Democrats Retrench as GOP Pulls Away  —  Democratic strategists acknowledged they are abandoning a dozen House seats the party now holds, as they try to salvage their majority in the chamber by shoring up candidates with better chances.  —  With Republicans expanding their advertising …

Sorry Folks, The Put-Back Apocalypse Ain't Gonna Happen  —  You should probably be a buyer of Bank of America right now.  —  I never thought I'd find myself typing those words.  I've been a huge critic of Bank of America for years.  I'm bearish on the financial supermarket model.

The Boehnerization of Barack Obama  —  Why has stimulus become a dirty word?  Many reasons, I guess: an inadequate plan combined with a wildly overoptimistic forecast was more or less guaranteed to create the impression of a failed program.  But it's also true that the president himself …

Stephen Colbert may play religion for laughs, but his thoughtful Catholicism still shows through  —  When comedian Stephen Colbert brought his act to Capitol Hill last month and stole the spotlight with his satirical shtick, no one was more surprised than lawmakers.

Fort Hood soldier ordered to delete video of rampage  —  FORT HOOD, Texas — A US soldier who captured a deadly 2009 rampage at Fort Hood with his cell phone camera testified Friday that he was ordered to erase the video by his commanders.  —  The video could have provided key evidence …

You've Gotta See This Ad  —  Jack Conway's trailing Rand Paul down in Kentucky.  But he's not out of it yet.  And there are some signs he's starting to turn the corner.  (The current TPM Poll Average is Paul 46.9%, Conway 41.7%.)  But this ad ... man, this ad.  Whew.

U.S. Will Enforce Marijuana Laws, State Vote Aside  —  LOS ANGELES — The Department of Justice says it intends to prosecute marijuana laws in California aggressively even if state voters approve an initiative on the Nov. 2 ballot to legalize the drug.  —  The announcement by Eric H. Holder Jr. …

GOP longshot outraises Pelosi  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's Republican challenger raised more than $1.1 million over the past three months, more than three times as much as Pelosi did.  —  John Dennis, the Ron Paul-backed GOP nominee running against the Speaker in her liberal San Francisco …

Bill Maher Uses Brett Favre's Penis Sexting To Bash Sarah Palin and White Men  —  Bill Maher on Friday used Brett Favre's penis sexting incident to bash Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Christine O'Donnell, and white men.  —  During the “New Rules” segment of HBO's “Real Time” …

In debate, Crist says Rubio ‘turned his back’ on his Hispanic family  —  Gov. Charlie Crist (I) hit Republican Marco Rubio's stance on immigration during a contentious debate exchange Friday in the state's three-way race for Senate.  —  Crist referenced an article in the Hispanic newspaper La Gaceta …

Mike Adams Eight Straight Suicides  —  Officials on college campuses across the nation are alarmed at a wave of recent suicides involving Christians who have been harassed by homosexual activists.  The main stream media isn't covering the story so, as usual, I have taken it upon myself to do their jobs for them.

Hinchey Tangles With Reporter (Updated)  —  Rep. Maurice Hinchey, who suddenly finds himself in the GOP's crosshairs, had a heated exchange with a local reporter at last night's debate that became physical before the congressman disengaged and walked away, according to witnesses.

BELTWAY ADVENTURE  —  WELCOME TO ADVENTURE!  WOULD YOU LIKE INSTRUCTIONS?  —  >YES  —  YOU ARE SOMEWHERE IN BELTWAY FOREST, WHERE SOME HAVE FOUND TREASURES OF GOLD ALTHOUGH SOME HAVE ENTERED AND NEVER BEEN SEEN AGAIN.  MAGIC IS SAID TO WORK IN THE FOREST.  I WILL BE YOUR EYES AND HANDS.

Fox Stations Go Dark as Dispute With Cablevision Escalates  —  Updated  —  Executives at Cablevision and News Corporation are scheduled to meet at noon Saturday to resume negotiations in a spat that has left Cablevision subscribers without access to Fox network programming.

Bill Flores backs away from saying he's not opposed to raising Social Security retirement age  —  mmason@dallasnews.com  —  WASHINGTON — Republican congressional candidate Bill Flores, blaming a headache for a verbal miscue, has backed away from saying he's “not philosophically opposed” …