A New Leader for the Democrats  —  Nancy Pelosi has been an extremely effective speaker of the House for four years, shepherding hundreds of important bills toward passage and withstanding solid Republican opposition.  Her work in passing health care reform and strong ethics oversight achieved …

MSNBC to Lift Olbermann Suspension on Tuesday  —  Keith Olbermann will be allowed to resume his nightly program on MSNBC on Tuesday, the channel's president said Sunday night, after he was suspended for donating money to three Democratic candidates.  —  The policy at MSNBC's parent, NBC News …

I Am a Blogger No Longer  —  This is my final blog post for The Atlantic.  Five years ago, as a way to boost the competitive metabolism of The Hotline, Chuck Todd hired me away from ABC News to create “Hotline On Call.”  I was to be the first political reporter working for a mainstream news …

President Obama isolated ahead of 2012  —  President Barack Obama has performed his act of contrition.  Now comes the hard part, according to Democrats around the country: reckoning with the simple fact that he's isolated himself from virtually every group that matters in American politics.

Doing It Again  —  Eight years ago Ben Bernanke, already a governor at the Federal Reserve although not yet chairman, spoke at a conference honoring Milton Friedman.  He closed his talk by addressing Friedman's famous claim that the Fed was responsible for the Great Depression …

In India, Obama defends Fed - China applies more pressure - POTUS admits feeling ‘discouraged’ about stubborn economy - Geithner touts India partnership - Bush: TARP saved the economy  —  BREAKING: OBAMA DEFENDS FED ACTION - At 3 a.m. EST, during a joint news conference with Indian Prime …

Health care case denied; no grants (FINAL UPDATE 11:38 am)  —  The Supreme Court on Monday turned aside the first attempt to pursue in the Court a constitutional challenge to the new federal health care law.  The initial test sought to draw the Justices into the nationwide controversy over the law …

California: The Lindsay Lohan of States  —  Sacramento is headed for trouble again, and it shouldn't expect a bailout.  —  Listen up, California.  The other 48 states—your cousin New York excluded—are sick of your bratty arrogance.  You're the Lindsay Lohan of states …

The irony of the Tea Party victory: More “insider” influence  —  “We've come to take our government back.”  Those were some of Senator-elect Rand Paul's (R-Ky.) first words when he gave his victory speech after winning election to the Senate on Nov. 2.  He raised nearly $7 million and combined …

Drive to Repeal 'Don't Ask' Policy All but Lost for Now  —  The drive in Congress to repeal the military's “don't ask, don't tell” policy appears all but lost for the foreseeable future, with action unlikely this year and even less likely once Republicans take charge of the House in January.

If you thought the bank bailout was bad, wait until the mortgage defaults hit home  —  THE BIG PICTURE: Ireland is effectively insolvent - the next crisis will be mass home mortgage default, writes MORGAN KELLY … WHEN I wrote in The Irish Times last May showing how the bank guarantee …

Barack Obama joined Muslim prayers at school, teacher says  —  AS a schoolboy in Jakarta, Barack Obama attended Muslim prayer sessions with his classmates against the wishes of his mother.  —  The US President's former grade three teacher said that Mr Obama - who was known as “Barry” …

ELECTORAL DISSONANCE  —  Barack Obama had the mot juste last Wednesday for what had just befallen him and his party: a “shellacking.”  The President's choice of word was one syllable (and one “g") longer than his predecessor's summary after a parallel midterm debacle.

Criminal barbering?  Raids at Orange County shops lead to arrests, raise questions  —  Customers watch a movie and collegiate football game at Strictly Skillz Barbershop in Pine Hills, on Saturday, October 9, 2010.  In the African-American community, beauty and barbershops are a cornerstone …