Sometimes it takes an outsider to show the press corps the way.  —  Among the many glorious things about American journalism is that no credentialing organization or regulatory body stands between an individual who wants to break a story and his public reporting of it.

Effort to replace Kennedy hits snag  —  The Massachusetts Legislature on Wednesday granted Gov. Deval Patrick the power to appoint a temporary replacement for the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, but with one catch: when the appointment can be made.  —  Lawmakers declined to allow the law …

Obama to Use Current Law to Support Detentions  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration has decided not to seek new legislation from Congress authorizing the indefinite detention of about 50 terrorism suspects being held without charges at at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, officials said Wednesday.

AP source: Census worker hanged with ‘fed’ on body  —  The FBI is investigating whether anti-government sentiment led to the hanging death of a U.S. Census worker near a Kentucky cemetery.  A law enforcement official told The Associated Press the word 'fed" was scrawled on the dead man's chest.

Sick.  School Children Taught to Sing Praises to Obama  —  The radical left is now teaching American youth to sing praises to Obama:  —  Hat Tip Steve Tum  —  Of course, we've seen this sort of thing before.  —  More... Now there are Dear Leader propaganda quizzes for your child, too.

Barack Obama rebuffs Gordon Brown as ‘special relationship’ sinks to new low  —  Gordon Brown has been snubbed repeatedly by Barack Obama during his trip to the United States, as the fall-out from the release of the Lockerbie bomber appeared to have left “the special relationship” at its lowest ebb for nearly 20 years.

DeMint: Obama ‘Puts Our Troops At Risk’ By Working On Health Reform  —  The Washington Post reported this week that Gen. Stanley McChyrstal, the top commander in Afghanistan, has recommended that more U.S. troops be sent there or the conflict will “likely result in failure.”

Dem campaign anxiety: Vulnerables say they lack cover from Pelosi  —  Politically vulnerable Democrats say Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other House leaders aren't offering them the protection from tough votes that they did in the last Congress.  —  Conservative Democrats fear that dozens …

Maine TV is key front in health care battle  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — The largest city in Maine is ground zero in the television advertising war over health care reform that nationally is about to reach $100 million.  —  Organizations seeking to influence the health care debate have spent $1.5 million …

Video: Glenn Beck explains McCain comment, boils fake frog  —  Doctor Z anticipated his argument before this even aired: “Glenn Beck's slap at McCain is a retroactive expression of the idea that conservatism is just one crushing defeat away from total victory.”  Just so.

Health, Race And Obama  —  America's real and imagined grievances.  —  After an exceedingly disappointing 10 months in office pursuing a hyper-partisan agenda, President Barack Obama reminded me last week of why, for a brief moment during his campaign eons ago last year, he actually won my heart.

Critics Assail Obama's ‘Safe Schools’ Czar, Say He's Wrong Man for the Job  —  Critics say Kevin Jennings is too radical for the job of director of the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, citing what they say is his promotion of homosexuality in schools, his writings about his past drug abuse and his onetime contempt for religion.

Palin breaks with McCain on F-22 cuts  —  Sarah Palin, outlying her “common sense conservative” foreign policy views in Hong Kong yesterday, denounced her former running mate's push to cut new F-22 Raptor fighter jets, an efficiency move in which Senator John McCain allied himself …

Obama takes the supplication of America to a disgusting new level  —  Conservative commentary on President Obama's U.N. speech has correctly taken note of the extent to which Obama once again has apologized for America.  What struck me as new, though, was extent to which he begged his audience …

King: Same-Sex Marriage Is ‘A Purely Socialist Concept’  —  In April, when the Iowa Supreme Court unanimously struck down a state law defining marriage as solely between a man and a woman, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) called it an “unconstitutional” decision and predicted that it could lead to Iowa becoming “the gay marriage Mecca.”

GOP gets big bump of donors in August  —  WASHINGTON — Despite being in the minority in Congress, Republican campaign committees outraised Democrats by $1.7 million in August as they have aggressively collected political cash amid the rancorous debate over health care.

Obama's ‘Policy Presidency’  —  A new publication came across my desk this week containing an essay that offers as good an insight into President Obama's approach to government as anything I have read — and is particularly useful in understanding the struggle over health-care reform.

Obama's Policies Would Redistribute Nearly $1 Trillion in Wealth Every Year  —  (CNSNews.com) - By 2012, nearly $1 trillion from the top 30 percent of American families will be redistributed among the bottom 70 percent if Obama's proposals on taxes, health care, and climate change become law, according to the Tax Foundation.

Reading the McChrystal Report  —  It's not the Pentagon Papers.  After all the noise and controversy, the assessment of the war in Afghanistan by General Stanley McChrystal that was leaked to the Post's Bob Woodward turns out to be a singularly unsurprising document.