Koran Burning Is Insensitive, Unnecessary; Pastor Jones, Please Stand Down  —  Book burning is antithetical to American ideals.  People have a constitutional right to burn a Koran if they want to, but doing so is insensitive and an unnecessary provocation - much like building a mosque at Ground Zero.

Obama vs. the Republicans (With Full Speech Text)  —  I think it's safe to say that President Obama has given up on bipartisanship, at least for the foreseeable future.  —  The White House just released prepared text of his economic speech to the City Club of Cleveland.

CNN/Time Poll: All tied up in California races  —  It's neck and neck in California's Senate and gubernatorial battles, according to a new poll.  —  (CNN) - It's too close to call in California's Senate and gubernatorial battles, according to a new poll.  —  A CNN/Time/Opinion Research …

Time for Emergency Economic Reform  —  How about a payroll tax holiday, funded by a federal spending, hiring and pay freeze?  —  Ronald Reagan enjoyed telling of the elderly Blitz victim rescued from her demolished London flat in World War II.  A fireman found a bottle of brandy under …

Right Wing Leaders Plan To Use September 11th Anniversary To Make Money  —  Last year, Glenn Beck and a variety of right-wing organizations and corporate front groups exploited the anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks to stage a protest of President Obama.

CNN/Time Poll: Heated battle for Florida Senate  —  Charlie Crist and Kendrick Meek are part of a close three way race for Senate in Florida.  —  (CNN) - A new poll indicates that the three way-battle for Florida's open Senate seat, arguably the most fascinating Senate contest this year, is deadlocked at the top.

Fidel: 'Cuban Model Doesn't Even Work For Us Anymore'  —  There were many odd things about my recent Havana stopover (apart from the dolphin show, which I'll get to shortly), but one of the most unusual was Fidel Castro's level of self-reflection.  I only have limited experience with Communist autocrats …

This Is Where We Begin to Say No  —  On the Ground Zero mosque, Americans reject the opinion elites that empower the Islamists.  —  A tectonic shift is in motion: How fitting that its focal point is Ground Zero, the inevitable fault line between Islam and the West.

Health Insurers Plan Hikes  —  Rate Increases Are Blamed on Health-Care Overhaul; White House Questions Logic  —  Health insurers say they plan to raise premiums for some Americans as a direct result of the health overhaul in coming weeks, complicating Democrats' efforts to trumpet …

Paul campaign: Online impersonator was impersonated  —  I posted yesterday that DailyKos appeared to have caught a Rand Paul staffer pretending, in the comments, to be a progressive with doubts about Jack Conway.  Paul aide Gary Howard, however, tells me — and has evidence to back it up …

GOP House Candidate On Civil Rights: ‘We Need To Get Our Federal Government Out Of The Way’  —  Fireworks occurred during a town hall in Canton, OH, last night when Rep. John Boccieri (D-OH) unexpectedly showed up at his Republican opponent's public event.  Challenger Jim Renacci …

Light bulb factory closes; End of era for U.S. means more jobs overseas  —  WINCHESTER, VA. - The last major GE factory making ordinary incandescent light bulbs in the United States is closing this month, marking a small, sad exit for a product and company that can trace their roots to Thomas Alva Edison's innovations in the 1870s.

Court Sides With C.I.A. on Seizure of Terror Suspects  —  WASHINGTON - A sharply divided federal appeals court on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit involving the Central Intelligence Agency's practice of seizing terrorism suspects and transferring them to other countries for imprisonment and interrogation.

Why did Barack Obama do health care first?  —  Joe Romm says that “future generations are likely to view Obama's choice of health care over energy and climate legislation as a blunder of historic proportions,” which is certainly possible.  But like Matthew Yglesias, I don't think it was a choice at all.

Long Island Man Arrested For Defending Home With AK-47  —  Says Many Gang Members Were Coming After His Family  —  UNIONDALE, N.Y. (CBS 2) — He was arrested for protecting his property and family.  —  But it's how the Long Island man did it that police say crossed the line.

Tri-C students recruited to fill the seats for Obama's appearance  —  PARMA, Ohio - With less than an hour before President Obama's scheduled speech, 75 seats remained empty in the recreation center at Cuyahoga Community College's Western Campus.  —  So organizers went around campus and recruited more students to fill the seats.

Merkel to honor Mohammed cartoonist at press award  —  (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel risked angering Muslims by speaking at an awards ceremony on Wednesday for a Dane whose cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed provoked sometimes violent protests by Muslims five years ago.