At the U.N., Terrorism Pays  —  It was my duty as defense minister to stop Hamas rockets.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  This week the United Nation's Human Rights Council produced a 600-page report alleging that Israel carried out war crimes in Gaza.  The Goldstone Report …

Blue Dog Opposition To Public Option Fades In Whip Count  —  Blocking a public health insurance option is a relatively low priority for conservative Blue Dog Democrats, according to an ongoing survey of its members.  The fading House opposition could clear the way for the public option to move through the chamber.

Yosi Sergant Resigns  —  ABC News' Yunji de Nies Reports:  —  Embattled former National Endowment for the Arts communications director Yosi Sergant is out of a job.  Late this afternoon, the NEA released a short statement saying, “This afternoon Yosi Sergant submitted his resignation from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Man arrested in alleged attempt to bomb Dallas skyscraper  —  Staff reports  —  Federal authorities arrested a 19-year-old Jordanian citizen whom they said placed an inactive car bomb today at Fountain Place, a 60-story skyscraper in downtown Dallas.

Elementary School Students Taught to Sing Praises of President Obama  —  Nearly 20 young children are captured in an online video as they sing songs that overflow with campaign slogans and praise for “Barack Hussein Obama,” as they repeatedly chant the president's name and celebrate his accomplishments.

Exclusive: Poll shows Deeds within 4  —  Creigh Deeds, the Democratic nominee for governor in Virginia, has pulled to within four percentage points of Republican Bob McDonnell, according to a new InsiderAdvantage/Majority Opinion Research poll out Thursday.  —  The poll, conducted Wednesday evening …

Why France's Health Care Is So Good, The Public Option So Bad and the Co-Ops So Incomplete: An Interview With Kent Conrad.  —  Sen. Kent Conrad chairs the Budget Committee, serves on the Finance Committee and was a member of the Gang of Six.  I spoke to Conrad today about what Americans …

In Poll, Public Wary of Obama on War and Health  —  President Obama is confronting declining support for his handling of the war in Afghanistan and an electorate confused and anxious about a health care overhaul as he prepares for pivotal battles over both issues, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.

An apology to Sarah Palin  —  The Daily News-Miner has had its agreements and disagreements with now-former Gov. Sarah Palin at various points during her time serving the state of Alaska.  We have tried to maintain respect for the office of governor and to be generally civil when discussing Mrs. Palin …

GOP files suit to block Kirk  —  After failing in their bid to stop the Massachusetts legislature from giving Democratic Governor Deval Patrick the power to fill a United States Senate vacancy, Republicans are going to court on Friday to try to prevent the governor's interim pick from taking office.

Justice Ginsburg hospitalized  —  WASHINGTON - Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been hospitalized after becoming ill in her office at the court.  —  A statement from the court said the 76-year-old justice was taken to Washington Hospital Center at 7:45 p.m. EDT as a precaution.

Man unearths Anglo-Saxon treasure  —  First pieces of gold were found in a farm field by an amateur metal detector who lives alone on disability benefit  —  A harvest of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver so beautiful it brought tears to the eyes of one expert, has poured out of a Staffordshire field …

Meg Whitman's voting record short, sparse  —  Almost 9 million Californians cast ballots in the 2003 special election that swept movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger into the Governor's Office.  —  Meg Whitman wasn't among them.  —  The billionaire businesswoman now running for governor herself …

Obama Likes Tyrants and Dislikes America . . . and Here's More Proof — By: Andy McCarthy  —  Michael hits the nail on the head . . . and then comes this: The Obama administration has notified Congress of the State Department's intention to contribute $400,000 to foundations run by Muammar Qaddafi's …

Think Again: Falling for the Far Right's ACORN Agenda  —  One night last week, Jon Stewart asked his audience, “Where were the real reporters on this story?”  He meant the exposure of several ACORN employees giving tax advice to a young man and woman pretending to be a pimp and prostitute.

“What a Disgrace”  —  Bibi kills at the UN.

Census Worker Found Dead In Kentucky — What Do We Know?  —  Over the last 24 hours, we've been tracking a gruesome story developing involving the death of a Kentucky Census Bureau worker.  The potential political implications of what happened are already generating a lot of attention around the internet …

Classified McChrystal Report: 500,000 Troops Will Be Required Over Five Years in Afghanistan  —  Congress Should Hold Hearings on Alternatives to Major Escalation  —  Embedded in General Stanley McChrystal's classified assessment of the war in Afghanistan is his conclusion …

White House Regroups on Guantanamo  —  Counsel Craig Replaced as Point Man on Issue as Deadline for Closing Looms  —  Washington Post Staff Writer and ProPublica  —  With four months left to meet its self-imposed deadline for closing the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba …

Environmentalists Seek to Wipe Out Plush Toilet Paper  —  Soft Toilet Paper's Hard on the Earth, But Will We Sit for the Alternative?  —  By David A. Fahrenthold, Page A01  —  ELMWOOD PARK, N.J. — There is a battle for America's behinds.

“Top Line” — Weiner on Bloomberg: ‘I Would Have Beaten Him Like a Rented Mule’  —  ABC News' Teddy Davis reports:  —  Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., joked Thursday that he would have given billionaire Mike Bloomberg a real run for his money if he had gone forward with plans to run for mayor of New York.

The Beauty Parlor Bomb Plan; Massive Terror Plot Alleged  —  Denver Man, Others Accused of Stockpiling Chemicals, Building Bombs  —  The accused al Qaeda bomb maker from Denver planned to use chemicals and hair care products he bought at beauty parlor supply stores to build a series of devastating bombs …