Letter from President Andy Stern to SEIU members: Where do we go from here?  —  A little over a year ago, you stood up and showed a nation that Yes, We Can.  You knocked on doors, picked up phones, wrote your friends and family and neighbors and helped ring in a resounding victory.

Nelson a ‘no’ on health reform bill pending further changes  —  Centrist Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson (Neb.) won't advance healthcare reform efforts unless further changes are made, the senator said Thursday afternoon.  —  Nelson said that modifications to the bill, including provisions …

Sarah Palin's McCain Cover Up  —  For the first time ever, Sarah Palin used her head to make a searing political comment — a frontal attack on Sen. John McCain.  —  The failed Vice Presidential nominee took time off from shilling her book to vacation with her son Trig …

Insurgents Hack U.S. Drones  —  $26 Software Is Used to Breach Key Weapons in Iraq; Iranian Backing Suspected  —  WASHINGTON — Militants in Iraq have used $26 off-the-shelf software to intercept live video feeds from U.S. Predator drones, potentially providing them with information they need …

The Health Bill Is Scary  —  Government guidelines would likely have forbidden the test I used to discover Sheila's cancer.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  I recently suggested that seniors will die sooner if Congress actually implements the Medicare cuts in the health-care bill put forward by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Climategate goes SERIAL: now the Russians confirm that UK climate scientists manipulated data to exaggerate global warming  —  Climategate just got much, much bigger.  And all thanks to the Russians who, with perfect timing, dropped this bombshell just as the world's leaders are gathering …

Success on health reform holds risks for Democrats  —  President Obama needs an exit strategy.  I am not referring to Afghanistan or Iraq (though there are quite a few similarities between the situation Obama is in on health-care reform and the political difficulties President George W. Bush faced on Iraq).

50% Now Say Global Warming Caused by Long-Term Planetary Trends, Political Class Strongly Disagrees  —  Public skepticism about the officially promoted cause of global warming has reached an all-time high among Americans.  —  A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 50% …

Walpin-gate may snag Mrs. Obama  —  Skullduggery alleged in White House dismissal of inspector general  —  No inspector general can unearth corruption without access to his office, computer or staff.  An “administrative leave” putting an IG in that position has the same effect, for all intents and purposes, as an immediate firing.

20 Questions, 20 Responses  —  I'm happy that this debate seems to be evolving into something a little more civilized on all sides.  This is my response to Markos Moulitsas (DK) at Daily Kos and Jon Walker (JW) at FireDogLake who were kind enough to respond to the 20 questions I posed earlier.

Ruined Senate bill unsupportable  —  Conservatives have destroyed this version of health care reform  —  SPECIAL COMMENT  —  Finally, as promised, a Special Comment on the latest version of H-R 35-90, the Senate Health Care Reform bill.  To again quote Churchill after Munich …

Blizzard Dumps Snow on Copenhagen as Leaders Battle Warming  —  Dec. 17 (Bloomberg) — World leaders flying into Copenhagen today to discuss a solution to global warming will first face freezing weather as a blizzard dumped 10 centimeters (4 inches) of snow on the Danish capital overnight.

Monica's back & #8211; says Clinton lied  —  In the years since their bitter battle, both former President Bill Clinton and independent counsel Ken Starr have predicted they'd be vindicated in the history books.  —  Now the first definitive history of the Clinton scandal is about to arrive …

Aloha, Segregation  —  The Akaka bill would create a race-based state in Hawaii.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  President Obama speaks proudly of his childhood in Hawaii, so we wonder what the state's voters think of his support for a bill that would redistribute its wealth based on race.

Palin's Favorable Up Slightly; Obama's Holds Steady  —  Obama (56%) more popular than Palin (44%)  —  PRINCETON, NJ — After the release of her much-publicized autobiography and the ensuing book tour, Sarah Palin is still viewed more unfavorably than favorably by Americans …

GAO tells Smith, Issa it will probe ACORN  —  The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has informed two House Republicans that it will investigate ACORN's use of federal funds.  —  The GAO sent a letter to Reps. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee …