The Hijacked Commission  —  Count me among those who always believed that President Obama made a big mistake when he created the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform — a supposedly bipartisan panel charged with coming up with solutions to the nation's long-run fiscal problems.

Murkowski confident as write-in tally grows  —  WRITE-INS: Miller camp steps up challenges, threatens new lawsuit.  —  scockerham@adn.com  —  The Division of Elections has reviewed write-in ballots for almost half the precincts in Alaska and is counting nearly 98 percent of them for Lisa Murkowski.

Pelosi: 'We Didn't Lose Because of Me'  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she has the “overwhelming support” of fellow Democrats in her bid to become minority leader in the next Congress, and says she's not to blame for the Democrats' mid-term debacle.  —  “We didn't lose the election because of me …

51 p.m.: Military gay ban intact  —  UPDATE 1:51 p.m. The Supreme Court, without noting any dissent, agreed on Friday to leave the military's “don't ask/don't tell” policy in full effect while its constitutionality is under review in a lower court.  Justice Anthony M. Kennedy referred the issue to the full Court.

Top Palin aide is on Soros' payroll  —  Glenn Beck spent the past week denouncing the liberal billionaire and philanthropist George Soros as a “puppet master” who is orchestrating a coup “to bring America to her knees.”  —  Given Soros' alleged role plotting to destroy the United States …

At 52%, Palin's Unfavorable Score Hits a New High  —  Americans remain split in their reactions to Tea Party movement  —  PRINCETON, NJ — More than half of Americans, 52%, now view Sarah Palin unfavorably, the highest percentage holding a negative opinion of the former Alaska governor …

Why I'm Running for RNC Chairman  —  FROM: Saul Anuzis, MI-NCM  —  RE: Announcement for RNC Chairman  —  DATE: November 12, 2010  —  Congratulations on your success, nationwide and state-by-state.

School Makes Boy Take American Flag Off Bike  —  DENAIR -  —  13-year-old Cody Alicea rides with an American flag on the back of his bike.  He says he does this to be patriotic and to honor veterans, like his own grandfather, Robert.  He's had the flag on his bike for two months but Monday, was told to take it down.

In An ‘Unusual’ Meeting, Cantor Tells Netanyahu The GOP Majority ‘Will Serve As A Check’ On Obama's Israel Policy  —  Earlier this week, President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sharply criticized the Israeli government after it announced plans to build more than 1,000 Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem.

Obama's Glow Dims on Trip to Asia  —  YOKOHAMA, Japan — President Obama arrived in this bustling port city Friday evening for the second of two back-to back summit meetings.  He hoped to to wrap up his 10-day economic and diplomatic tour of Asia on a high note despite failing to secure …

Rick Perry to lead Republican Governors Association  —  Texas Gov. Rick Perry will be tapped as the new chairman of the Republican Governors Association when the organization meets next week in San Diego, GOP sources tell POLITICO.  —  Perry recently released a book taking aim …

Facebook's Gmail Killer, Project Titan, Is Coming On Monday  —  Back in February we wrote about Facebook's secret Project Titan — a web-based email client that we hear is unofficially referred to internally as its “Gmail killer”.  Now we've heard from sources that this is indeed what's coming …

Daily Beast, Newsweek to Wed!  —  Some weddings take longer to plan than others.  The union of The Daily Beast and Newsweek magazine finally took place with a coffee-mug toast between all parties Tuesday evening, in a conference room atop Beast headquarters, the IAC building on Manhattan's West 18th Street.

IF IT'S SUNDAY.... Mark Halperin called the guest list for Sunday's “Meet the Press” an “all-star lineup.”  That's not quite the description I'd use.  —  We'll first see an interview with Senior White House Adviser David Axelrod.  That makes sense.  —  Then viewers will see an “exclusive!” interview with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

Chris Christie, the Justin Bieber of Political Media  —  This might be an obvious point about New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, but I haven't seen anyone make it yet.  The man's political operation is extraordinary.  The legend of Christie as blunt-talking master of truth and invective …

Shuler may officially launch bid against Pelosi on Sunday talk show, ‘Morning Joe’  —  Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), who threatened to challenge Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for minority leader after the Nov. 2 election, might launch his leadership bid on two high-profile cable news shows in the coming days.

Your Child Left Behind  —  For years, poor performance by students in America relative to those in other countries has been explained away as a consequence of our nationwide diversity.  But what if you looked more closely, breaking down our results by state and searching not for an average, but for excellence?

The 2012 Presidential Line!  —  The wait is over!  —  After two years of behind-the-scenes jockeying, the 2012 Republican presidential race has broken out into the open with several candidates openly acknowledging their interest in the job of late.  (As Politico's Jonathan Martin and Ben Smith point out …

Reid asked Bennet to lead DSCC  —  A senior Senate Democratic source told POLITICO this afternoon that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has asked Colorado Freshman Michael Bennet to head the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.  —  Bennet, who won an uphill battle for election to his appointed seat …

National Greatness Agenda  —  Elections come and go, but the United States is still careening toward bankruptcy.  By 2020, the U.S. will be spending $1 trillion a year just to pay the interest on the national debt.  Sometime between now and then the catastrophe will come.  —  It will come with amazing swiftness.

Sarah Palin E-mail Hacker Sentenced to 1 Year in Custody  —  David Kernell, the former Tennessee student convicted of hacking into Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account, was sentenced on Friday to one year in custody.  —  Kernell, 22, was convicted earlier this year of misdemeanor computer intrusion …

Unexplored Revenues  —  The flipside of the Simpson-Bowles document's unsound aggregate cap on revenue is that they were very uncreative in their exploration of revenue options.  For example, what about a tax on greenhouse gas emissions?  The mere fact that the conservative movement …

How TPM Got Started  —  Over the years, I've become increasingly convinced that when all is said and done, the significant aspect of my journalism career won't be anything I've written, but the fact that I was present at the creation of Talking Points Memo, Josh Marshall's pioneering blog.

Olbermann, O'Reilly and the death of real news  —  To witness Keith Olbermann - the most opinionated among MSNBC's left-leaning, Fox-baiting, money-generating hosts - suspended even briefly last week for making financial contributions to Democratic political candidates seemed like a whimsical …