After Washington rally, Glenn Beck assails Obama's religion  —  Conservative commentator Glenn Beck voiced sharper criticism of President Obama's religious beliefs on Sunday than he and other speakers offered from the podium of the rally Beck organized at the Lincoln Memorial a day earlier.

This I Believe  —  It's quickly mushroomed into the summer's hottest data point: A boatload of Americans believe Barack Obama's a Muslim.  —  Except that, maybe, they don't.  Consider this instead: They're just willing to say it.  —  This not-so-subtle difference is useful in understanding public opinion and its measurement.

59 percent think Palin lacks ability to be effective as president  —  Almost three out of five Americans believe former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) would not be an effective president, a new poll found Monday.  —  Fifty-nine percent of U.S. adults said they don't think Palin …

John Bolton, Criticizer-in-Chief  —  Since assuming office, President Obama has garnered his fair share of high-profile critics.  But few have been as omnipresent and implacable as John Bolton.  From his near constant appearances on Fox News and HBO's “Real Time with Bill Maher” …

It's Witch-Hunt Season  —  The last time a Democrat sat in the White House, he faced a nonstop witch hunt by his political opponents.  Prominent figures on the right accused Bill and Hillary Clinton of everything from drug smuggling to murder.  And once Republicans took control of Congress …

SMALL BUSINESSES WAIT FOR GOP TO STOP PLAYING GAMES.... A month ago yesterday, there was reason for optimism on the small-business bill pending in the Senate.  The aid package included tax breaks, new incentives, and an attempt to expand credit through a lending program that utilizes local banks …

Crist walks back same-sex marriage remarks  —  (CNN) - Florida Gov. Charlie Crist appeared to backtrack from statements he made regarding same-sex marriage during a CNN interview Sunday, saying in a statement that he does not support a Constitutional ban on the practice.

The World Trade Center Mosque and the Constitution  —  The plan to erect a mosque of major proportions in what would have been the shadow of the World Trade Center involves not just the indisputable constitutional rights that sanction it, but, providentially, others that may frustrate it.

Germany's rebound is no cause for cheer  —  One of the weirder experiences for anyone who lives in the eurozone is a visit to a German supermarket.  I had the pleasure the other day, and found the general price level there to be a little over half of what it is in Belgium, Italy or Spain.

The Folly of Subsidizing Unemployment  —  My calculations suggest the jobless rate could be as low as 6.8%, instead of 9.5%, if jobless benefits hadn't been extended to 99 weeks.  —  Congressman John Boehner recently suggested that President Obama replace his top economic advisers.

Inadequate Easing in Japan  —  One of the oddities of the current crisis is that throughout the 1990s it was absolutely conventional wisdom in the United States of America that Japan, though suffering from some real structural issues, was making things much worse for itself than necessary …

A Note to the President  —  When you speak to the troops tomorrow at Fort Bliss, and to the nation tomorrow night from the Oval Office, you speak, of course, as the president.  As our president.  —  You won't be speaking—not in these settings—as a once (and perhaps future) candidate for president.

Iran calls Carla Bruni a ‘prostitute’  —  Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the French First Lady, has been called a “prostitute” by Iran after she criticised the country's decision to stone a woman to death.  —  Mrs Bruni-Sarkozy, the wife of Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president …

Ron Paul questions whether there's gold at Fort Knox, NY Fed  —  Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) said he plans to introduce legislation next year to force an audit of U.S. holdings of gold.  —  Paul, a longtime critic of the Federal Reserve and U.S. monetary policy, said he believes it's “a possibility” …

Israel group targets Holt, J Street  —  The Emergency Committee for Israel's latest ad targets Rep. Rush Holt, but its real target, again, seems to be the left-leaning Jewish group J Street.  —  The ad, which started airing Saturday in a modest but real buy, an aid to the group said …

Thinner Time magazine still manages to stand out  —  Rick Stengel may have his shoulder in a sling, but when it comes to the newsmagazine wars, he's the last man standing.  —  The reason, says Time's managing editor, is that “we saw what was coming.  We wanted to fix the roof when the sun was shining.”

Obama goes out on a limb for Middle East peace talks  —  The president personally coaxed the Israeli and Palestinian leaders to agree to talks, even as some advisors questioned the wisdom of him linking so visibly to an intractable conflict.  —  Reporting from Washington —

Orange County Is No Longer Nixon Country  —  SANTA ANA, Calif. — Orange County has been a national symbol of conservatism for more than 50 years: birthplace of President Richard M. Nixon and home to John Wayne, a bastion for the John Birch Society, a land of orange groves and affluence …

Environmental groups face their future in climate-change debate  —  On Thursday, some of the country's most respected environmental groups - in the midst of their biggest political fight in two decades - sent a group of activists to Milwaukee with a message.  —  We're losing.