FIRST LADY CAMPAIGNS INSIDE POLLING PLACE  —  First lady Michelle Obama appears to have violated Illinois law — when she engaged in political discussion at a polling place!  —  The drama began after Mrs. Obama stopped off at the Martin Luther King Center on the south side of Chicago to cast an early vote.

Judge disses Dems' ‘Alice in Wonderland’ health defense  —  A federal judge in Florida on Thursday said he will allow some of the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the health care law to proceed — and criticized Democrats for making an “Alice in Wonderland” argument to defend the law.

Foreclosure-Gate's Doomsday Scenario  —  The documentation problems surrounding mortgages originated during the housing boom just get uglier and uglier.  One of the most recently surfaced worries is also one of the most serious.  Bank analyst Josh Rosner envisions a doomsday scenario …

Christine O'Donnell Tells GOPers: 'I've Got Sean Hannity In My Back Pocket'  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION?  —  WASHINGTON — Christine O'Donnell may not be a witch, but she knows how to use scare tactics to raise money, top Republican strategists and officials here tell me.

POLL: Voters more likely to see Democrats as dominated by extremists  —  Likely voters in battleground districts see extremists as having a more dominant influence over the Democratic Party than they do over the GOP.  —  This result comes from The Hill 2010 Midterm Election Poll …

Murkowski backers worry about spoilers  —  As Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) makes her write-in bid for Senate official, filing paperwork with state elections officials Wednesday, she faces a new concern—some backers worry that opponents are searching for a way to torpedo her campaign …

California NOW President: ‘Meg Whitman Could Be Described As A Political Whore’  —  Last week, the National Organization for Women and the PAC of the California NOW chapter took heat for their endorsement of state Attorney General Jerry Brown (D) over Meg Whitman (R) in the gubernatorial race …

Whitney is ‘Whitey’ on some ballots  —  SPRINGFIELD — The last name of Green Party gubernatorial candidate Rich Whitney is misspelled as “Whitey” on electronic-voting machines in nearly two dozen wards — about half in predominantly African-American areas — and election officials said Wednesday …

EXCLUSIVE: New Pakistani Taliban Operative Feared Inside U.S. After Times Square Failure  —  Senior U.S. officials are concerned over recent intelligence indicating that the Pakistani Taliban, which orchestrated the failed Times Square bombing, may have successfully placed another operative inside …

The New Career of a Madman: Johnson Shrieks, “My site gave Geller her ‘break’ on the web”  —  UPDATE: LGF FLASHBACK!  The Guardian's new columnist can't scrub fast enough:  —  It get's better  —  And this — this is rich.  —  Talk about a hot mess.  Chuck Johnson has penned …

Worries over fast-tracked foreclosures send bank stocks plummeting  —  Stocks of major banks declined sharply Thursday amid concern that widespread corner-cutting in the foreclosure process could saddle the financial system with a costly and paralyzing mess.

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 …

India's richest man Mukesh Ambani moves into £630m home  —  The richest man in India, Mukesh Ambani, has moved into his new home in Mumbai which is 27 storeys high and worth £630m.  —  Ambani, his wife and three children have moved into the building which is named Antilia, after a mythical Island.

A historic shift in the making this election?  —  Voters seem to think Congress is like a weedy lot — that anything done to it will improve it — so they seem poised to produce something not seen since 1981-82.  Then, for the first time since 1952, a majority of senators were in their first terms.

‘The Aim Is to Make Israel a Pariah’  —  Last night, Rupert Murdoch gave an extraordinary speech at an Anti-Defamation League dinner in which he revealed, yet again, that he is a true and selfless friend of the Jewish people and of Israel.  Here is the text:

Republicans plan January takedowns of Obama's ‘czars’  —  Republicans will have President Barack Obama's czars and his use of regulatory powers to circumvent congressional inaction on issues such as cap and trade in GOP crosshairs if the party takes control in January.

Why the Reid-Angle debate matters so much  —  Debates, like newspaper endorsements, tend to be a slightly overrated commodity in politics.  —  Typically, debates are mundane affairs watched closely by small groups of partisans on each side — factors that virtually ensure they are not …

MTV wants ‘light’ questions for Obama at today's youth townhall.  Why?  —  At 4pm ET today, President Obama is participating in a “youth town hall” with MTV, CMT and BET.  Last week I submitted my name to be a participant and was called back for the second round of “casting” (their word …

Why Can't NPR Staff Go To ‘Rally To Restore Sanity’ Or ‘March To Keep Fear Alive’?  —  The answer is they can - if they are assigned to cover the events.  —  But news staff and others covered by NPR's ethics policy should not go.  —  We've received enormous attention from media …

Few signs at tea party rally expressed racially charged anti-Obama themes  —  A new analysis of political signs displayed at a tea party rally in Washington last month reveals that the vast majority of activists expressed narrow concerns about the government's economic and spending policies …

Limbaugh would be weak against Nelson  —  Rush Limbaugh's one of the most influential figures in American politics who's never run for office...but what if he did run for office?  His home state of Florida has an incumbent Democratic Senator up for reelection next cycle in Bill Nelson …

After O'Reilly's Rants About How ‘Muslims Killed Us On 9/11!’  Goldberg And Behar Storm Off Set  —  This morning, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly appeared on The View and chatted with the hosts about a variety of the day's issues.  At one point, the discussion turned to the topic of Park 51 …

Wall St. pins foreclosure fiasco on homeowners  —  'Your mortgage didn't get to a robo-signer by accident'  —  CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Wall Street's reaction to the allegations that some banks cut corners while foreclosing on 3 million homes since 2007: Pay your mortgage in the first place.

Postcard From Palestine  —  This article appeared in the November 1, 2010 edition of The Nation.  —  Recommended by  —  Hebron  —  The first thing you notice when you drive into Hebron is the lack of cars.  Since 1997 this second-largest Palestinian city in the West Bank …