Coons up big  —  Republicans more than likely cost themselves a Senate seat last night.  Chris Coons begins the general election in Delaware with a 50-34 lead over Christine O'Donnell.  Mike Castle would have led Coons by a 45-35 margin.  —  While O'Donnell may have ingratiated herself …

Exclusive: President Obama to This Week Name Elizabeth Warren to Special Advisory Role to White House/Treasury Dept to Form New Consumer Agency  —  President Obama will announce this week that Elizabeth Warren, the Harvard Law School professor who first proposed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau …

Senate Republicans unveil a plan to make Bush tax cuts permanent  —  Even as they hammer Democrats for running up record budget deficits, Senate Republicans are rolling out a plan to permanently extend an array of expiring tax breaks that would deprive the Treasury of more than $4 trillion …

Democratic Party Steals Logo From the Pizza Place Where I Used to Work  —  The Democratic Party unveiled a new logo this morning, and, seeing the new insignia for the first time today on the party's revamped website, I thought it looked familiar.  —  Not without reason.

Rachel Maddow Sexualizes Christine O'Donnell  —  Christine O'Donnell won the Delaware primary last night, and within minutes (literally) über liberal Rachel Maddow started running video and commentary on MSNBC about O'Donnell's views on masturbation.  —  The pretext for sexualizing O'Donnell …

Tea Party Republican has big lead in Florida  —  (Reuters) - Republican candidate Marco Rubio has opened a clear lead in a Florida Senate race, becoming the latest Tea Party favorite to benefit from voter anger at Washington, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found on Wednesday.

How Adrian Fenty lost his reelection bid for D.C. mayor  —  One afternoon in late June, D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty's political advisers invited their boss to a downtown conference room to report an unsettling development: Focus groups commissioned by the campaign were saying that Fenty's leadership style …

On the Advice of the FBI, Cartoonist Molly Norris Disappears From View  —  Her work won't be in Seattle Weekly anymore, or anywhere else.  —  You may have noticed that Molly Norris' comic is not in the paper this week.  That's because there is no more Molly.  —  The gifted artist is alive and well, thankfully.

Ayotte defeats Lamontagne in U.S. Senate primary  —  CONCORD - 1:18 p.m. The Secretary of State's office has just announced that Kelly Ayotte has won the Republican primary for U.S. Senate with 53,044 votes.  Ovide Lamontagne received 51,377 votes.  More to follow.  —  __

Romney backs O'Donnell  —  Support for Christine O'Donnell appears to have emerged this morning as a kind of grassroots litmus test, and the Establishment is scrambling to pass it.  —  Mitt Romney just endorsed her, saying, “Now is the time for Republicans to rally behind their nominee, Christine O'Donnell.

CHRISTINE O'DONNELL ASSESSES ‘MIDDLE EARTH’  —  Much has already been made of some of Christine O'Donnell's notable quotables in the past, especially in the wake of her huge upset over Rep. Mike Castle in Tuesday's GOP Senate primary in Delaware.  —  But did you know this?

Shock Audio: Facing ‘Obligations’ From Leadership, Democrat Congresswoman Leaves Voicemail for Lobbyist Cash  —  A couple weeks ago, House Member Eleanor Holmes Norton made a fundraising call to a lobbyist.  The lobbyist wasn't available, so Holmes Norton left a voicemail.