Afghanistan Troop Request Splits Advisers to Obama  —  WASHINGTON — As President Obama weighs sending more troops to Afghanistan, one of the most consequential decisions of his presidency, he has discovered that the military is not monolithic in support of the plan and that some of the civilian advisers …

Terror in Kentucky: Census Worker's Murder  —  Body Found Naked, Hanging From Tree in Cemetery; Had Been Gagged, Duct Taped, ‘Fed’ Scrawled on Chest  —  (CBS/AP) It was a bizarre and gruesome discovery in a remote section of eastern Kentucky: Bill Sparkman, a 51-year-old teacher and part …

Tuning in Too Late  —  ON Sept. 12, an Associated Press article inside The Times reported that the Census Bureau had severed its ties to Acorn, the community organizing group.  Robert Groves, the census director, was quoted as saying that Acorn, one of thousands of unpaid organizations promoting …

Post Editor Ends Tweets as New Guidelines Are Issued  —  As tweets on Twitter, they're pretty innocuous.  —  “We can incur all sorts of federal deficits for wars and what not,” read a recent one.  “But we have to promise not to increase it by $1 for healthcare reform?  Sad.”

All About Obama  —  I've refrained from commenting on President Obama's address to the United Nations General Assembly because the speech made me angry.  And most postings — or letters, or e-mails — written while angry are better discarded or deleted.  —  But this address grows more disturbing on further reading.

Uninsured 22-Year-Old Boehner Constituent Dies From Swine Flu  —  A 22-year-old woman from Oxford, Ohio, died from swine flu on Wednesday.  Kimberly Young graduated from Miami University in December and continued to live in Oxford, Ohio, within Minority Leader John Boehner's congressional distrct.

First They Came For ACORN  —  First Big Business, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Lou Dobbs, the Religious Right, the Wall Street Journal, Mitch McConnell, and Karl Rove came for ACORN, and the Democrats did not speak out — because they were not ACORN.

Angry Reaction “Shocked” Head of Iran's Nuclear Program  —  The head of Iran's nuclear program said he was “shocked” by the West's angry reaction to news that his country is opening a second uranium enrichment facility, which he said was disclosed a year earlier than required by the U.N. nuclear watchdog …

For Democrats, Cracks in a United Front  —  WASHINGTON — Over four days and three late nights of meetings, Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee have largely stood up to Republicans' attacks on a proposal to overhaul the health care system.  —  But behind the scenes and away from the C-Span cameras …

Obama links civil rights, health care  —  President Barack Obama used a dinner-time address to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation to make an impassioned plea for health care reform, placing it in the tradition of the civil rights struggle.  —  Obama, who last year addressed the group …

Three Guantanamo detainees sent to Ireland, Yemen  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Three detainees held at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have been sent to Ireland and Yemen, the Justice Department said on Saturday, the latest transfers as President Barack Obama tries to close the facility by January.

Will the media ever report about how low in the polling Republicans have sunk?  —  We constantly are seeing polling down from the major news services that follow President Obama's approval ratings and it is an important stat to keep track of, but can you tell me what the media is not covering?

Obama's Tortoise Tactics  —  Has President Obama outsmarted us all?  —  This was conservatives' seething summer of discontent and unhinged hysteria: town halls, tea parties and tirades.  They captured headlines and gained momentum.  Misinformation ran amuck.  President Obama's approval ratings tumbled.