Counting of absentee ballots begins  —  From Sean Cockerham at the Alaska Division of Elections office in Anchorage —  Joe Miller's lead over Lisa Murkowski just grew slighly with absentee and questioned ballots from the Mat-Su.  —  Miller now leads Mukowski by 1,460 votes.

Humility and Honesty About Iraq Can Inspire Trust  —  Later today, President Obama will speak to the American people about Iraq.  No doubt he will laud the “end of major combat operations” by the date he randomly selected some 18 months ago.  His press secretary Robert Gibbs also gave us …

The Democrats' New Normal  —  I don't usually like to comment on individual polls.  Most of the time, when a poll produces an “unusual” result, it simply reflects random noise and the best advice is to wait for the next edition of the poll to come along, when more often than not it will revert to its previous position.

Oval Office gets a makeover  —  While President Obama was on vacation, his West Wing office got a bit of a face lift, complete with a new rug, fresh wallpaper and paint, and new furniture — all done at no taxpayer expense, the White House says.  —  Details of the renovation were released to the pool reporter this morning.

Glenn Beck “Restoring Honor” Rally Crowd Estimate Explained  —  As part of our coverage of Glenn Beck's “Restoring Honor” rally Saturday, CBS News commissioned the company AirPhotosLive.com to offer an independent estimate of how many people showed up for the event.

Exclusive: Meghan McCain Writes that Palin Brought ‘Drama, Stress ... Panic’ to Campaign  —  Sen. John McCain's Daughter: Sarah Palin's Rise Was ‘Too Fast,’ ‘Too Easy’  —  For the first time since the end of her father's 2008 presidential bid, Meghan McCain, Sen. John McCain's daughter …

President Obama's Oval Office speech on Iraq — text  —  Oval Office Remarks by President Obama, as provided by the White House  —  Good evening.  Tonight, I'd like to talk to you about the end of our combat mission in Iraq, the ongoing security challenges we face, and the need to rebuild our nation here at home.

Why Wall St. Is Deserting Obama  —  Daniel S. Loeb, the hedge fund manager, was one of Barack Obama's biggest backers in the 2008 presidential campaign.  —  A registered Democrat, Mr. Loeb has given and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for Democrats.

Simpson to disabled vets: You cost too much  —  Fresh off of being forgiven by the White House, Simpson has a new target. … Just like the irony of millions of Americans paying into Social Security on the promise that they would receive benefits back, while the rich get off the hook …

Busted!  Fox's Carlson Catches Gibbs In A Naked Lie—Asks 6 Times If Obama Will Credit Bush Tonight  —  Gibbs's lie was so deep, I had to freeze frame so you could see exactly what Obama said about the surge in 2007.  He's one smug, flippant jerk too.

Support for Health Care Overhaul Falls  —  Kaiser Family Foundation Finds That 45 Percent Have an Unfavorable Opinion of the Law  —  Fewer than half of Americans have a favorable view of the health care measures that President Obama signed into law in March, according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation survey released today.

Previewing Ohio  —  We'll start rolling out our Ohio poll results tomorrow but there's one finding on the poll that pretty much sums it up: by a 50-42 margin voters there say they'd rather have George W. Bush in the White House right now than Barack Obama.  —  Independents hold that view …

What Palin Did Friday Night  —  Where was Sarah Palin last Friday night, before coming to Washington to speak at the Glenn Beck gathering Saturday?  —  She was a guest speaker at a Jewish “Shabbaton”—a Sabbath gathering for prayer, meals, songs, study and conversation—in Hershey …

Poll: Majority Of GOP Believes Obama Sympathizes With Islamic Fundamentalism, Wants Worldwide Islamic Law  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  A majority of Republicans believe that President Barack Obama “sympathizes with the goals of Islamic fundamentalists who want to impose Islamic law around the world …

Sorry Charlie  —  Charlie Crist will not be Florida's next United States Senator.  —  In a year where most predictions are downright silly, I am very confident in that one.  When Kendrick Meek won last Tuesday, with his victory went Charlie Crist's chances.  Democrats who want to beat Marco Rubio should jump on the Meek train.

Brother, Can You Paradigm?  —  A few months back one of my original mentors in economics — someone who got his graduate training in the pre-fresh-water era — asked me whether there was anything about the current crisis that required fundamentally new analysis.  We agreed that there wasn't.

9/11 victims' families group opposes anniversary mosque rallies  —  The rally set for the ninth anniversary of Sept. 11 against the Ground Zero-area mosque, which is being organized by conservative blogger Pamela Geller, is drawing opposition from a key 9/11 victims' families group that is asking …

Charge: Seattle man attacked shopkeeper, calls victim a terrorist  —  A 35-year-old Seattle man is facing assault and hate crime charges following allegations that he accosted a clerk at a Queen Anne convenience store.  —  According to police, Brock Stainbrook derided the man as being a terrorist during the Tuesday morning incident.

HALPERIN'S TAKE: Pawlenty's Efforts to “Limit” ObamaCare in Minnesota  —  This is a classic Pawlenty move that combines....  ...governing principle with clever 2012 positioning.  Leaving aside now the substantive merits of the Minnesota governor's executive order, barring some huge development …