Baucus and the Threshold  —  So Senator Max Baucus, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has released his “mark” on proposed legislation — which would normally be the basis for the bill that eventually emerges from his committee.  And serious supporters of health care reform will soon face their long-dreaded moment of truth.

Obama's Missile Plan Might Not Satisfy Russia  —  WASHINGTON — Even before President Obama reached the lectern to announce his plans to reconfigure missile defense plans in Europe, critics at home and abroad were accusing him of knuckling under to Russia.  And to be sure, Russia was happy …

Washington Sketch: Michelle Obama Gets Her Farmers Market  —  Let's say you're preparing dinner and you realize with dismay that you don't have any certified organic Tuscan kale.  What to do?  —  Here's how Michelle Obama handled this very predicament Thursday afternoon:

Snowe: I Haven't Changed, My Party Has  —  It would be easy to over-interpret this statement from Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME), but it would be a mistake to dismiss it.  —  “I've always been a Republican for the traditional principles that have been associated with the Republican party since …

Pelosi Chokes Up Warning Against Political “Violence”  —  Speaker Nancy Pelosi: “I have concerns about some of the language that is being used because I saw ... I saw this myself in the late '70s in San Francisco,” Pelosi said, choking up and with tears forming in her eyes.

Bankers Face Sweeping Curbs on Pay  —  Fed Plans to Limit How Lenders Can Structure Compensation for Executives, Traders, Loan Officers; 5,000 Firms Affected  —  Policies that set the pay for tens of thousands of bank employees nationwide would require approval from the Federal Reserve …

Tell Mike Ross and Blanche Lincoln to Act Like Democrats - Or We'll Find Someone Who Will  —  Blanche Lincoln says she opposes a public option because it's “too expensive.”  She doesn't mention that it will save individuals $2000 a year in medical costs.  —  Mike Ross says he opposes …

Analysis: ‘Racist’ claims defuse word's power  —  With the word being used so often, it's harder to define its meaning  —  Everybody's racist, it seems.  —  Republican Rep. Joe Wilson?  Racist, because he shouted “You lie!” at the first black president.  Health care protesters, affirmative action supporters?

ACORN=SEIU  —  Same Physical Address 1024 Elysian Fields, New Orleans  —  SEIU President on ACORN Advisory Board (Andrew Stern)  —  anys12799  —  Maybe we'll see some of the SEIU-ACORN ties in response to the Louisiana Subpoena that requests ACORN and ALL affiliates turn over books and records, and ties to the Rathke guys.

Pro- and anti-government marchers face off in Tehran  —  Ahmadinejad, blasting Israel on the occasion of Quds Day, questions the Holocaust and blames “Zionists” for Mideast wars.  —  Reporting from Tehran and Beirut — Tens of thousands of demonstrators chanting, “Not Gaza, not Lebanon …

Mandatory Insurance Is Unconstitutional  —  Why an individual mandate could be struck down by the courts.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Federal legislation requiring that every American have health insurance is part of all the major health-care reform plans now being considered in Washington.

CALLASHWAC  —  Such audacious payback to Immelt is stunning.  Typical.  We are going down the tubes, America.  —  GE own NBC too. . .the National Barack Channel.  —  Huge bailout dollars went to GE, and Immelt is on Obummer's financial advisory board.  Very corrupt!  —  Sep 17, 2009

House backs an interim senator  —  If Senate support holds, governor could make appointment next week  —  House lawmakers approved legislation last night that gives Governor Deval Patrick the power to appoint a temporary successor to the late Edward M. Kennedy in the US Senate …

Pagan ‘King’ Has Council GOP Nod  —  Dan Halloran, the Republican candidate for City Council facing primary winner Kevin Kim in the 19th District, already has a leadership role in a vast community that very few people know about - or understand.  —  Halloran is the “First Atheling,” or King …

Duo in ACORN Videos Say Effort Was Independent  —  Duo in Sting Video Say Their Effort Was Independent  —  The proposition was outrageous, outlandish, and right up James E. O'Keefe III's alley.  Hannah Giles was on the phone from the District, and she was asking him to dress like her pimp …

How Time magazine enables Glenn Beck's lies  —  Four years ago, Time magazine devoted its cover story to a puff-piece profile of Ann Coulter, the right-wing ideologue best known for serial lies and wishing death upon those she disagrees with (journalists included).

The Acorn 75  —  The only way they'd defund the outfit is if it endorsed the war in Iraq or Afghanistan.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Yesterday the House voted 345-75 to ban all federal funding for the scandal-plagued advocacy group Acorn.  Coming on the heels of the Census Bureau's dissociation …

OBAMA '07 REVELATION: HEALTH CARE REFORM REQUIRES TAX HIKES — SAVINGS JUST A THEORY  —  “I've pushed people on the idea of paying higher taxes in order to implement the system.”

Gates to Boost ÂÂ'Enablers' to Meet Security Needs in Afghanistan  —  Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Thursday that he has ordered the deployment of as many as 3,000 more U.S. troops to Afghanistan to meet what the top commander there has described as pressing security needs.

Memo to the DNC: What were you thinking?  —  The add essentially takes a non-issue for a vast majority of people and reminds the world how many czars Obama has.  Geez.  Talk about keeping a story alive.  The RNC should list the ad as an in-kind contribution.

“If We Can't Stop It, We Can't Stop Anything”  —  Remember the John Murtha—Johnstown Cambria County Airport?  Named after pork-barreler extraordinaire Rep. John C. Murtha (D-Pa.), the airport has scooped up about $150 million in defense appropriations over the years—from a committee Murtha just happens to chair.

Housing Agency's Cash Reserves Will Drop Below Requirement  —  The Federal Housing Administration has been hit so hard by the mortgage crisis that for the first time, the agency's cash reserves will drop below the minimum level set by Congress, FHA officials said.