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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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.

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 …

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.”

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.

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.

Pawlenty's national fundraising push tops $3M  —  ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty's national fundraising committee took in more than $565,000 between July and September, bringing his total haul above $3.1 million since forming the fund a year ago.

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 …

Mystery shiny objects floating over Manhattan spark UFO frenzy  —  A mysterious shiny object floating high over Manhattan's West Side set off a flurry of reports and wild speculation Wednesday that a UFO was flying over the city.  —  Police and the FAA said they began getting flooded …

2012 robo-polling in Iowa?  —  A computerized voice was at the other end of the land line, asking the person who picked up the call at 10:02 p.m. central time whether they'd answer a few questions.  The responses are not recorded by voice-recognition software, but the respondent had to hit numbers …

September home foreclosures top 100,000 for first time  —  (Reuters) - The number of homes taken over by banks topped 100,000 for the first time in September, though foreclosures are expected to slow in coming months as lenders work through questionable paperwork, real estate data company RealtyTrac said on Thursday.

Tea Party Frontrunner: Abolish Public Schools  —  In California, GOP congressional candidate David Harmer wants to eliminate public education.  But you won't hear him touting his extreme views on the campaign trail.  —  Post Comment  —  It's fairly common for conservative political candidates …

Capitalism Saved the Miners  —  The profit = innovation dynamic was everywhere at the mine rescue site.  —  It needs to be said.  The rescue of the Chilean miners is a smashing victory for free-market capitalism.  —  Amid the boundless human joy of the miners' liberation, it may seem churlish to make such a claim.

(2 of 2)  —  He continued that “if we find judgments have been entered against our instructions, wishes and they are within our control, we will deal with those and postpone any sale until after the review is completed.”  —  Bank of America announced its freeze for Florida and 22 other states Oct. 1 …

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.