Houston—er, Washington—We Have a Problem  —  On Wednesday, according to a Capitol Hill source, the Senate Finance Committee distributed to its members a list of about twenty ways to help pay for health care reform.  Everything you could imagine was on the list: Taxes on soda and cigarettes.

Ensign paid $96k to mistress's family  —  Sen. John Ensign's attorney acknowledged Thursday that the Nevada Republican's parents paid nearly $100,000 to the family of his mistress after she and her husband left his staff in April 2008.  —  In a statement from Paul Coggins, Ensign's attorney …

To go forward, GOP must snap out of its Sarah Palin spell  —  Gov. Sarah Palin is the political train wreck that keeps on giving.  First, she was an awful choice last year as John McCain's running mate.  I came to this conclusion with regret - I am one of McCain's biggest admirers.  —  But facts are facts.

Democrats Say C.I.A. Deceived Congress  —  WASHINGTON — The director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Leon E. Panetta, has told the House Intelligence Committee in closed-door testimony that the C.I.A. concealed “significant actions” from Congress from 2001 until late last month, seven Democratic committee members said.

DeMint: America is ‘Where Germany Was Before World War II’  —  Last night, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) gave a short talk and Q&A at at the National Press Club about his book “Saving Freedom.”  DeMint told a room of around 100 people about a conversation he'd had with an Iranian immigrant …

Uncommon Detail Marks Rulings by Sotomayor  —  She Almost Oversteps Her Role, Experts Say  —  Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor's opinions show support for the rights of criminal defendants and suspects, skepticism of corporations, and sympathy for plaintiffs alleging discrimination …

Netanyahu's paranoia extends to ‘self-hating Jews’ Emmanuel and Axelrod  —  At about 3:15 P.M. yesterday, the government's 100th day in office, political correspondents' beepers went off.  In an unprecedented move, the Prime Minister's Bureau was inviting the correspondents to a press conference …

Jeb Bush: 'I don't know' if Obama is a socialist  —  (CNN) - Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush told an interviewer that he could not say whether or not President Barack Obama is a socialist, and that the president would not have been elected if he had been honest with Americans about his agenda.

Mike Allen  —  Mike Allen is the chief political correspondent for Politico.  He comes to us from Time magazine where he was their White House correspondent.  Prior to that, Allen spent six years at The Washington Post, where he covered President Bush's first term, Capitol Hill, campaign finance …

Akron police investigate teen mob attack on family  —  Akron police say they aren't ready to call it a hate crime or a gang initiation.  —  But to Marty Marshall, his wife and two kids, it seems pretty clear.  —  It came after a family night of celebrating America and freedom with a fireworks show at Firestone Stadium.

Billions in aid go to areas that backed Obama in '08  —  WASHINGTON — Billions of dollars in federal aid delivered directly to the local level to help revive the economy have gone overwhelmingly to places that supported President Obama in last year's presidential election.

White House denies manufacturer's boast that First Lady carried their $5,950 bag  —  Is First Lady Michelle Obama sporting a taste for ultra-expensive fashion pieces, or is she cementing her status as a savvy shopper?  —  Back in April she wore a pair of $540 Lanvin sneakers at a Washington food bank.

Updated: Hoyer-linked firm wins $18M Recovery.gov contract  —  ABC reports this morning that the Maryland firm Smartronix has won what seems like an enormous $18 million contract to re-design the Recovery.gov website.  Approximately $9.5 million would be spent by January in order to make …

King's New Rationale For Voting Against Slave Labor Resolution: It Wasn't ‘A Balanced Depiction Of History’  —  Yesterday, a number of blogs reported that right-wing Rep. Steve King (R-IA) was the lone dissenter on a House vote to acknowledge the role that slave labor had in constructing the U.S. Capitol.