L.A. Times Columnist Uncritically Quoted Star of Latest ACORN Video  —  In September, L.A. Times columnist James Rainey wrote a column in which he uncritically quoted ACORN worker Lavelle Stewart suggesting that she had turned Hannah Giles and James O'Keefe out of her office:

Election 2010: Arizona Senate GOP Primary  —  2010 Arizona GOP Primary: McCain 45%, Hayworth 43%  —  Senator John McCain's future in the U.S. Senate may be a little less assured than previously thought.  —  A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely 2010 Republican Primary voters …

Charles Krauthammer on the perverse logic of Attorney General Eric Holder  —  F or late-19th-century anarchists, terrorism was the “propaganda of the deed.”  And the most successful propaganda-by-deed in history was 9/11 — not just the most destructive, but the most spectacular and telegenic.

CNN Poll: Blame for recession shifting from GOP to Democrats  —  Washington (CNN) - Nearly two years into the recession, opinion about which political party is responsible for the severe economic downturn is shifting, according to a new national poll.  —  A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation …

The Big Squander  —  Earlier this week, the inspector general for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, a k a, the bank bailout fund, released his report on the 2008 rescue of the American International Group, the insurer.  The gist of the report is that government officials made no serious attempt …

Obama faces congressional anger about economy  —  House Republicans call on Geithner to resign  —  Growing discontent over the economy and frustration with efforts to speed its recovery boiled over Thursday on Capitol Hill in a wave of criticism and outright anger directed at the Obama administration.

Easy Loans in Expensive Areas  —  SAN FRANCISCO — In January, Mike Rowland was so broke that he had to raid his retirement savings to move here from Boston.  —  A week ago, he and a couple of buddies bought a two-unit apartment building for nearly a million dollars.

Reid pushes for votes on health-care bill  —  CBO analysis of public option is an obstacle  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid worked Thursday to nail down the votes needed to move to a final debate on health-care legislation, but a tepid assessment of the public insurance plan …

The Day I Met Sarah Palin...and the Liberal Media  —  Where on earth do I begin?  This all started as me, a young 17 year old American going to see a woman I admire and turned into this crazy event hah I'll start at the very beginning.  —  My dad and I arrived at the Barnes and Noble at 11 pmTuesday evening.

Clinton Emerges as Key Link to Afghan Leader  —  KABUL, Afghanistan — It is far from clear that President Obama can depend on President Hamid Karzai to bring order to this violent country, but it is becoming clear that he will depend on Hillary Rodham Clinton to be his go-between in dealing with the mercurial Afghan leader.

Rudy Giuliani to run for U.S. Senate; If elected may aim for White House in 2012  —  Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani has decided not to run for governor next year - but will run for U.S. Senate instead, sources told the Daily News.  —  A source familiar with Giuliani's thinking …

Breaking News Story: CRU has apparently been hacked - hundreds of files released  —  UPDATE: Response from CRU in interview with another website, see end of this post.  —  The details on this are still sketchy, we'll probably never know what went on.  But it appears that University …

The $100 Million Health Care Vote?  —  ABC News' Jonathan Karl reports:  —  What does it take to get a wavering senator to vote for health care reform?  —  Here's a case study.  —  On page 432 of the Reid bill, there is a section increasing federal Medicaid subsidies for “certain states recovering from a major disaster.”

Alan Blinder: Danger lies in threat to Fed independence  —  The Federal Reserve's performance in this long-running financial and economic crisis deserves separate grades.  For the early crisis period, from the summer of 2007 until a few weeks after the Lehman Brothers failure in mid-September 2008, the Fed's response was uneven.

W.H. SHRINKS HANUKKAH PARTY  —  The White House's forthcoming state dinner with the Prime Minister of India is expected to be larger than those of President Barack Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush.  But another upcoming White House event will be smaller than in years past: The White House's annual Hanukkah party.

Christian Leaders Unite on Political Issues  —  Citing the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s call to civil disobedience, 145 evangelical, Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christian leaders have signed a declaration saying they will not cooperate with laws that they say could be used to compel …

Palin's on the road again, with Hoosiers in sight  —  FORT WAYNE, IND. — Tina Andreadis doesn't have much experience in Republican presidential politics.  —  But as Sarah Palin's “Going Rogue” national book tour delivers stump speeches, long lines of sign-bearing supporters …

Palin's Gold Mine  —  Blogs and Stories  —  Sarah Palin sold 300,000 copies of Going Rogue on its first day of sale, Duff McDonald has learned.  One component of a media rollout that doubled as a a one-woman economic stimulus package.  —  Did you hear that Sarah Palin has a book out?