Visitor Records  —  As part of President Obama's commitment to government transparency, we are providing records of White House visitors on an ongoing basis online.  In December 2009, we will begin posting all White House visitor records for the period from September 15th onwards under the terms of our new voluntary disclosure policy.

Gavin Newsom quits race for California governor  —  San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who has been seen as a leading contender to be the next governor of California, announced today that he is quitting the race.  —  Newsom is withdrawing from the Democratic primary amid lackluster poll numbers and meager fund-raising receipts.

Steele: Hoffman win is a GOP win  —  Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said Friday that a victory by Doug Hoffman, the third-party candidate in the Nov. 3 New York special election, is a win for the GOP.  —  The actual Republican nominee, Dede Scozzafava, trails Hoffman …

Pelosi Health Care Bill Blows a Kiss to Trial Lawyers  —  The health care bill recently unveiled by Speaker Nancy Pelosi is over 1,900 pages for a reason.  It is much easier to dispense goodies to favored interest groups if they are surrounded by a lot of legislative legalese.

CREW LAWSUIT RESULTS IN RELEASE OF NOTES OF CHENEY'S FBI INTERVIEW IN WILSON LEAK CASE  —  30 Oct 2009 // Washington, D.C. - Today, after successfully winning a lawsuit against the Department of Justice, under court order, CREW received documents related to former Vice President Dick Cheney's interview …

$160,000 Per Stimulus Job?  White House Calls That ‘Calculator Abuse’  —  Posting its results late this afternoon at Recovery.gov, the White House claimed 640,329 jobs have been created or saved because of the $159 billion in stimulus funds allocated as of Sept. 30.

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.

MSNBC Airs Uncensored Breast Self-Exam  —  This reminds me when Fox News plays a constant b-roll of girls in bikinis during, say, Spring Break while proclaiming, “Ohhhh, isn't that terrible!  That's so inappropriate!”  —  MSNBC's Dr. Nancy — who's show gets terrible ratings …

Lieberman In '94: The Filibuster “Ails Washington” And Should Be Eliminated  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  Senator Joseph Lieberman's (I-Conn) threat to filibuster health care legislation that includes a public option for insurance coverage has sent minor shock-waves throughout Washington.

Ayn Rand's Revenge  —  A specter is haunting the Republican Party — the specter of John Galt.  In Ayn Rand's libertarian epic “Atlas Shrugged,” Galt, an inventor disgusted by creeping American collectivism, leads the country's capitalists on a retributive strike.

Attention Bush Apologists: Reagan Greeted Fallen Americans at an Air Force Base, Idiots  —  It appears my post yesterday got the teabaggers all riled up.  —  Apparently, their position is that George W. Bush's refusal to honor fallen Americans as they return to this country for the last time …

Gore Vidal: Thirteen-year-old Roman Polanski rape victim was a ‘hooker’  —  Author Gore Vidal says he refuses to feel any sympathy for Roman Polanski's rape victim, whom he dubs a “hooker.”  —  In an interview with The Atlantic, the controversial 83-year-old author of such books as …

Source: Afghan election talks break down  —  Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — Talks between Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his election opponent, Abdullah Abdullah, have broken down, a Western source close to the Afghan leadership told CNN's Christiane Amanpour on Friday.