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.

Fox News and White House: “Truce”  —  A very reliable source tells FishbowlDC that Fox News SVP Michael Clemente met with White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs this morning and reached what some are calling a “truce.”  —  Clemente then met with the FNC Washington bureau and encouraged staff to remain “fair and balanced.”

Kristol: Breaking News: Pelosi Tries to Lead Democrats off a Cliff  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to release the text of the Democratic health care proposal tomorrow, with the hope of bringing it to the floor as early as next Friday.  Pelosi will claim that the Congressional Budget Office …

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 …

Bayh: If 50 Senators Really Want a Public Option, They Can Get It with Reconciliation  —  Evan Bayh (D-IN) said on CBS's Washington Unplugged said that if fifty senators were dead set on getting a real public option they could always do that by using reconciliation.

Parents banned from watching their children in playgrounds... in case they are paedophiles  —  Parents are being banned from playing with their children in council recreation areas because they have not been vetted by police.  —  Mothers and fathers are being forced to watch their children …

Obama Signs Hate Crimes Bill: “Another Step Forward In Creating A More Perfect Union”  —  This law champions the leftist value of partisan tolerance.  Medved pointed out on his radio show that the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Bill is named after a 21-year-old killed by two young men because of his homosexuality.

CORRECTED: Lieberman Proposed Public Option In 2004, Opposes It Now  —  [CORRECTION: We have been told that Joe's program here was not properly termed a public option, but was two different concepts — an expansion of government-run health care programs for the young, extending it up to age 25 …

Republican vs. Conservative  —  Which side are the Democrats against?  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  You might have heard about the unusual election next week in New York's 23rd Congressional District.  It's unusual for several reasons: It's taking place in an odd-numbered year, there was no primary, and there are three candidates.

Obama Visits Returning War Dead  —  President Obama traveled to Dover Air Force Base early Thursday morning to meet with family members and pay his respects as the flag-draped coffins carrying bodies of 18 American troops killed this week in Afghanistan were returned to the United States.

Victory for Obama Over Military Lobby  —  When the Obama administration proposed canceling a host of expensive weapons systems last spring, some of the military industry's allies in Congress assumed, as they had in the past, that they would have the final say.

BCBS plea to customers on reform hits a nerve  —  This letter asks recipients to contact lawmakers to oppose a public health-care option.  —  Maybe it was just lousy timing, but many customers of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina are ticked off at the mail they've received recently from the state's largest insurer.

Rush's Response: Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) Grills Goodell on Rush  —  Watch It!  YouTube  —  Rush's Response to Commissioner Goodell's Answer:  —  Of course, Goodell's a total weasel.  He had no answer about the Dolphins' owners so wouldn't even address the question …

It's all a big circle for the Democrats  —  Senator John Kerry seems to be emerging as President Obama's go-to person for foreign policy advice on critical issues.  This must be rather galling for Vice President Biden and especially Secretary of State Clinton.

The First Marriage  —  I.  —  Another Washington dusk, another motorcade, another intimate evening played out in public view.  On Oct. 3, just a day after their failed Olympics bid in Copenhagen, Barack and Michelle Obama slipped into a Georgetown restaurant for one of their now-familiar date nights …

Police: SC state attorney caught with stripper  —  COLUMBIA, S.C. — A deputy assistant attorney general who said he was on his lunch break when an officer found him with a stripper and sex toys in his sport utility vehicle has been fired, his boss said Wednesday.

Palin's high-risk, high-reward strategy  —  Washington (CNN) — When Sarah Palin weighed in last week on the contentious special congressional election in New York, she did so in her trademark way: unconventionally.  —  While other potential 2012 presidential contenders largely stayed quiet …

Shortage of Vaccine Poses Political Test for Obama  —  WASHINGTON — The moment a novel strain of swine flu emerged in Mexico last spring, President Obama instructed his top advisers that his administration would not be caught flat-footed in the event of a deadly pandemic.

Did Schwarzenegger say f**k you to legislature?  —  Did Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger mean to hide a message in this note?  —  (CNN) - Was Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's message to state lawmakers unhappy - or obscene?  —  That's the current debate in California after the governor sent a letter directed to …

Obama's Declaration Of Swine Flu Emergency Prompts Pro-Swine-Flu Republican Response  —  WASHINGTON—Claiming that the president was preying on the public's fear of contracting a fatal disease last week when he declared the H1N1 virus a national emergency, Republican leaders announced Wednesday …