EXCLUSIVE: Dems ‘Almost Certain’ to Bypass Conference  —  Now that both the House and Senate have passed health care reform bills, all Democrats have to do is work out a compromise between the two versions.  And it appears they're not about to let the Republicans gum up the works again.

Inside Obama's War on Terrorism  —  The evening before he was sworn into office, Barack Obama stepped out of Blair House, the government residence where he was staying across from the White House, and climbed into an armored limousine for the ride to a bipartisan dinner.

BRIT HUME SAID WHAT?.... As regular readers know, I've made no mention of Tiger Woods on this blog.  I don't care about golf; I don't care about golfers' private lives; I don't care about any aspect of this “story” at any level.  —  But I was taken aback when I saw that Fox News' Brit Hume …

That 1937 Feeling  —  Here's what's coming in economic news: The next employment report could show the economy adding jobs for the first time in two years.  The next G.D.P. report is likely to show solid growth in late 2009.  There will be lots of bullish commentary …

Staff walks out on party-switcher Griffith  —  Rep. Parker Griffith's (Ala.) staff has resigned en masse after his recent decision to switch parties and become a Republican.  —  In a sternly worded statement, Griffith Chief of Staff Sharon Wheeler announced the exit of herself …

U.S. Intensifies Screening for Travelers From 14 Nations  —  WASHINGTON — Citizens of 14 nations, including Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Nigeria, who are flying to the United States will be subjected indefinitely to the intense screening at airports worldwide that was imposed after the Christmas …

U.S. Evangelicals' Role Seen in Uganda Anti-Gay Push  —  KAMPALA, Uganda — Last March, three American evangelical Christians, whose teachings about “curing” homosexuals have been widely discredited in the United States, arrived here in Uganda's capital to give a series of talks.

Brown will not seek re-election  —  CONGRESSMAN TO RETIRE AFTER 5TH TERM IN OFFICE  —  Republican Congressman Henry Brown, who has served South Carolina in the U.S. House since 2001, will retire at the end of his term, sources tell The Palmetto Scoop.  —  Brown will announce his intention …

Stimulus Funds Went to Nonexistent Zip Code Areas [Updated]  —  First it was phantom Congressional districts.  Now it's phantom zip codes.  —  Last month, we reported on federal stimulus money credited with creating jobs in nonexistent New Mexico Congressional districts.

Effigy of Obama hanged in US town  —  The US Secret Service says it is investigating after an effigy of Barack Obama was found hanging in the home town of former President Jimmy Carter.  —  TV footage showed the doll hanging by a noose in front of a red, white and blue sign that reads “Plains, Georgia.

Photo-Smearing Obama  —  Glenn Reynolds finds a photo in the White House Flickr basket and publishes it to, er, point out how bad the White House's p.r. is, or how blind they are to perceptions of Obama or some such thing.  I tried to puzzle this one out and can just about see how an elusive photo …

The Obama Disconnect: What Could Have Been?  —  One question that a number of people have raised in response to my post on The Obama Disconnect is essentially, “What's your alternative?  What should the Obama team have done to keep the new political movement it had spawned going as a force for change?

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished as Banks Seek Profits From Bailout  —  Jan. 4 (Bloomberg) — To understand the meaning of no good deed goes unpunished, Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner can look no further than Wall Street where the banks that received the biggest taxpayer bailouts are seeking …

Man Skirts Newark Airport Security; Flights Delayed  —  NEWARK, N.J. — A man walked through a screening checkpoint exit into the secure side of a terminal at one of the nation's busiest airports on Sunday night, and flights were grounded for hours and passengers had to be re-screened while air safety officials searched for him.

Israel's Worst Mistake: The Siege of Gaza  —  Bradley Burston calls the siege of Gaza the worst mistake Israel has made in a decade: … He lists nine more very compelling reasons why the siege is a miserable mistake.  For my money, the worst mistake Israel made was the mistake that led …

Townsend: Time to Start Being Polite, and Start Getting Vague and Hawkish  —  I'm reading Julian Zelizer's Arsenal of Democracy: The Politics of National Security and one thing it makes really clear is that nothing quite beats the exuberance of the out of power hawk.

Ten campaign themes to watch  —  Important themes are emerging as party leaders move into full “campaign mode” ten months ahead of the 2010 midterms.  —  The Hill looks at 10 to keep an eye on as we say goodbye to 2009.  —  1. How real is the tea party effect?

Choudary compares British troops to Nazi stormtroopers as 200,000 sign Facebook bid to stop his Islamic extremist march  —  The hate preacher organising a march of Islamic extremists through the streets of Wootton Bassett sparked outrage today by comparing British troops fighting in Afghanistan to Nazi stormtroopers.

Jordan emerges as key CIA counterterrorism ally  —  Hours after last week's deadly attack on a CIA base in Afghanistan, a revision was made in official accounts of the number of intelligence operatives killed in the suicide bombing.  Instead of eight deaths, as initially reported, the CIA acknowledged only seven.

Peru's mountain people face fight for survival in a bitter winter  —  For alpaca farmer Ignacio Beneto Huamani and his young family, life in the Peruvian Andes, at almost 4,700m above sea level, has always been a struggle against the elements.  His village of Pichccahuasi, in Peru's Huancavelica region …

Former Sen. Chafee to announce gubernatorial bid  —  (CNN) - Lincoln Chafee Monday will formally announce his bid for Rhode Island governor Monday.  —  The former Republican senator-turned-independent will officially jump into the race at an event in Warwick, where he once served as mayor.