Forgive and Forget?  —  Last Sunday President-elect Barack Obama was asked whether he would seek an investigation of possible crimes by the Bush administration.  “I don't believe that anybody is above the law,” he responded, but “we need to look forward as opposed to looking backwards.”

Obama Pledges Reform of Social Security, Medicare Programs  —  President-Elect Says He'll Reshape Social Security, Medicare Programs  —  President-elect Barack Obama pledged yesterday to shape a new Social Security and Medicare “bargain” with the American people, saying …

“Iranian Unit” Destroyed, Hamas was Suprised  —  (IsraelNN.com) The so-called “Iranian Unit” of Hamas has been destroyed, according to Gaza sources cited Thursday by the Haaretz daily.  The sources said most of the unit's 100 members were killed in fighting in the Zeytun neighborhood of Gaza City.

Pragmatist-in-Chief  —  PRESIDENT-ELECT Barack Obama came to The Post editorial board yesterday with two messages sketchy on details yet reassuring in approach: a commitment to fiscal discipline, and a determination not to be bound by liberal, or indeed any, orthodoxy.

The secret dinner with Obama you haven't heard about  —  At a quiet dinner meeting late last week in Washington's Ronald Reagan Building, President-elect Obama reached out to outside foreign-policy experts, trying to resist the presidential bubble that is rapidly closing around him.

Rescue of Banks Hints at Nationalization  —  WASHINGTON — Last fall, as Federal Reserve and Treasury Department officials rode to the rescue of one financial institution after another, they took great pains to avoid doing anything that smacked of nationalizing banks.  —  They may no longer have that luxury.

The real reason Bill Clinton pardoned Marc Rich  —  Eric Holder is sworn in at his confirmation hearing Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill.  —  From beginning to end, the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Eric Holder's nomination as attorney general observed …

In case you were wondering, about that airplane in the Hudson  —  Yes, it is right to view the pilot, CB Sullenberger, as a hero for the mental composure and technical skill he showed after he (reportedly) lost power in both engines.  * Plus to celebrate the combination of luck and teamwork …

It's over: Bush staffers make exits  —  The president will be the president until 12 noon Tuesday, but most of his employees will be gone by the close of business Friday.  —  They'll turn in their BlackBerrys, laptops, building passes and gym keys.  —  And by the time the weekend is out …

Federal tax dollars are going to clowns... literally.  CLOWNS.  —  Yes, literally clowns.  And not just just any clowns.  Clowns who teach middle schoolers sex education!  —  The good folks at the AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland were kind enough to send this info to me touting the work …

King: Obama ‘bizarre’ to use ‘Hussein’  —  Apologize?  Not so much.  —  But Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), who last March predicted Al Qaida would be “dancing in the streets” if Barack Obama were elected president, now concedes that the dynamic has merely “shifted” on the terrorist front.

Praise Heaped on Veteran Airman for Pulling Off Rare Feat  —  The pilots of US Airways Flight 1549 achieved one of the rarest and most technically challenging feats in commercial aviation: landing on water without fatalities.  —  Although commercial jetliners are equipped with life vests …

Tom Hanks Says Mormon Supporters of Proposition 8 ‘Un-American’  —  LOS ANGELES —  Tom Hanks Says Mormon Supporters of Prop-8 “Un-American”  —  Tom Hanks, Executive Producer for HBO's controversial polygamist series “Big Love,” made his feelings toward the Mormon Church's involvement …

Fresh Clues of Iranian Nuclear Intrigue  —  WASHINGTON — U.S. security and law-enforcement officials say they have fresh evidence of recent efforts by Iran to evade sanctions and acquire metals from China used in high-tech weaponry, including long-range nuclear missiles.

This Miracle Brought to You by America's Unions  —  They're calling it a miracle—the successful landing of a US Airways jet in the Hudson and subsequent rescue of all 155 passengers.  They're detailing the heroism of all involved, starting with the pilot and including cabin crew, ferry crews, and first responders.

Dawson pledges to becomes Obama's and Democrats' ‘worst nightmare’  —  For all the talk of a new era of cooperation in Washington, candidates for chairman of the RNC — the ultimate partisan job, after all — are having none of it.  —  In this new video, South Carolina GOP chair Katon Dawson …

Mexico's Instability Is a Real Problem  —  Don't discount the possibility of a failed state next door.  —  Mexico is now in the midst of a vicious drug war.  Police officers are being bribed and, especially near the United States border, gunned down.  Kidnappings and extortion are common place.

Video shows proof of phosphorus bombs in Gaza  —  Video showing injuries consistent with the use of white phosphorus shells has been filmed inside hospitals treating Palestinian wounded in Gaza City.  —  Contact with the shell remnants causes severe burns, sometimes burning the skin to the bone …

Dodd Will Not Mirror Frank's Bailout Bill  —  I just received confirmation from a congressional aide that Senate Banking Chair Chris Dodd will not introduce legislation in the Senate to mirror House Finance Chair Barney Frank's bill, HR 384, to provide increased conditions …

The Wiretap Vindication  —  FISA sets the record straight.  —  Ever since the Bush Administration's warrantless wiretapping program was exposed in 2005, critics have denounced it as illegal and unconstitutional.  Those allegations rested solely on the fact that the Administration …

Americans, Feeling the Love  —  With Obama's Election, Expatriates Say, There's a New Attitude Abroad.  Instead of Challenges on Iraq and WMDs, They're Met With Hugs and Good Wishes.  —  As Micha Wyatt plans an inaugural bash at the Chicago Rib Shack in London, she is basking in the new warmth toward Americans overseas.

Terrorists killed my dad  —  Atty. Gen.-nominee Eric Holder helped pardon terrorists linked to my father's murder in 1975.  —  In 1975, when I had just turned 9, my father was killed by terrorists.  —  He was supposed to be home early on that Jan. 24 for a family celebration of my birthday …

Did Cheney nod off during Bush's farewell address?  »  —  Last night during PBS's coverage of President Bush's farewell address to the nation, for a brief moment, the camera panned to Vice President Cheney, who appeared to momentarily doze off.  But it seems that he quickly caught himself and then sat upright in his chair.

Martin: Bush should help rebuild Gulf Coast  —  Editor's note: A nationally syndicated columnist, Roland S. Martin is the author of “Listening to the Spirit Within: 50 Perspectives on Faith” and “Speak, Brother!  A Black Man's View of America.”  Visit his Web site for more information.