On Newt Gingrich's Endorsement  —  A lot of people have called me and emailed me to say that the original post that was here was too rough on former Speaker Gingrich.  I'll concede that this could be the case and replace the text with this instead.  —  For several weeks conservative leaders …

Lefty anger splits Dems — and may sink them  —  “Harry Reid abdicates his leadership role,” reads the headline at the lefty Daily Kos Web site.  “Why Joe Biden should resign,” reads the headline at the Huffington Post.  “Whiner in Chief,” reads the headline at The Nation, referring to President Obama.

White House Says No to Antigay Referenda  —  In response to an inquiry from The Advocate, the White House sent the following statement regarding President Barack Obama's position on same-sex relationship recognition voter referenda in Maine and Washington.  —  “The President has long opposed divisive …

NFL Owners Who Use the N-Word and Wet Their Pants On Stage  —  And now a word from an NFL owner: … Amidst the uproar over Rush Limbaugh having to step aside from his participation in the bid to purchase the NFL's St. Louis Rams over racially insensitive statements he never actually made …

The Very Separate World of Conservative Republicans  —  Democracy Corps  —  Research Categories … Executive Summary  —  The self-identifying conservative Republicans who make up the base of the Republican Party stand a world apart from the rest of America, according to focus groups conducted by Democracy Corps.

Interview Sets Off Skeptics of Balloon Drama  —  Updated |  10:45 a.m. It was, apparently, a heartwarming tale — the 6-year-old Colorado boy who was reportedly carried aloft in a wayward helium balloon on Thursday, only to turn up several hours later after a frantic, widely televised search.

Fox News Reportedly Fires Liberal Analyst Marc Lamont Hill  —  Yesterday, Accuracy in Media's Cliff Kincaid announced that at today's annual News Corp. meeting, he would urge Chairman Rupert Murdoch to fire Fox News analyst Marc Lamont Hill, whom he called a “left-wing cop-killer apologist.”

Lieberman says he would vote to let health care reform motion proceed  —  U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman, I-Conn., whose vote could be crucial to breaking an expected GOP filibuster on health care legislation, Thursday said he would consider voting to move the bill forward …

The Shoddy Statistics of Super Freakonomics  —  Super Freakonomics is getting a lot of flak for its flip contrarianism on climate change, most of which seems based on incorrectly believing solar panels are black (they're blue, and this has surprisingly large energy implications) and misquoting important climate scientists.

Compromise is a Two-Way Street  —  Al From has one of these op-eds where you urge liberals to drop hopes for a public option in the interests of being pragmatic and passing health reform.  I sort of agree with this—reform is worth doing even without a public option.

Another Goldman executive named to key government post as its profits skyrocket  —  (updated below)  —  Apparently, the U.S. government didn't have enough Goldman Sachs executives in key financial and regulatory positions, so the following happened this week:

John Edwards, Sarah Palin Both See Favorable Ratings Slide  —  Edwards' popularity down 27 points since January 2008  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Former presidential and vice presidential candidate John Edwards, embroiled in personal scandal, is rated favorably by 21% of Americans and unfavorably by 59%.

An Unconstitutional Nobel  —  People can, and undoubtedly will, argue for some time about whether President Obama deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.  Meanwhile, though, there's a simpler and more immediate question: Does the Constitution allow him to accept the award?

Ted Turner Passed Cash ‘Like a Joint,’ Now Feels ‘Like a Dummy’  —  Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) — Ted Turner, the cable television pioneer who became one of the richest Americans, recalls the pain of losing his job at Time Warner Inc., his wife, the actress Jane Fonda, and $7 billion of his fortune.

C.I.A. Is Still Cagey About Oswald Mystery  —  WASHINGTON — Is the Central Intelligence Agency covering up some dark secret about the assassination of John F. Kennedy?  —  Probably not.  But you would not know it from the C.I.A.'s behavior.  —  For six years, the agency has fought …

Cao: 'It's pronounced Gow'  —  Louisiana Rep. Joseph Cao (R) is trying to put an end to the debate — over how to pronounce his last name.  —  The Republican congressman admitted in a half-serious press release on Friday that he has long struggled to watch his fellow lawmakers …

Obama team makes it official: Budget deficit hits record.  By a lot.  —  The Obama administration has released new deficit numbers, and they are not pretty.  —  The deficit for Fiscal Year 2009, which ended Sept. 30, came in at a record $1.42 trillion, more than triple the record set just last year.

Congressional leaders signaling move to repeal 'Don't ask, don't tell'  —  Congress could move early next year to repeal the “Don't ask, don't tell” policy on gays serving in the military.  —  The move would play to the liberal base of President Barack Obama's administration …