Move the New York City mosque, as a sign of unity  —  The national debate about building a mosque near Ground Zero in New York is less about our freedom of religion than about the common sense and uncommon courtesy sometimes required to come together as Americans.

The Rev. Franklin Graham Says President Obama was ‘Born a Muslim’  —  Comments Come As Poll Shows One in Five Americans Wrongly Believes Obama Is Muslim  —  On the heels of a new poll suggesting that nearly one in five Americans incorrectly believes that President Obama is a Muslim …

True Face of Imam Rauf to be Revealed by Newly Discovered Audio Tapes...  This fraud's mask must be torn off.  The American people must be made aware of the truth about the “moderate” Ground Zero Mosque organizers that Leftists are so vociferously supporting ...  Via the great champion of freedom, Pamela Geller @Atlas Shrugs...

U.S. officials: Abbas announcement imminent, details not yet finalized  —  U.S. officials told Jewish community leaders on a private conference call this afternoon that they believe Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is on the verge of joining Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu …

DNC Pulls Bush Ad  —  The Democratic National Committee released an advertisement, posted on the DNC's “Rapid Response” YouTube Channel, mocking George W. Bush.  The ad was laughable, and much derided.  —  Here is how it appeared in my post earlier today, Extremely Effective DNC Ad:

Why Political Sage Sees GOP Romp in November  —  In the panoply of political prognosticators populating Washington, few have painted a bleaker picture of Democrats' 2010 election prospects than Charlie Cook.  —  And he doesn't see that picture getting any brighter.

Treasury Admits HAMP Expectations Not Met, Thinks “Extend and Pretend” Is a Virtue  —  The Latin inscription reads: “We shall attain the excellence of virtue with the grace of God and the effort of our will.”  Federal government seems to be relying on similar methods to avert mortgage crisis.

This just in... Quinn's media firm fired, fires shots  —  * 10:30 am - More really bad campaign news for Gov. Pat Quinn.  His media firm, AKPD, has just exited the campaign [it was fired].  And check out this harsh goodbye statement...  Oh, man, what a shot that was.

Keep The Faith  —  It is with a heavy heart that I tell you today that the board of elections in Haiti has disqualified me from my run for the presidency of the country.  Though I disagree with the ruling, I respectfully accept the committee's final decision, and I urge my supporters to do the same.

First general election poll puts Rossi ahead; confirms competitive race  —  The first KING 5 Senate poll for the 2010 general election shows Republican Dino Rossi is actually ahead of Democratic incumbent Patty Murray, 52% to 45%.  —  In most polls leading up to this week's primary election …

BioShock Takes On American Exceptionalism.  —  I've written before about the horror/shooter BioShock series of video games being about the closest thing I've ever seen to narrative art in the genre, in part because the games tend to wrestle with political high concepts.

Will bacteria count beach Barack Obama?  —  WEST TISBURY - Welcome to Martha's Vineyard, Mr. President - but don't go in the water!  —  President Obama, who took a plunge in the Gulf last week to show Americans it was safe to swim the oil spill-plagued area, arrived on this supposedly …

Why won't the Pentagon help WikiLeaks redact documents?  —  (updated below - Update II - Update III)  —  When the controversy first arose over the lack of redactions in the war documents released by WikiLeaks, the website insisted that, using the New York Times as an intermediary …

CON AIR.... It was hard to imagine the Brent Furer story getting worse for Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) — but it has.  —  To briefly recap, Furer is the aide Vitter kept on his taxpayer-financed payroll, despite Furer having held his ex-girlfriend hostage, threatening to kill her, and attacking her with a knife.

Obama, Clyburn tee off together in Martha's Vineyard  —  President Obama invited a high-profile House leader to golf with him while on vacation in Martha's Vineyard Friday.  —  House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) joined Obama on the links along with White House trip director Marvin Nicholson and long-time friend Eric Whitaker.

Sen. Kerry: ‘Very active’ efforts under way to reach settlement with Taliban  —  Sen. John Kerry, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Friday that there is a “very active” effort under way to reach a negotiated political settlement with the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Dems see fundraising dip in July  —  Democrats saw a drop in fundraising last month.  —  The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced Friday it raised $6.22 million in July — a decrease of almost $3 million from June.  —  The committee spent $4.19 million and banked slightly less …

Math Lessons for Locavores  —  IT'S 42 steps from my back door to the garden that keeps my family supplied nine months of the year with a modest cornucopia of lettuce, beets, spinach, beans, tomatoes, basil, corn, squash, brussels sprouts, the occasional celeriac and, once …

Leader on Bush Tax Cuts Wins Allies to Keep Provisions in Place  —  A decade ago, Dirk Van Dongen sat across from President George W. Bush in the Indian Treaty Room in the White House complex, mapping out plans to pass tax cuts.  Now, Van Dongen, who heads the nation's top wholesalers' group …

Target feels backlash from shareholders  —  Institutions with stakes in the retail giant are demanding that the company revamp its donation process after a $150,000 contribution backed an anti-gay-rights candidate.  —  Reporting from Washington — After weeks of public protest …