On the NY23 Race, We Have A Practical Choice To Make  —  In the statement and audio clips below, Speaker Gingrich explains his decision to endorse Dede Scozzafava in the NY 23 special election:  —  Through my experience as Speaker of the House and building a Republican majority in 1994 …

Public Option: It's Back  —  ABC News' Jonathan Karl reports:  —  The public option.  The idea was believed to be dead.  Liberals wanted it, but Senate vote counters insisted it simply could not pass the Senate.  The dynamic, however, has changed.  The public option may be back from dead.

W.H.: Cheney failed on Afghanistan … No comments yet.  Be the first!

Landrieu blasts public option  —  Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) echoed Republican criticisms of a public option today, suggesting it would bankrupt the country.  —  Describing the public option as a “government-run, taxpayer subsidized, national insurance plan,” Landrieu said it would likely replicate …

Conservatives roar; GOP trembles  —  Many top Republicans are growing worried that the party's chances for reversing its electoral routs of 2006 and 2008 are being wounded by the flamboyant rhetoric and angry tone of conservative activists and media personalities, according to interviews with GOP officials and operatives.

Fewer Americans See Solid Evidence of Global Warming  —  Modest Support for “Cap and Trade” Policy  —  There has been a sharp decline over the past year in the percentage of Americans who say there is solid evidence that global temperatures are rising.  And fewer also see global warming …

Democrats Lose Big Test Vote on Health Legislation  —  WASHINGTON — Democrats lost a big test vote on health care legislation on Wednesday as the Senate blocked action on a bill to increase Medicare payments to doctors at a cost of $247 billion over 10 years.

For immediate release  —  The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday issued a proposal designed to ensure that the incentive compensation policies of banking organizations do not undermine the safety and soundness of their organizations.  —  The proposal includes two supervisory initiatives.

REM call for Guantanamo closure  —  Rock bands including Pearl Jam and REM have joined a coalition of musicians to support the US president's efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay prison.  —  The National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, which also includes former military officers, launched on Tuesday.

For Some Parents, Shouting Is the New Spanking  —  JACKIE KLEIN is a devoted mother of two little boys in the suburbs of Portland, Ore. She spends hours ferrying them to soccer and Cub Scouts.  She reads child-development books.  She can emulate one of those pitch-perfect calm maternal tones to warn …

Franken's Anti-Rape Amendment May Be Stripped By Senior Dem, Sources Say  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  An amendment that would prevent the government from working with contractors who denied victims of assault the right to bring their case to court is in danger of being watered …

AHIP Lobbyist To GOP: Don't Give “Comfort To The Enemy” On Health Care  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  A top lobbyist for the major private insurance industry trade group, America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), urged Congressional Republicans to not even consider helping Democrats pass …

Low Testosterone = A Vote for McCain?  —  Study Shows Testosterone Levels of McCain Supporters Dropped on Election Night  —  Republican men nationwide may have experienced a drop in testosterone levels the night Barack Obama was elected president, according to the results of a small study …

Save the planet: eat a dog?  —  The eco-pawprint of a pet dog is twice that of a 4.6-litre Land Cruiser driven 10,000 kilometres a year, researchers have found.  —  Victoria University professors Brenda and Robert Vale, architects who specialise in sustainable living, say pet owners …

EVEN NPR.... Ken Rudin is the political editor for NPR.  To see him swallow the latest Republican attack meme whole is more than a little painful.  Here's his commentary on “Talk of the Nation” yesterday, complaining about the White House's criticism of Fox News. … I'd like to think Ken Rudin knows better.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Unable to Say Where Constitution Authorizes Congress to Order Americans to Buy Health Insurance  —  (CNSNews.com) - Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) would not say what part of the Constitution grants Congress the power to force every American to buy health insurance …

36 Moderate Democrats Threaten to Vote Down Health Bill  —  Three dozen moderate Democrats are warning Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) that they must show that their health care bill will cut long-term costs or they will vote it down.

Prelude to Republican fratricide  —  GOP candidates in New York and New Jersey should be cruising to victory this November.  But angry conservatives would rather hand power to Democrats than help moderate Republicans win.  —  At the beginning of the summer, most observers expected Republicans …