Piling On Desirée Rogers—Is The Social Secretary To Blame For Two Ticketless Boobs At The White House?  —  There is an unwritten rule in Washington: If you want to last, don't stand out.  Those who do—think Tom DeLay with his cigars, Jack Abramoff with his restaurant—tend to get clipped before too long.

Why I Parted Ways With The Right  —  1. Support for fascists, both in America (see: Pat Buchanan, Robert Stacy McCain, etc.) and in Europe (see: Vlaams Belang, BNP, SIOE, Pat Buchanan, etc.)  —  2. Support for bigotry, hatred, and white supremacism (see: Pat Buchanan, Ann Coulter, Robert Stacy McCain, Lew Rockwell, etc.)

An Open Letter to President Obama from Michael Moore  —  Do you really want to be the new “war president”?  If you go to West Point tomorrow night (Tuesday, 8pm) and announce that you are increasing, rather than withdrawing, the troops in Afghanistan, you are the new war president.  Pure and simple.

The right hammers Huck over shooting  —  The conservative blogosphere unleashed a torrent of criticism against Mike Huckabee Monday after a man whose sentence he commuted as Arkansas governor was suspected of gunning down four police officers in Washington state over the weekend.

My mixed feelings about the war in Afghanistan.  —  Columnists are supposed to have firm views and express them with steadfast certainty.  Since I write a column called “War Stories,” the least a reader might expect from me is a clear opinion on whether the United States should escalate or pull out of the war in Afghanistan.

Washington Times Runs Anti-Obama Birther Ad Featuring Racial Undertones  —  This latest national edition of the Washington Times features a full-page ad that claims that President Obama is not a natural-born citizen of the United States.  The ad was purchased by the anti-Obama website ProtectOurLiberty.org.

CBO: Senate Health Care Bill Would Raise Premiums 10-13 Percent  —  In another blow to Democrats' health care claims, the Congressional Budget Office released an analysis on Monday projecting that the Senate health care bill would raise premiums by more than $2,000 on family policies compared …

Video Shows Romanian President Hitting Boy  —  Romania's government “has collapsed and its economy is in shambles but its presidential campaign has been dominated in recent days by a video that appears to show the president striking a 10-year-old boy in the face,” the AP reports.

This is Great News!!!  For Progressives!!!  —  Chris Bowers is feeling kind of “meh” about the prospect of large-scale Democratic losses in the 2010 midterms: … Chris is one of my favorite bloggers and one of my first reads every morning.  In those instances where I disagree with him …

Come Fry with Me — By: Mark Steyn  —  In order to save the planet from global roasting, it seems entirely reasonable to ask Mr. and Mrs. Joe Peasant to subordinate their freedom of movement to an annual “carbon allowance” preventing them flying hither and yon and devastating the environment.

Did Obama Inadvertently Excuse Palestinian Violence?  —  This is what the President had to say after the Israeli announcement that 900 apartment units would be built in the South Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo: … Two issues.  The first is that this Administration, unlike previous Administrations …

UN marks November 29 ‘day of mourning’  —  While Israel celebrates date on which it was given a state by UN, latter plans anti-Israeli resolutions  —  WASHINGTON - The UN is currently marking the historic date of November 29 1947, the day in which it approved the partition plan separating Israel into two states - Jewish and Arabic.

The Unmasking of Barack Obama  —  The overseas reviews for President Obama's foreign policy are starting to pour in — and they're not favorable.  Bob Ainsworth, the British defense secretary, has blamed Obama for the decline in British public support for the war in Afghanistan.  According to the Telegraph:

Tory Muslim peer pelted with eggs  —  Baroness Warsi, who was hit by at least one egg, debated with the men  —  Conservative peer Baroness Warsi of Dewsbury, named Britain's most powerful Muslim woman, has been pelted with eggs during a visit to Luton.  —  Baroness Warsi was taking part …

NORTH STAR  —  Populism, politics, and the power of Sarah Palin.  —  The last time the publication of a political memoir aroused as much interest as Sarah Palin's “Going Rogue: An American Life” (Harper; $28.99) was probably in 1995, when Colin Powell's autobiography, “My American Journey,” came out.

Adam Bellow's Fact-Checking, Ctd  —  More fun from the book “edited” by Adam Bellow and “written” by Sarah Palin.  I have to say I guffawed out loud when reading her citations of Plato and Aristotle, when what she really meant to cite was Quote Garden.  But she can't even get more folksy references correct.

Obama's Winning First Year—And Palin As Worst Veep  —  Over at Slate, my friend Jacob Weisberg makes a compelling argument that Obama is having the most successful first year of any president since FDR.  He notes that a lot of that argument depends on the passage of health care reform, which, I think, remains a pretty good bet.

Swiss Ban on Minaret Building Meets Widespread Criticism  —  GENEVA — Switzerland's political leaders faced a chorus of criticism at home and abroad on Monday over a ban on the construction of minarets that passed overwhelmingly by referendum on Sunday.  —  The ban has propelled the country …

Showcase: Dubai's Improbable Tale  —  They journeyed to the desert emirate of Dubai by the tens of thousands.  Laborers from small towns on the Indian subcontinent and white-collar executives from the capitals of Europe.  They came seeking fortune, and they built a modern city unlike …

Pelosi spends $2,993 on flowers  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) spent $2,993 in taxpayer money on flowers between June and October.  House Majority Whip James Clyburn has a thing for Chantilly Donuts, spending about $500 at the Virginia shop in the past quarter.