Desperate Dems try to Palinize Massachusetts Senate race  —  Frantic over the possibility that a Democrat might lose the race to replace Sen. Ted Kennedy in Massachusetts, the Democratic National Committee has sent its top spinner, Hari Sevugan, to the aid of Democratic candidate Martha Coakley …

Sen. Reid and son Rory each considered a burden for the other's campaign in Nevada  —  LAS VEGAS — As if Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) didn't have enough problems, say hello to Rory Reid, his eldest son.  Looks just like him.  He's running for governor of Nevada.

Ford: I'm gearing up for Senate race  —  It's true: I am strongly considering running for the United States Senate.  —  I do so because our best as a nation has always come when we test our ideas and ourselves, and when we trust competition to refine the steel of our convictions and the truth of our arguments.

CNN Poll: Americans split on success of Obama presidency  —  Washington (CNN) - Americans are giving Barack Obama a split decision on his first year in office, according to a new national poll.  —  Forty-eight percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Tuesday …

Divorce Rates Higher in States with Gay Marriage Bans  —  Over the past decade or so, divorce has gradually become more uncommon in the United States.  Since 2003, however, the decline in divorce rates has been largely confined to states which have not passed a state constitutional ban on gay marriage.

Palin, Bachmann Tea Party sessions closed to press  —  It looks like the revolution will not be televised, after all.  —  At least not the Tea Party's revolution.  —  Word from Nashville on Monday was that the First National Tea Party Convention next month will be closed to the press …

Federal Reserve earned $45 billion in 2009  —  Wall Street firms aren't the only banks that had a banner year.  The Federal Reserve made record profits in 2009, as its unconventional efforts to prop up the economy created a windfall for the government.  —  The Fed will return about $45 billion …

Tax on Investment Income Is Weighed  —  Health-Bill Negotiators Consider Extending Medicare Levy as They Face Pressure to Ease Proposed Hit on Generous Insurance Plans  —  WASHINGTON — House and Senate negotiators are considering applying for the first time the Medicare payroll tax …

Iran Nuke Physicist, Opposition Supporter Killed in Motorcycle Bomb  —  TEHRAN, Iran — A nuclear physics professor who publicly backed opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi in the June presidential election was killed Tuesday when a bomb-rigged motorcycle blew up outside his home.

Vidal Loco  —  What has happened to Gore Vidal, the witty, tough-minded subversive of American letters, the 20th century's only possible answer to Oscar Wilde?  After 9/11, the author laments, Vidal's writings took a graceless lurch toward the crackpot, surpassing even the wilder-eyed efforts …