Patrick Kennedy to retire  —  Rhode Island Democratic Rep. Patrick Kennedy, the son of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, will announce on Friday that he is retiring, according to Democratic insiders.  —  Kennedy, 42, was first elected to the House in 1994.  His departure will leave Congress without …

Obama in nominee showdown  —  The Senate confirmed a huge group of administration nominees on Thursday, following a tense exchange between President Barack Obama and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).  —  At a White House meeting with bipartisan congressional leaders on Tuesday …

Sen. Reid kills Baucus bill, narrows focus of jobs legislation after complaints  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is rewriting a jobs bill after Democrats complained of too many concessions to Republicans.  —  Reid announced Thursday that he would cut drastically …

Poll Finds Edge for Obama Over G.O.P. Among the Public  —  WASHINGTON — At a time of deepening political disaffection and intensified distress about the economy, President Obama enjoys an edge over Republicans in the battle for public support, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.

Former President Bill Clinton Rushed to N.Y. Hospital  —  Clinton Had Quadruple Heart Bypass Surgery in 2004  —  Former President Bill Clinton was rushed to a Manhattan hospital late this afternoon, sources tell ABC News.  —  Clinton, 63, was transported to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital …

Obama will help select location of Khalid Sheik Mohammed terrorism trial  —  President Obama is planning to insert himself into the debate about where to try the accused mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, three administration officials said Thursday, signaling a recognition …

Republicans and Medicare  —  “Don't cut Medicare.  The reform bills passed by the House and Senate cut Medicare by approximately $500 billion.  This is wrong.”  So declared Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House, in a recent op-ed article written with John Goodman, the president of the National Center for Policy Analysis.

Appeals court: Nude dancing still considered art  —  Hamburg, Ia.  — Nude dancing is still an art form in Iowa, at least at a strip club in the tiny town of Hamburg.  —  The Iowa Court of Appeals on Wednesday dismissed the state's request for a review of the issue.

Medina Campaign Responds to Glenn Beck Interview  —  I was asked a question on the Glenn Beck show today regarding my thoughts on the so-called 9/11 truth movement.  I have never been involved with the 9/11 truth movement, and there is no doubt in my mind that Muslim terrorists flew planes into those buildings on 9/11.

3 House retirements spur debate on whether Republicans are losing momentum  —  A trio of House Republican retirement announcements over the past 10 days have sparked a debate between the leaders of the two major parties over whether the GOP is losing momentum in its quest to score major gains at the ballot box this fall.

Health Reform in Limbo, Top Drug Lobbyist Quits  —  Billy Tauzin, the former Louisiana congressman, is resigning as president of the drug industry trade group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America amid internal disputes over its pact with the White House to trade political support …

Where the U.S. went wrong on the Christmas Day bomber  —  It seems to me unlikely that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab will be known to future generations of lawyers for generating any groundbreaking legal principle or issue.  But when it comes to illuminating our public discourse about the …

Scenes from a counter-revolution  —  The growing power of the tea-party movement will make it hard for Republican politicians to compromise with the president … MAKING a virtue of a necessity, Barack Obama has talked endlessly in recent weeks about the wonders of bipartisanship.

Brain Trust To Nowhere: Meet The Advisers Behind The Palin Road Show  —  As Sarah Palin relaunches her image for the next stage of her political career, there's a small set of advisers who are shaping the former governor's policy positions and public persona.