51 Vote Rules May Force a Public Option Too Liberal for Some Dems  —  As Senate leaders begin work on a Democrat-only health care bill, they're finding themselves confronted with an unexpected irony: Though the caucus has reached an uneasy consensus around a public option that's modeled …

WWF condemns 9/11 print ad by DDB Brazil  —  [NOTE: The WWF says it never approved this ad and is condemning it.  See the updates below.]  Just in time for the anniversary of 9/11 comes this tasteless, nightmarish print ad for the World Wildlife Fund, showing dozens of planes headed for lower Manhattan.

CNN Poll: Independents disapprove of Obama  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — A majority of independent voters disapprove of how Barack Obama's handling his job as president, according to a new national poll.  —  Fifty-three percent of independents questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation …

Hong Kong Broker Pulling A “Borat” On Sarah Palin  —  Hopefully Sarah Palin realizes she's been invited to Hong Kong as a practical joke.  —  CLSA, the Asia-focused broker who invited Mrs. Palin as keynote speaker for an Asian investment conference, is well known for their cheeky takes on investment research.

Obama White House Has Secret Plan To Harvest Personal Data From Social Networking Websites  —  NLPC has uncovered a plan by the White House New Media operation to hire a technology vendor to conduct a massive, secret effort to harvest personal information on millions of Americans from social networking websites.

Obama's Team Crosses the Rhetorical Line  —  (Update: The website cited below has been suspended by barackobama.com.  The screenshot to the right is the original page, but the embedded links will no longer work.  Click on the picture to the right for a full-screen view.)

Justice Dept. to Recharge Enforcement of Civil Rights  —  WASHINGTON — Seven months after taking office, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. is reshaping the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division by pushing it back into some of the most important areas of American political life …

Is the Washington Post trying to ‘Macaca’ Bob McDonnell?  —  In the 2006 campaign season the Washington Post ran more than a dozen front-page stories on Senator George Allen's reference, at an August 11 campaign stop almost 400 miles from Washington, to an opposition campaign staffer as “Macaca.”

Schakowsky Town Hall: Booing Ted Kennedy?  Really?  —  We attended Rep. Jan Schakowsky's health care town hall meeting in Niles last night where over 2,000 people showed up, packing a high school auditorium and spilling onto the sidewalk outside.  There was a real variety of opinion expressed during …

Republican Voters Say GOP Reps in Congress Still Out of Touch  —  Seventy-four percent (74%) of Republican voters say their party's representatives in Congress have lost touch with GOP voters nationwide over the past several years.  The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds …

“Death Threat” For Rep. John Salazar (CO) A “False Flag” Operation?  “Crying Wolf”?  -Police Rule Accusation “Unfounded”  —  For the second time in as many weeks, Democrats have accused health care opponents of politically-motivated crimes-vandalism at the Democratic Party's state HQ and even a death threat against Rep. John Salazar.

Maria Bartiromo Presses 44-Year-Old Congressman: If Medicare Is So Good, Why Aren't You On It?  (VIDEO)  —  Earlier today, MSNBC's Carlos Watson hosted Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) and CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo for a discussion on health care.  —  At one point, Bartiromo was critical …

What Richard Cohen Omits  —  He writes a column on torture that makes wringing one's hands look decisive.  He tells us he has an abhorrence of torture and yet describes the torture of Khaled Sheikh Mohammed as merely a “quite brutal interrogation.”  See the sleight of hand?

Cheney In 2012?  Some Key GOPers Aren't Kidding  —  At first, it seemed like a joke.  Wall Street Journal columnist James Taranto opined on Monday that — if the 2012 election were to turn to national security — “it's hard to think of a better candidate... than Richard B. Cheney.”

Beck guest warns of ‘black genocide’ from health care reform  —  It appears Fox News host Glenn Beck has found an unlikely ally — an African-American preacher who peddles conspiracy theories about a white plot to exterminate black people.  —  Beck gave airtime Monday to Dallas-area pastor Stephen Broden …

YOU CAN'T KEEP A BAD MAN DOWN  —  SPITZER IS EYEING A COMEBACK  —  Disgraced former Gov. Eliot Spitzer has been privately talking with friends about a possible comeback, and is considering a run for statewide office next year, several sources told The Post.

POGO Letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton regarding U.S. Embassy in Kabul  —  Dear Secretary Clinton:  —  As you know, last month eight rockets were fired into Kabul, two landing near the U.S. Embassy.1 Not long after, at least seven people were killed and 91 wounded, including children …

No, Seriously, Dude, Acolyte?  —  It is fun to wake up and find [edited to remove extra word] yourself accused of joining a cult—the cult of people who like incredibly detailed, footnoted, analytic, legal arguments about abstruse and painful political crimes?  The cult of people who follow links?

Coakley makes the first move in race for Kennedy seat  —  Attorney General Martha Coakley this morning picked up nomination papers to run for the Senate seat of Edward M. Kennedy, becoming the first candidate to throw a hat in the ring for what promises to be a fierce five-month-long race.

Grassley: The ‘Only Way To Get A Bipartisan Agreement Is To Defeat A Democratic Proposal On The First Hand’  —  Over the August recess, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), one of the three Republicans engaged in the “Gang of Six” health care negotiations, has repeatedly made public statements …

Right-Wing Conspiracy Theory: Nancy Pelosi Is Banning Patriotic Hold Music On Congressional Phones  —  Today, the right-wing site The New Ledger has a report about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) “problem” with “patriotic music”: … The post was picked up by various right-wing blogs.

Does High Speed Rail Have a Future?  —  Forgive me for talking about high speed rail even though Ryan Avent says I'm not allowed to.  I just can't control myself, I'm afraid.  —  As libertarians go, I'm a big fan of high-speed rail.  I think it would be very nice if we had some in the …

Exclusive: Controversial Blackwater Security Firm Gets Iraq Contract Extended by State Dept  —  Company Banned From Operating by Iraqi Government Earlier This Year  —  The State Department has extended a contract with controversial private security firm Blackwater, ABC News has learned.

Look Who's Coming To Dinner  —  Wait - Israel's Ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, is coming to the Ramadan dinner hosted tonight by President Barack Obama?  —  After reading this in Talking Points Memo, I paused to make sure I read it right.  —  There's nothing surprising …