A Farewell to Harms  —  Palin was bad for the Republicans—and the republic.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Sarah Palin's resignation gives Republicans a new opportunity to see her plain—to review the bidding, see her strengths, acknowledge her limits, and let go of her drama.

Vulnerable GOPs want Palin to stay home  —  Republicans facing tough elections in 2010 don't want Sarah Palin campaigning with them.  —  Though the soon-to-be-former Alaska governor is seen as popular with the conservative grass roots, several Republicans said she'd help them by staying home in Wasilla.

GOP support for Ensign dwindles as new details of affair emerge  —  Sen. John Ensign appeared to be losing support among his Republican base Thursday as the lawmaker disclosed that his parents, who made millions in the casino industry, paid the family of his affair partner $96,000 around …

The Stimulus Trap  —  As soon as the Obama administration-in-waiting announced its stimulus plan — this was before Inauguration Day — some of us worried that the plan would prove inadequate.  And we also worried that it might be hard, as a political matter, to come back for another round.

Whip Inflation Now  —  Over the past few decades, health care inflation has exceeded the general rise in prices by about 2.5 percent a year.  These inexorably rising costs are bankrupting the nation, walloping businesses and squeezing middle-class salaries.  —  Fortunately, the country now has an excellent opportunity to change that.

House Dems stall health bill unveiling  —  Rank-and-file Democrats stalled the introduction of a long-awaited health-care bill in the House on Thursday by conducting a letter-writing campaign of sorts to put forth their demands for changes to the legislation, even before its authors could unveil it.

Johnston says Palin had eye on the money  —  RESIGNATION: Daughter's ex-fiance says governor also missed family time.  —  scockerham@adn.com  —  Levi Johnston, the former fiance of Gov. Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol, on Thursday joined the crowd offering up potential reasons for Palin's decision to step down.

Specter: Sestak a ‘flagrant hypocrite’  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) - Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter called his fellow Democrat, Rep. Joe Sestak, a “flagrant hypocrite” and accused his rival of registering as a Democrat “just in time to run for Congress.”  —  Sestak has said that he will challenge Specter …

High-Priced F-22 Fighter Has Major Shortcomings  —  The United States' top fighter jet, the Lockheed Martin F-22, has recently required more than 30 hours of maintenance for every hour in the skies, pushing its hourly cost of flying to more than $44,000, a far higher figure than for the warplane it replaces …

Watchdog group: Dozens of active-duty troops found on neo-Nazi site  —  WASHINGTON — It is the Facebook for the fascist set, and the typical online profiles of its members reveal expected tastes.  —  Favorite book: “Mein Kampf”  —  Favorite movie: the Nazi propaganda film “Triumph of the Will”

Supermax prison: Obama's books objectionable  —  McLEAN, Va. (AP) — The federal government's most secure prison has determined that two books written by President Barack Obama contain material “potentially detrimental to national security” and rejected an inmate's request to read them.

When Will The Recovery Begin?  Never.  —  The so-called “green shoots” of recovery are turning brown in the scorching summer sun.  In fact, the whole debate about when and how a recovery will begin is wrongly framed.  On one side are the V-shapers who look back at prior recessions and conclude …

With Sale of Good Assets, G.M. Out of Bankruptcy  —  General Motors completed a major step in its turnaround on Friday and closed the sale of its good assets to a new, government-backed carmaker, at a speed unimagined by auto and bankruptcy experts even six months ago.

TAIL TO THE CHIEF  —  O-GLER PREZ JOINS 'KOZY FOR A SUMMIT REAR VIEW  —  Baby got Barack!  —  The leader of the free world and his French counterpart were caught sneaking a peek at a the pink-satin-draped booty of a 17-year-old junior G-8 delegate just moments before the summit's official group photo was snapped in Italy yesterday.

House overwhelmingly rejects signing statement  —  The House rebuked President Obama for trying to ignore restrictions to international aid payments, voting overwhelmingly for an amendment forcing the administration to abide by its constraints.  —  House members approved an amendment …

Al Qaeda-Linked American Terrorist Condemns, Mocks Obama in New Audio Tape  —  An American who left the United States to join an Al Qaeda-linked group in Somalia is strongly condemning President Obama's efforts to seek “a new beginning” with the Muslim world, mocking Obama's “magic of charisma” …

CNN Poll: Do Americans want Sotomayor confirmed?  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Just three days before the start of Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings, a new national poll indicates that by a narrow margin, Americans would like the Senate to confirm her as the next Supreme Court justice.

Why We'll Leave L.A.  —  The business climate is worse than the air quality.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Los Angeles  —  If New Yorkers fantasize that doing business here in Los Angeles would be less of a headache, forget about it.  This city is fast becoming a job-killing machine.

Blasting politicos  —  It is only 11:30 a.m., but Kurt Bardella is on his third Red Bull, and he's got a fourth on deck.  —  “This feels like an episode of ‘24,’” he says.  —  Bardella, 25, is press secretary to California Rep. Darrell Issa, ranking member on the Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Kurds Defy Baghdad, Laying Claim to Land and Oil  —  BAGHDAD — With little notice and almost no public debate, Iraq's Kurdish leaders are pushing ahead with a new constitution for their semiautonomous region, a step that has alarmed Iraqi and American officials who fear that the move poses a new threat to the country's unity.

Ban on tobacco urged in military  —  WASHINGTON — Pentagon health experts are urging Defense Secretary Robert Gates to ban the use of tobacco by troops and end its sale on military property, a change that could dramatically alter a culture intertwined with smoking.

Dems look to make GOP ‘pay a political price’ for stimulus opposition  —  Democrats are organizing efforts msny any Republicans who claim the stimulus has been a failure “pay a political price” in the lawmaker's own back yard.  —  The Democratic National Committee (DNC) …

AIG Seeks Clearance For More Bonuses  —  $2.4 Million in Executive Payments Due Next Week  —  American International Group is preparing to pay millions of dollars more in bonuses to several dozen top corporate executives after an earlier round of payments four months ago set off a national furor.

'My Cousin In Kenya Can't Get a Job Without Paying a Bribe': Obama Tells African Leaders to Get Their Houses in Order  —  ABC News' Jake Tapper and Sunlen Miller report:  —  L'AQUILA, ITALY — In a meeting this morning with the leaders of Egypt, Algeria, Senegal, Nigeria, Libya and Ethiopia …