U.S. SENATE RACE: Reid takes lead on Angle  —  New poll shows Republican losing support among every voter group  —  U.S. Sen. Harry Reid has opened a strong lead over Republican opponent Sharron Angle after pummeling her in a ubiquitous TV and radio ad campaign that portrays the Tea Party favorite as …

Palin aide swats Romney team  —  In possibly the first inter-staff dust-up of the 2012 presidential race, an aide of Sarah Palin is hitting back at Mitt Romney's camp for saying the former Alaska governor is “not a serious human being.”  —  A “Romney intimate” was quoted by “Time” …

Tim Geithner Opposes Nominating Elizabeth Warren To Lead New Consumer Agency  —  What's Your Reaction: … Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has expressed opposition to the possible nomination of Elizabeth Warren to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, according to a source with knowledge of Geithner's views.

Report: Goodwin choice as Byrd's replacement in Senate  —  CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Gov. Joe Manchin is tapping his former chief counsel and a member of a prominent West Virginia family, Carte Goodwin, to succeed the late U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, Democratic officials told The Associated Press on Friday.

Obama's next act  —  In the political marketplace, there's now a run on Obama shares.  The left is disappointed with the president.  Independents are abandoning him in droves.  And the right is already dancing on his political grave, salivating about November when, his own press secretary admitted Sunday …

Attorney who helped terrorist gets 10 years in prison  —  A judge had resentenced a 70-year-old civil rights lawyer to 10 years in prison for letting a jailed Egyptian sheik communicate with his radical followers.  —  Federal Judge John Koeltl sentenced Lynne Stewart in Manhattan after she pleaded …

The NAACP Is Right  —  The NAACP on the Tea Party: … The reaction to this announcement has been swift and, in the main, negative.  Next door, Dave Weigel, whose knowledge of the Tea Party is formidable, dismisses the resolution as “silliness” and “a stunt,” and Chris Bodenner bemoans …

Greenspan Says Lawmakers Should Let All Bush's Tax Cuts Lapse  —  Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, whose endorsement of George W. Bush's 2001 tax cuts helped persuade Congress to pass them, said lawmakers should allow the cuts to expire at the end of the year.

Dem Rep Sheila Jackson Lee Tells NAACP: “All Those Who Wore Sheets a Long Time Ago Lifted Them Off to Wear Tea Party Clothing” (Applause!)  —  Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) told the NAACP this week that those who wore sheets lifted them off and are now wearing tea party clothing.

AFFIDAVITS: Former DOJ Colleagues Confirm Whistleblower Adams' Accusations.  “Sworn affidavits from Hans A. von Spakovsky and Karl Bowers, who worked with J. Christian Adams in the DOJ's Civil Rights Division, offer broad confirmation of the whistleblower's accusations of bias in enforcing voting rights.”

Q&A: Argentina gay marriage law  —  Argentina is the 10th country to legalise gay marriage  —  Argentina has become the first country in Latin America to legalise same-sex marriage.  —  The debate over the legislation reflected deep divisions in Argentina, which is a mainly Roman Catholic country.

News Analysis: Obama Pushes an Agenda, Disregarding Polls That Disapprove  —  WASHINGTON — If passage of the financial regulatory overhaul on Thursday proves anything about President Obama, it is this: He knows how to push big bills through a balky Congress.

Oil Spill Capped for a Second Day, Offering Some Hope  —  NEW ORLEANS — The hemorrhaging well that has spilled millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico remained capped for a second day Friday, providing some hope of a long-term solution to the environmental disaster.

Earthquake in Maryland felt across area  —  A 3.6 magnitude earthquake rattled the Washington area early Friday, with thousands of residents reporting that they felt the ground shake as they slept or were waking.  The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered in Montgomery County and struck at 5:04 a.m.

David Cameron, don't follow Barack Obama  —  When David Cameron visits America next week he will learn a lot - about how not to run a country, says Peggy Noonan.  —  Dear Mr Cameron, welcome young friend.  Welcome to America.  Bring your bright, dashing self to our shores.

THE MOST CYNICAL OF CALCULATIONS.... Part of me wondered if, after the Senate overcame a Republican filibuster on Wall Street reform, several GOP senators would go ahead and vote for it.  After all, at that point, everyone knew it would pass, and who wants to take a stand against safeguards …

The Gospel of Mel Gibson  —  Let us enter, you and I, into the moral universe of the modern narcissist.  —  The narcissistic person is marked by a grandiose self-image, a constant need for admiration, and a general lack of empathy for others.  He is the keeper of a sacred flame, which is the flame he holds to celebrate himself.

GOP fights immigration lawsuit  —  As Arizona's controversial immigration law enters the courtroom, Capitol Hill Republicans are trying to intervene in the legal brawl.  —  This week, Sens. Jim DeMint of South Carolina and David Vitter of Louisiana introduced legislation that would block …