Al Qaeda bungles arms experiment  —  Biological or chemical weapons  —  An al Qaeda affiliate in Algeria closed a base earlier this month after an experiment with unconventional weapons went awry, a senior U.S. intelligence official said Monday.  —  The official, who spoke on the condition …

Transition Holds Clues to How Obama Will Govern  —  WASHINGTON — On the day before moving into the nation's most storied house, Barack Obama visited a shelter for teenagers with no home.  With sleeves rolled up, he spent a few minutes painting for the benefit of the cameras that trail him everywhere now.

I Pledge to Ridicule Celebrities Who Refuse to Recognize We Are At War With People Who Want to Kill Them, Too  —  Many of the celebrities that were central to demonizing and making life impossible for President Bush for eight loathsome years NOW want to help with the heavy lifting of bringing America …

On Moving Day for 2 First Families, a Bit of Magic by 93 Pairs of Hands  —  WASHINGTON — The peaceful transfer of power that will take place at the Capitol on Inauguration Day is, to many, a miracle of American democracy.  But down at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue, another sort of miracle will occur: Moving Day.

Pray Obama fails  —  Many American Christians believe, as an article of faith, that we are to pray for the success of our leaders.  —  It has become a sort of conventional wisdom among soft-minded believers.  The biblical proof-text for this misguided way of thinking is Romans 13:1-4:

Bush's Real Sin Was Winning in Iraq  —  In a few hours, George W. Bush will walk out of the Oval Office for the last time as president.  As he leaves, he carries with him the near-universal opprobrium of the permanent class that inhabits our nation's capital.

BDS rages in DuPont Circle  —  This morning, in DuPont Circle, eight blocks from the White House, Bush Derangement Syndrome raged among the old coots of VFP, VVAW, IVAW, Code Pink, World Can't Wait and who knows who else was there.  Their main attraction was throwing shoes at this thirty-foot blow …

Cornyn likely to block Clinton vote  —  Hillary Clinton has rejected a request by Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) to increase oversight of her husband's foundation — so Cornyn is expected to scuttle Democratic attempts to confirm her as Secretary of State today by a voice vote, sources say.

Gordon Brown brings Britain to the edge of bankruptcy  —  Iain Martin says the Prime Minister hasn't ‘saved the world’ and now faces disgrace in the history books  —  They don't know what they're doing, do they?  With every step taken by the Government as it tries frantically to prop …

Much in Obama stimulus bill won't hit economy soon  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — It will take years before an infrastructure spending program proposed by President-elect Barack Obama will boost the economy, according to congressional economists.  —  The findings, released to lawmakers Sunday …

Obama's link to America: his BlackBerry  —  As president, keeping in touch with friends and critics alike will be crucial to his ability to govern.  —  'Let the man have his BlackBerry.  I said that to a meeting of senior transition staffers in Washington last week.

Early Risers Try to Get a Jumpstart on Celebration  —  They woke up early.  They stayed up late.  They arrived in cars and charter buses from Ohio and Tennessee and the Carolinas.  —  And as dawn broke they began packing the Mall and jammed a Metro rail and bus system straining to provide access …

Obama writes the post-partisan playbook  —  This is what a centrist transition looks like.  —  Professional partisans in and around Washington have been puzzled by Barack Obama's moves as president-elect.  Conservatives have been confused by the substantive centrist Cabinet picks …

Cheney Pulls Muscle and Is in Wheelchair  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Dick Cheney pulled a muscle in his back on Monday while moving boxes and will be in a wheelchair for Tuesday's inauguration ceremony.  —  The White House press secretary, Dana Perino, said Mr. Cheney was helping …

The Politics of Cohesion  —  In 1962, Daniel Bell published a book called “The End of Ideology.”  The title struck a nerve because it reflected the view, common at the time, that the United States was about to leave behind the brutal, ideological politics that had characterized the 1930s and the early cold war.

I Wish You Were Here  —  And so it has happened, this very strange convergence.  The holiday celebrating the birth of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. became, in the midnight hour, the day that America inaugurates its first black president.  —  It's a day on which smiles will give …

Why I'm not sorry that George W. Bush beat Al Gore and John Kerry.  —  Yes, yes, I was on the downtown streets of Washington bright and early, mingling with the bright-eyed and the wide-eyed.  Yes, by all means I was there on the Mall Sunday afternoon, feeling no more moist than the next person …

D.C. tattoo parlors offer lasting inaugural memories  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Sometimes, a T-shirt just doesn't cut it.  —  For those who want a more permanent way to showcase their support for Barack Obama, Washington's tattoo parlors are ready to help.  —  “There's nothing more memorable …