Justices Block Key Part of Campaign Law  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has ruled that corporations may spend freely to support or oppose candidates for president and Congress, easing decades-old limits on their participation in federal campaigns.  —  By a 5-4 vote …

He Wasn't The One We've Been Waiting For  —  Health care reform — which is crucial for millions of Americans — hangs in the balance.  Progressives are desperately in need of leadership; more specifically, House Democrats need to be told to pass the Senate bill, which isn't what they wanted but is vastly better than nothing.

Edwards admits fathering child with mistress  —  Former presidential candidate promises to support his 2-year-old daughter  —  John Edwards' attorneys say he's been providing financial support for 2-year-old Quinn for about a year, and just signed a child support agreement with Rielle Hunter.

Obama to Propose Limits on Risks Taken by Banks  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama on Thursday will publicly propose giving bank regulators the power to limit the size of the nation's largest banks and the scope of their risk-taking activities, an administration official said late Wednesday.

Election 2010: Missouri Senate  —  2010 Missouri Senate: Blunt (R) 49%, Carnahan (D) 43%  —  Republican Roy Blunt now holds a six-point lead over Democrat Robin Carnahan in Missouri's race for the U.S. Senate.  —  A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely voters in the state finds Blunt ahead of Carnahan 49% to 43%.

Courting Disaster with Christiane Amanpour  —  Marc Thiessen is the author of Courting Disaster: How the CIA Kept America Safe and How Barack Obama Is Inviting the Next Attack , about which he wrote for us here.  As White House speechwriter for George Bush, Thiessen was locked in a secure room …

Dems fret: ‘Every state is in play’  —  The Republican victory in Massachusetts has sent a wave of fear through the halls of the Senate, with moderate and liberal Democrats second-guessing their party's agenda — and worrying that they'll be the next victims of voters' anger.

The Massachusetts Election  —  If anyone should have seen it coming in Massachusetts, it is President Obama — the long-shot candidate who rode to electoral victory on a wave of popular impatience and an ability to identify and address voters' core anxieties.

IN-9: Baron Hill Trailing Mike Sodrel in Fifth Straight Match Up, 41% to 49%  —  FDL/SurveyUSA, 1/16-1/18, 600 likely voters, margin of sampling error ± 4.1% … 2010 will be the fifth straight time Democratic Congressman Baron Hill has gone head-to-head with Republican former Congressman Mike Sodrel …

Political math: 37 > 63  —  As I point out in my article in the current issue, the combination of three forces:  — The original Constitutional compromise giving two Senate seats to every state, large or small;  — The post-Constitutional patterns of population growth …

Chicago Argues to Void 14th Ammendment To Protect Weapons Ban  —  Elizabeth Wydra via Balkinization: … I'm sure a lot of you out there will enjoy the legal argument.  —  My argument is more common sense.  Sure gangs cause trouble, guns are a part of that trouble.

Relieved  —  I want to recommend that everyone read the email we just got from a Senate staffer who will have to remain anonymous.  Here's one part of the email that stood out to me.  The whole thing is after the jump ...  Here's the whole thing.