EXCLUSIVE: Democratic donors rewarded with W.H. perks  —  Offered access to bowling alley, movie theater  —  During his first nine months in office, President Obama has quietly rewarded scores of top Democratic donors with VIP access to the White House, private briefings with administration advisers …

The lineup: Harry Reid's toughest votes  —  MoveOn says that 93 percent of its Arkansas members won't vote for Lincoln if she joins a GOP filibuster, and it plans to hold news conferences outside her district office — along with the district offices of Snowe, Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) …

CNN Poll: 7 in 10 say Palin not qualified to be president  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) - More than seven in 10 Americans think Sarah Palin is not qualified to be president, according to a new national poll.  —  Seventy-one percent of those questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey …

Republican dirty tricks in NY 23  —  A brand-new organization calling itself Common Sense in America is up with a major television ad buy in the New York special election, praising Republican Dede Scozzafava as the “best choice for progressives.”  —  At first glance, the group's ad looks like it's an endorsement of Scozzafava.

Did Schwarzenegger drop 4-letter bomb in veto?  —  Phillip Matier,Andrew Ross, Chronicle Columnists  —  (10-27) 19:19 PDT SACRAMENTO — Did Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office use a coded veto message to send the f-bomb to Tom Ammiano, soon after the San Francisco assemblyman made news by telling the governor to “kiss my gay ass”?

Brother of Afghan Leader Said to Be Paid by C.I.A.  —  KABUL, Afghanistan — Ahmed Wali Karzai, the brother of the Afghan president and a suspected player in the country's booming illegal opium trade, gets regular payments from the Central Intelligence Agency, and has for much of the past eight years …

On Healthcare, Americans Trust Obama More Than Congress  —  By 48% to 37%, more trust the Democrats than the Republicans in Congress  —  PRINCETON, NJ — As Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid tries to advance a healthcare reform bill onto the Senate floor, just under half of Americans, 48% …

Pew Political IQ Poll: Republicans Consistently More Knowledgeable  —  You likely won't see this poll result elsewhere, so I thought I'd highlight it here.  This is a Pew Political IQ test conducted over the phone with 1,002 adults from Oct. 1-4.  They were asked 12 questions …

Pelosi to unveil health bill to House Democrats Thursday morning  —  House Democrats are planning to unveil a healthcare bill Thursday that could disappoint liberals in the caucus.  —  The bill is expected to include a public health insurance option divorced from Medicare rates …

Cheney backs Hutchison  —  How much more fun could the Texas governor's race get?  —  The latest from AP:  —  Former Vice President Dick Cheney will throw his support behind U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's campaign for Texas governor.  —  Hutchison's campaign confirmed Wednesday …

Obama Is Right About Fox News  —  Journalism has a special, hallowed place for stories of its practitioners' persecution.  There is no higher claim to journalistic integrity than going to jail to protect a source.  And the Newseum in Washington, D.C., establishes the profession's legitimacy …

To find right PR guru, Beck looked to his left  —  A few weeks after Sept. 11, 2001, Glenn Beck, a young Tampa-based disc jockey eager to break into conservative talk radio, called his new Manhattan agent, George Hiltzik, to help arrange a visit to Ground Zero.

Palin: Levi Johnston ‘Mean-Spirited,’ ‘Malicious,’ Selling ‘Body for Money’  —  ABC News' Rick Klein reports: Former Gov. Sarah Palin is blasting away at the father of her grandson, issuing a blistering statement today that impugns Levi Johnston's motives in continuing to speak out against the Palin family …

News gets worse for the MSM  —  There have been a lot of bad days recently for what's come to be known as the mainstream media — or MSM — but Monday was one of the worst.  —  New circulation figures showed that big city papers had lost as much as a quarter of their circulation in the past six months.

Attorney General Eric Holder Praises Hate Crimes Law, Lacks Familiarity with Maine Marriage Equality Ballot Measure  —  I just left the signing of the Department of Defense Authorization bill, to which the the inclusive hate-crimes bill was attached.  It was a very moving occasion and I'll …

LameStream Media: Why Did You Bypass These Juicy ACORN Nuggets?  —  The “Pimp and Pro” ACORN story hit America hard a few weeks ago.  It is a ripe story with endless angles to report on, and yet the Mainstream Media's favorite approach seems to be the method in which James and I orchestrated and gathered the information.