Live-Blogging West Point  —  8.35 pm.  “Not the deepest of fears but the highest of hopes.”  —  I confess I do not feel those highest hopes.  I do not share his confidence in American military and civilian power to turn the roiling region of Afghanistan and Pakistan into something less threatening.

In praise of George W. Bush  —  Since the results of the 2008 election became clear, the 43rd President of the United States has behaved in a way that brings honor to him, his family, his office, and his country.  By all reports he did what he could to smooth the transition to his successor …

UK climate scientist to temporarily step down  —  LONDON — Britain's University of East Anglia says the director of its prestigious Climatic Research Unit is stepping down pending an investigation into allegations that he overstated the case for man-made climate change.

A Bravo Contract Delivered White House Gatecrashers to the Today Show  —  NBC News didn't pay the Salahis for their exclusive Today appearance this morning.  They didn't have to: According to rival bookers trying to land the Salahis, they already have a contract with Bravo preventing them from talking to anyone else.

8 Million Reasons for Real Surveillance Oversight  —  Disclaimer: The information presented here has been gathered and analyzed in my capacity as a graduate student at Indiana University.  This data was gathered and analyzed on my own time, without using federal government resources.

Climategate and Scientific Conduct  —  Everyone has heard about the “Climategate” scandal by now.  Someone leaked hundreds of megabytes of information from the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit, and the material (which appears to be authentic) is most interesting.

Leaving the Right  —  It's an odd formulation in some ways as “the right” is not really a single entity.  But in so far as it means the dominant mode of discourse among the institutions and blogs and magazines and newspapers and journals that support the GOP, Charles Johnson is absolutely right …

Obama lunches with top political writers  —  On the day of his major Afghanistan speech, President Obama had lunch with a group of top political writers at the White House, according to a source familiar with the lunch.  —  There were some attendees today who write extensively on foreign policy …

Tanner To Retire  —  Rep. John Tanner (D-TN), a leading Blue Dog Dem, will retire at the end of his current term, Dem sources tell Hotline OnCall.  —  Tanner has begun informing key House Dems of his decision — one that will make his seat a prime pickup opportunity for GOPers.

FTC to Examine Possible Support of News Organizations  —  WASHINGTON -The head of the Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday the agency will study whether government should aid struggling news organizations, which are suffering from a collapse in advertising revenues as the internet upends their centuries-old business model.

Palin blasts media for bus tour stories  —  Sarah Palin fired back at the media today for a series of stories on her travel arrangements.  —  Over the last few days, several outlets have picked up on the story that Palin actually flew to some of the stops on her “bus tour.”  (Here, here, and here, for example.)

Gutsy progressive congressman Alan Grayson leads a double life  —  Since defeating an incumbent in Florida's Republican-heavy 8th congressional district last year, Rep. Alan Grayson has emerged as one of the progressive movement's most vocal champions.  His attacks on Republican obstruction …

Does Ben Nelson Know What “War Bonds” Are?  —  Riddle of the day is inspired by Senator Ben Nelson's take on financing the Afghanistan War through a war tax: … One thing NBC's Ken Strickland might have wanted to note while “reporting” this story is that what Nelson is saying here is false.

Grassley: 'I've lived off the public tit' as a congressman.  —  On C-SPAN's Washington Journal this morning, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) was asked if he thought the health care reform bill before the Senate amounted to socialism.  “No,” Grassley said, but he then attacked the public option aspect of the bill, calling it “socialism.”

The Worst Kind Of Scheduling Conflict.  —  President Barack Obama ...  ... is slated to deliver a prime-time address on Tuesday night in which he'll lay out his plans for the American war in Afghanistan.  —  The address before the United States Military Academy at West Point on Tuesday night …

Arming Goldman With Pistols Against Public: Alice Schroeder  —  Dec. 1 (Bloomberg) — “I just wrote my first reference for a gun permit,” said a friend, who told me of swearing to the good character of a Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker who applied to the local police for a permit to buy a pistol.

Job Cuts Loom as Stimulus Fades  —  WASHINGTON—Highway-construction companies around the country, having completed the mostly small projects paid for by the federal economic-stimulus package, are starting to see their business run aground, an ominous sign for the nation's weak employment picture.