Armed Man With Bomb Takes at Least One Hostage in Discovery Channel Building  —  DEVELOPING: Police in Maryland are responding to a hostage situation after reports that a man with a handgun entered the Discovery Channel headquarters building in Silver Spring and fired at least one shot.

Sarah Palin the Sound and the Fury  —  Even as Sarah Palin's public voice grows louder, she has become increasingly secretive, walling herself off from old friends and associates, and attempting to enforce silence from those around her.  Following the former Alaska governor's road show …

A Note to My Fellow Hawks  —  President Obama opposed the war in Iraq.  He still thinks it was a mistake.  It's therefore unrealistic for supporters of the war to expect the president to give the speech John McCain would have given, or to expect President Obama to put the war in the context we would put it in.

Americans Give GOP Edge on Most Election Issues  —  Greatest Republican advantages on terrorism, immigration, federal spending  —  PRINCETON, NJ — A new USA Today/Gallup poll finds Americans saying the Republicans in Congress would do a better job than the Democrats in Congress of handling seven of nine key election issues.

George Bush did not recognise Belgian prime minister  —  George W Bush did not recognise the prime minister of Belgium or understand why he was at a G8 meeting, Tony Blair has disclosed.  —  In his new book, A Journey, Mr Blair writes that the former US president was confused by the presence …

Tax Cuts Weighed to Spur Economy  —  The Obama administration is considering a range of new measures to boost economic growth, including tax cuts and a new nationwide infrastructure program, according to people familiar with the discussions.  —  The president's economic team has met frequently …

My name is Glenn Beck, and I need help  —  Despite all the words spilled in evaluating Glenn Beck's tent-less revival last weekend, the real meaning may have been hiding in plain sight.  —  Beck's “Restoring Honor” gathering on the Mall was right out of the Alcoholics Anonymous playbook.

Feingold decries ‘systematic’ effort to ‘destroy’ Obama  —  Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) decried what he said was a “systematic, conscious” effort by groups to “destroy” President Obama.  —  Feingold, who's facing a tough reelection effort this fall, blamed coordinated opposition to Obama …

The Economic Narrative  —  Why do people like me feel the need to revisit the fateful decision to go for an underpowered stimulus right at the beginning of the Obama administration?  It's not about “I told you so”, or at least not mainly.  It's about the economic narrative …

Senate candidate indicted for unlawful sexual conduct with a minor  —  DAYTON — Eric W. Deaton, a Constitution Party candidate for U.S. Senate, was indicted Tuesday, Aug. 31, for unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, according to Greg Flannagan, spokesman for Montgomery County Prosecutor Mathias H. Heck Jr.

Aspiring Politician to Sue 2 Florida Papers  —  Jeff Greene, a Florida real estate developer who lost one of the year's most bitter and closely watched primary elections, is preparing to sue The St. Petersburg Times and The Miami Herald for libel, claiming that articles they published cost him his bid for the United States Senate.

Homegrown Mujahideen  —  It's tempting to demonize conservatives with hyperbolic comparisons, but liberals have an obligation to the truth.  —  Observant readers (or bookshelf scanners) will notice that American Taliban, the new book by Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas …

Tancredo: First Lady Wanted To Ban Christmas Artifacts At The White House  —  Tom Tancredo isn't going away.  The former congressman and one-time presidential candidate may have upended the Colorado gubernatorial race with his third-party run, but he's still not shy to air his controversial views on national issues.

Dear Patients: Vote to Repeal ObamaCare  —  Don't believe Democrats who promise to fix the bill once they're re-elected.  —  Facing a nationwide backlash, Democratic congressional candidates have a new message for voters: We know you don't like ObamaCare, so we'll fix it.

Palin 2012 in Alaska  —  If Sarah Palin runs for President in 2012 she can't count on a whole lot of support back home.  62% of Alaska Republicans are opposed to her making a White House bid and she gets only 17% in a hypothetical 2012 primary in the state tying for her second with Mike Huckabee behind Mitt Romney.

Wyden Pushing For Oregon Waiver From Health Care Law, Individual Mandate  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  One of the most innovative voices in the health care debate, Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), is accelerating the process of exempting his state from some of the national reforms passed under President Barack Obama.

Lisa Murkowski loses, do Democrats sense opportunity?  —  1. Alaska attorney Joe Miller's (R) primary victory over Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) was confirmed late last night when the incumbent conceded the race — the third Senator to lose a bid for re-nomination this year.

Mitch Daniels Inner Circle  —  Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels created a minor furor recently when comments he made to the Louisville Courier Journal were initially interpreted as him ruling out a run for president in 2012.  —  Upon closer inspection, however, Daniels was doing the classic tap dance of any potential presidential candidate.

Barack Hoover  —  Martin Wolf invokes an interesting counter-factual: … I think that's correct.  It's also a useful lesson for liberal who compare President Obama with President Roosevelt.  The latter's political success owed an enormous debt to the fact that he took power after the economy had hit bottom and begun to rebound.

A Date That Will Live in Oblivion  —  What President Obama called the end of the combat mission in Iraq is a meaningless milestone, constructed almost entirely out of thin air, and his second Oval Office speech marks a rare moment of dishonesty and disingenuousness on the part of a politician …

MPR News/Humphrey Institute Poll: Voters disapprove of Pawlenty's cross-county politicking  —  Minnesota voters are unhappy with the political activities of Gov. Tim Pawlenty according to a new MPR News-Humphrey Institute Poll.  —  The poll — conducted by Minnesota Public Radio News …

Mark Halperin Says GOP Could Gain as Many as 60 Seats in Midterm “Tidal Wave” - Video  —  Here is video of Time's Mark Halperin talking to MSNBC's Chris Matthews about his prediction that the GOP could pick up as many as “60 seats” in this Fall's Midterm Elections.  —  Halperin said: