Chicago Loses Bid for 2016 Olympic Games  —  COPENHAGEN — The International Olympic Committee delivered a stunning blow to Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympics, knocking it out of the voting in the first round Friday, leaving Rio de Janeiro and Madrid waiting for the announcement which city will host the Games.

The Wizard of Beck  —  Let us take a trip back into history.  Not ancient history.  Recent history.  It is the winter of 2007.  The presidential primaries are approaching.  The talk jocks like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and the rest are over the moon about Fred Thompson.

David Letterman reveals $2M extortion plot; CBS News producer busted in scheme to reveal sex secrets  —  A top CBS News producer was busted Thursday for trying to shake down David Letterman - threatening to expose the late-night funnyman's affairs with several female staffers in a movie and book.

McCain Campaign Manager: Palin In 2012 Would Be Catastrophe for GOP  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  If Sarah Palin is her party's nominee for president in 2012 it will be a “catastrophic election” for the GOP, Sen. John McCain's 2008 campaign manager predicted on Friday.

Mission Not Accomplished  —  Stocks are up.  Ben Bernanke says that the recession is over.  And I sense a growing willingness among movers and shakers to declare “Mission Accomplished” when it comes to fighting the slump.  It's time, I keep hearing, to shift our focus from economic stimulus to the budget deficit.

Is Conservatism Brain-Dead?  —  Over his decades as a columnist, lecturer, TV host and debater, William F. Buckley Jr. lost his cool in public only once — when he threatened to sock Gore Vidal “in your goddamn face” on the third night of their joint appearances on ABC during the ill-fated 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

The Vapor Bill - Congress' Secret Plan to Pass Obamacare - Update  —  President Barack Obama's push for a sweeping health care overhaul edged closer to a major victory in the Senate Finance Committee.  Early next week, the Senate Finance Committee will vote on final passage on the “Vapor Bill” being debated and marked up in Committee.

Washington Sketch  —  Helen Thomas is 89 years old and requires some assistance to get to and from the daily White House briefing.  Yet her backbone has proved stronger than that of the president she covers.  —  On Thursday afternoon, Thomas gave a clinic in fortitude to President Obama's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, during the briefing.

White House Considers Narrower War Effort in Afghanistan  —  Top Officials Challenge General's Assessment  —  Senior White House officials have begun to make the case for a policy shift in Afghanistan that would send few, if any, new combat troops to the country and instead focus …