O'Donnell Calls Coons a Marxist During Debate  —  Democratic candidate Chris Coons, left, and Republican candidate Christine O'Donnell wait for the start of a televised Delaware Senate debate at the University of Delaware in Newark, Del.  —  Christine O'Donnell, the Republican Delaware Senate candidate …

For Reid, No Shaking Tea Party Challenger  —  LAS VEGAS — Senator Harry Reid of Nevada first thought he could scrape his way to re-election by invoking his power as majority leader and reminding voters what that means for his home state.  When that didn't seem to work …

WH's Jarrett: Dead Gay Bully Victim  —  Made ‘Lifestyle Choice’  —  The last time I heard anyone use the obnoxious phrase “lifestyle choice” to describe a gay person's sexual orientation was during the Bill Clinton presidency when the gays were accused of wanting “special rights.”

Rabbi Breaks With Paladino Over Apology  —  Well, that didn't last long.  —  The alliance between the Republican Carl P. Paladino and an Orthodox rabbi from Brooklyn has fallen apart, with the rabbi denouncing Mr. Paladino on Wednesday for his apology over remarks he had made about homosexuality on Sunday.

Military ballots may not count in Illinois  —  CHICAGO (WLS) - The U.S. Justice Department is investigating whether the state of Illinois missed the deadline for mailing absentee ballots to members of the military and other overseas American voters as part of a new federal overseas voting law.

Rove, Chamber ads widely debunked as false or misleading  —  Here's something important that's getting lost in the firefight over the money funding the ads by the U.S. Chamber and Karl Rove's groups: Many of the ads themselves have been debunked by independent fact checkers as false, grossly misleading, or marred with distortions.

Dithering on 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'  —  The Obama administration professes to oppose the odious and misguided policy of banning gay soldiers from serving openly in the military.  So it was distressing to hear that the Justice Department plans to appeal a federal court order …

Blumenthal Opens Up Double-Digit Lead In Senate Race, Quinnipiac University Connecticut Poll Finds; Independent Voters Shift Back To Democrat  —  Reversing a months-long decline in his lead in the Connecticut U.S. Senate race, Democratic State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has opened up a 54 …

Obama: Republicans Will Have to Learn to Get Along With Me  —  President Obama reveals in a magazine article that he is weighing what to do if Republicans win the House majority next month, and has come up with a novel approach: Make the GOP work with him.  —  In a seeming twist …

Bankers Ignored Signs of Trouble on Foreclosures  —  At JPMorgan Chase & Company, they were derided as “Burger King kids” — walk-in hires who were so inexperienced they barely knew what a mortgage was.  —  At Citigroup and GMAC, dotting the i's and crossing the t's on home foreclosures …

Anti-Obama billboard raises eyebrows  —  Caricatures are racist and homophobic, local Dems say  —  A Grand Junction billboard depicting President Barack Obama as a terrorist, a gangster, a Mexican bandit and a gay man is getting national attention.  —  The billboard, erected along …

Since Dick Cheney shot him, Harry Whittington's aim has been to move on  —  AUSTIN — Nearly five years on, Harry Whittington still speaks with a slight flutter in his voice — a “warble,” he calls it, inadvertently choosing a bird metaphor.  His easy East Texas drawl changed forever …

Pew: cellphone bias may be bigger than in '08  —  In a new analysis sure to add to the uncertainty about the upcoming election, the Pew Research Center reports that a large number of pre-election polls might be biased.  —  Polls that don't interview people on cellphones …

“Perhaps”  —  I really don't get the complete lack of concern for property rights. … If Citi doesn't own the mortgage then the woman doesn't owe them any money.  If Citi doesn't own the mortgage then it isn't the case that “perhaps” they shouldn't foreclose on her, it's the case that they have no legal right to foreclosure.

Tea Party movement: Billionaire Koch brothers who helped it grow  —  Industrialists who own private company with annual revenues of £62bn have channelled millions of dollars to rightwing causes  —  It likes to present itself as a grassroots insurgency made up of hundreds of local groups intent on toppling the Washington elite.

AOL, Firms Explore an Offer for Yahoo  —  AOL Inc. and several private-equity firms are exploring making an offer to buy Yahoo Inc., according to people familiar with the matter, devising a bold plan to marry two big Internet brands facing steep challenges.  —  Silver Lake Partners …

Grabbing at Straws Is Full-time Work  —  Having been roundly repudiated in the mainstream media over their allegation that the U.S. Chamber is using money from American Chambers of Commerce abroad (AmChams) to fund political ads, John Podesta and his folks at ThinkProgress have shifted …

Boehner a rubber stamp for Pelosi?  —  It's an attack ad that writes itself: The House Republican leader, Rep. John Boehner (Ohio), votes with liberal Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) a majority of the time.  —  The statistic seems impossible to believe, given the ferocity …

Public Employees and Elections: A Conflict of Interest?  —  None of my family and friends is allowed to appear on Wheel of Fortune.  Same goes for my kids' teachers or the guys who rotate my tires.  If there's not a real conflict of interest, there is, at least, the appearance of one.