Dozens in Congress under ethics inquiry  —  House ethics investigators have been scrutinizing the activities of more than 30 lawmakers and several aides in inquiries about issues including defense lobbying and corporate influence peddling, according to a confidential House ethics committee report prepared in July.

Deal Reached in Honduras to Restore Ousted President  —  MEXICO CITY — A lingering political crisis in Honduras seemed to be nearing an end on Friday after the de facto government agreed to a deal that would allow Manuel Zelaya, the deposed president, to return to office.

Lieberman Marching Further Right in 2010  —  Subway Series: Former Dem Veep Candidate Plans to Campaign for GOP  —  Sounding more like an independent than a Democrat, Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., tells ABC News he will campaign for some Republican candidates during the 2010 midterm elections …

Pataki endorses Hoffman  —  Former New York Gov. George Pataki endorsed Conservative party candidate Doug Hoffman tonight, the clearest sign yet that even the most establishment New York Republicans now view Hoffman as having the best shot at preventing a Democrat from winning next Tuesday's special election.

The Defining Moment  —  O.K., folks, this is it.  It's the defining moment for health care reform.  —  Past efforts to give Americans what citizens of every other advanced nation already have — guaranteed access to essential care — have ended not with a bang, but with a whimper …

Opt-out divides Schumer and Emanuel  —  Chuck Schumer and Rahm Emanuel, the architects of the Democrats' historic take-back of Congress in 2006, talk to each other nearly every day in abrupt, Morse code bursts stripped of hellos, goodbyes and thank-yous.  —  On the surface, everything seems normal.

The White House Stupidly Goes To War With Car Web Site Edmunds.com  —  It is an odd, and we'd say regrettable, pattern of this White House that it lets itself get dragged down into fights with specific media outlets.  —  George W. Bush experienced acrimony with the New York Times …

Obama: Stimulus saved 1 million jobs  —  White House officials, under pressure from the economy's continuing job losses, plan to announce Friday that President Barack Obama's $787 billion stimulus plan “has created and saved at least 1 million jobs” since he signed it in February.

Chris Christie: Man, am I fat  —  I couldn't agree more with Cavuto: This is a brilliant piece of retail politics, turning Corzine's lame digs at his weight into a high-profile opportunity to charm voters.  The tone is exactly right and the jokes are actually funny, and he makes sure …

Fox News Poll: Most Blame Bush for Economy  —  Here's a somewhat surprising result from the new Fox News poll.  Asked which president is “more responsible for the current state of the economy,” only 18 percent say President Obama.  Fifty-eight percent say former President George W. Bush.

Pat Robertson on hate crimes bill: ‘The noose has tightened around the necks of Christians.’  —  Yesterday on the Christian Broadcasting Network, televangelist Pat Robertson aired a segment slamming President Obama for signing the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law.

The Pay Czar Is Unconstitutional  —  Kenneth Feinberg hasn't been confirmed by the U.S. Senate.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Last week's announcement that “Pay Czar” Kenneth Feinberg slashed compensation for executives at seven large financial firms by an average of 50% stunned Wall Street …

Did White House pressure NYT into changing Dover story?  —  Originally, the New York Times reported on President Barack Obama's visit to Dover AFB and the arrival of fallen serviceman by explaining that the White House wanted Obama to be seen as concerned and aware of the sacrifices made in America's war policies:

Charles Krauthammer on Obama's Afghanistan ‘drift’  —  Old Soviet joke:  —  Moscow, 1953.  Stalin calls in Khrushchev.  —  “Niki, I'm dying.  Don't have much to leave you.  Just three envelopes.  Open them, one at a time, when you get into big trouble.”  —  A few years later, first crisis.

The Tenacity Question  —  Today, President Obama will lead another meeting to debate strategy in Afghanistan.  He will presumably discuss the questions that have divided his advisers: How many troops to commit?  How to define plausible goals?  Should troops be deployed broadly or just in the cities and towns?

Brutal ruling quashes birthers' suit  —  A federal judge in California has issued a brutal ruling dismissing a closely-watched “birthers'” lawsuit challenging President's Barack Obama's qualifications to be president.  —  In a 30-page ruling issued Thursday morning, Judge David Carter used …

We're Governed by Callous Children  —  Americans feel increasingly disheartened, and our leaders don't even notice.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  The new economic statistics put growth at a healthy 3.5% for the third quarter.  We should be dancing in the streets.