John McCain: The Reason For All Of This  —  Richard Coen convenes a meeting: … The WSJ and TWS have long ago lost any intellectual credibility.  They use sophism to maintain power.  Their cynicism and/or denial mechanisms are deeper than most mortals can imagine.

Obama on terror trials: KSM will die  —  Americans who are troubled by the decision to send alleged Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed to New York for trial will feel better about it when he's put to death, President Barack Obama said Tuesday.  —  During a round of network television …

National Debt Now Tops $12 Trillion  —  Posted by Mark Knoller It's another record-high for the U.S. National Debt which today topped the $12-trillion mark.  Divided evenly among the U.S. population, it amounts to $38,974.34 for every man, woman and child.  —  Technically, the debt hit …

3 Democrats Could Block Health Bill in Senate  —  WASHINGTON — Senator Ben Nelson, Democrat of Nebraska, says he is not sure he is ready to help a Democratic health care proposal clear even the most preliminary hurdle: gaining the 60 votes his party's leaders need to open debate on the measure later this week.

$500 Million and Apology From Goldman  —  How much good will can an apology — and half a billion dollars — buy?  A lot, Goldman Sachs is hoping.  —  After first staunchly defending its outsize profits and pay, and then bristling at calls for restraint in these tough economic times …

Palin: Obama Wrong on Israeli, Afghan Policy  —  Former Alaska Gov. Tells Barbara Walters President Obama ‘Dithering Around’ on U.S. Strategy in Afghanistan, Has It ‘Backassward’ on Economy  —  In an interview with ABC News' Barbara Walters, Sarah Palin, the former GOP vice presidential candidate …

Obama: I'd Fire Afghan Decision Leakers  —  Also Tells Chip Reid Afghan Decision Still Weeks Off; Speaks About Sarah Palin, and Toll Office Taking on Him … Reid reports the president said it's still several weeks before he makes a decision on how many more troops to send to Afghanistan.

Health ‘Reform’ Gets a Failing Grade  —  The changes proposed by Congress will require more draconian measures down the road.  Just look at Massachusetts.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  As the dean of Harvard Medical School I am frequently asked to comment on the health-reform debate.

Rush Interviews Governor Sarah Palin  —  BEGIN TRANSCRIPT  —  RUSH: We are going to open this hour with a rare personal interview, a rare guest.  It doesn't happen much on this program, but we are happy to have with us former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, whose book, Going Rogue …

Palin on Nidal Hasan: “Profile Away”  —  I spoke to Governor Palin by phone this afternoon.  Lots of interesting material, but to me the most interesting takeaways were the following:  —  1) I asked about Palin's upcoming visit to Ft. Hood.  “We had planned on that before the tragedy struck,” she said.

Crist To Engage Rubio  —  Buffeted by weeks of negative press and a newly threatening rival from the right, FL Gov. Charlie Crist's (R) campaign will step up direct engagements with his opponent, insiders tell OnCall.  —  Crist will attack former FL House Speaker Marco Rubio (R) …

How Hitler's Nazi propaganda machine tried to take Christ out of Christmas  —  Nazi Germany celebrated Christmas without Christ with the help of swastika tree baubles, ‘Germanic’ cookies and a host of manufactured traditions, a new exhibition has shown.  —  The way the celebration …

CNN Poll: Does the GOP want ideologically pure candidates?  —  Washington (CNN) - A new national poll suggests that the Democrats may be the party of pragmatism and Republicans may be the party of ideological purity.  —  The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey's release on Tuesday comes …

Police Officer Uses Taser On 10-Year-Old Girl  —  OZARK, Ark. — Ozark police said they were called to a home where a mother asked for help with her unruly child, but the 10-year-old's father said he's outraged at the force police used against his daughter.  —  “I would like to say Ozark police Tased this little girl right here.

Audit The Fed Effort Under Threat In House  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  A bipartisan effort to force transparency on the Federal Reserve is suddenly in jeopardy after a House Financial Services Committee member introduced an amendment that would let the multi-trillion dollar organization …

Go Jodi Go!  Times' Kantor Scores Seven Figures From Little, Brown For Obama Book  —  New York Times Washington correspondent Jodi Kantor has secured a stunning seven-figure book deal this week with Little, Brown to write a volume on the Obamas.  —  The deal was the result of a heated citywide auction …