Spend  —  Four years ago, the Associated Press and others in the press suggested it was in poor taste for Republicans to spend $40 million on President Bush's inauguration.  AP writer Will Lester calculated the impact …

Poll: Broad Backing for Obama, Stimulus  —  WASHINGTON — Americans support the economic-stimulus plan being pushed by President-elect Barack Obama but worry the government will spend too much money and widen the budget deficit, a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found.

Shaky economy means ‘bye-bye baby’ for some  —  Birth rate expected to drop in U.S. as more couples delay family plans  —  Forget about cutting back on cable and pricey cappuccinos.  For some couples, a shaky economy means putting plans to grow or start a family on hold.

Bank of America to Get Billions in U.S. Aid  —  Deal Is Said to Be Reached on Fresh Bailout Cash; Lender Told Government It Needed Funds to Absorb Ailing Merrill Lynch  —  WASHINGTON — The U.S. government has agreed to commit billions in additional aid to Bank of America Corp. to help …

Bailouts and Stimulus Plans  —  There is an identity in macroeconomics.  It says that in any given year private investment must equal the sum of private savings, corporate savings (retained earnings), and government savings (the government surplus, which is more likely negative, that is, a deficit),

Key step to Chavez term law vote  —  Venezuela's national assembly has approved a constitutional amendment to remove limits on how many times President Hugo Chavez can serve.  —  The amendment, which applies to all elected officials, must be approved by a referendum within 30 days, a vote correspondents say is set to be close.

Changes to recruiting  —  As we made clear during our last quarterly earnings call in October, Google is still hiring but at a reduced rate.  Given the state of the economy, we recognized that we needed fewer people focused on hiring.  —  Our first step to address this was to wind down almost …

Newsweek Writer's Story Claiming That Torture Might Work Contradicts His 2006 Article Saying That It Doesn't  —  Newsweek Writer's Story Claiming That Torture Might Work Contradicts His 2006 Article Saying That It Doesn't»  —  In Newsweek's cover story this week, Evan Thomas and Stuart Taylor …

The Audacity of Hoops … The path is a familiar one: Ancestry in Kansas; influences from Africa; a kind of apotheosis in Michael Jordan's Chicago; eventual acclamation by the world.  And while, no, basketball itself won't be sworn in next Tuesday as the 44th president of the U.S. …

Rangel to reintroduce military draft measure  —  Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) likely will introduce his controversial legislation to reinstate the draft again this year, but he will wait until after the economic stimulus package is passed.  —  Asked if he plans to introduce the legislation again in 2009 …

Obama's early stumbles  —  Longtime listener, first-time caller.  Although I wasn't yet alive in the times it describes, I too was blown away (pun intended) by “The Weather Underground” film, not so much by the namby-pamby William Ayers — who for all his scandalous reputation …

Re: Ricardo Montalban  —  Jonah, I'm with you on Ricardo Montalban.  He was one of a select group of actors who could redeem almost any nonsense.  My memory of the Dynasty spin-off, The Colbys, is that he was cast as a guy called “Zach Powers” but played him as his usual Latin charmer anyway.

Movies Are Your Best Entertainment Value  —  As a professional filmmaker, I have to say I was as stunned as you when I read that the film industry suffered through another lackluster box office year in 2008.  The chief reasons for this appear to be the economy and Internet pirates, or possibly that Raisinette ebola scare.

In China, Bush remains a popular president  —  He is shown in a dozen flattering photographs at a Beijing exhibit marking 30 years of Sino-U.S. diplomatic ties.  Many Chinese openly express affection toward ‘Xiao Bush,’ or Young Bush.  —  Reporting from Beijing — Walk into the exhibit hall …

Can Obama save Geithner?  —  Barack Obama picked Timothy Geithner to save the U.S. economy.  —  But now, Obama has to save Geithner first.  —  Geithner's tax problems surfaced publicly Tuesday - but Obama's team has known about them for at least six weeks, waging a behind-the-scenes campaign …