Why WikiLeaks Is Unlike the Pentagon Papers  —  Everyone knows that Daniel Ellsberg leaked top-secret government documents about the Vietnam War.  How many remember the ones he kept secret, or why?  —  In 1971, Daniel Ellsberg decided to make available to the New York Times …

Lunchbox mix-up leads to charges for Sanford teen  —  SANFORD, N.C. — An athletic and academic standout in Lee County said a lunchbox mix-up has cut short her senior year of high school and might hurt her college opportunities.  —  Ashley Smithwick, 17, of Sanford, was suspended …

CNN Poll: Plurality say Obama's policies will likely fail  —  Washington (CNN) - President Barack Obama enters the new year with a growing number of Americans pessimistic about his policies and a growing number rooting for him to fail, according to a new national poll.  —  Full poll results [pdf]

Feds investigate Christine O'Donnell spending  —  BALTIMORE — A person with knowledge of the investigation says federal authorities have opened a criminal probe of Delaware Republican Christine O'Donnell to determine if the former Senate candidate broke the law by using campaign money to pay personal expenses.

Tucker Carlson: Michael Vick should have been executed  —  In the two days since Peter King first reported on Football Night in America that President Obama had applauded the Eagles for giving Michael Vick a second chance, the story has moved from the sports world into cable news …

Response to Wired's accusations  —  (updated below)  —  As noted above, the principal tactic of Wired.com Editor-in-Chief Evan Hansen and Senior Editor Kevin Poulsen in responding to my criticisms is to hurl a variety of accusations at me as a means of distracting attention from the issue that matters.

If Christians Were Treated Like Muslims  —  Few Americans would deny that Judeo-Christian beliefs and values informed the Founding of this country and that they continue to shape much of American life today.  Nor would many of us deny that Americans who embrace Islamic values are a distinct minority here.

Exclusive: Merle Haggard on His Kennedy Center Honor, Meeting Obama and Oprah and More  —  The singer, who received a lifetime achievement award, takes us behind the scenes of Tuesday's broadcast  —  Merle Haggard is no stranger to the White House: He was a guest of both Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan …

Top NRSC official: Several Senate Dems up in '12 in ‘serious trouble’  —  Washington (CNN) - The number two man at the National Republican Senatorial Committee says he thinks several Democratic senators facing re-elections in 2012 are in “serious trouble.”  —  But NRSC Executive Director Rob Jesmer …

Death of newborn baby among several blizzard tragedies as city is accused of ‘dropping the ball’  —  A blizzard baby delivered inside the lobby of a snowbound Brooklyn building died after an emergency call of a woman in labor brought no help for nine excruciating hours.

Soon To-Be Ex-Congressman John Hall Warns Against Creeping Fascism  —  In a wide-ranging interview before he prepares to leave the House of Representatives, Hudson Valley Congressman John Hall warned that the nation could quickly descend into Fascism if more is not done to curb the influence of corporate money in politics.

Study: Conservatives have larger ‘fear center’ in brain  —  Political opinions are considered choices, and in Western democracies the right to choose one's opinions — freedom of conscience — is considered sacrosanct.  —  But recent studies suggest that our brains and genes may be a major determining factor in the views we hold.

THE AYN RAND DISCIPLE LEADING THE HOUSE BUDGET COMMITTEE.... In my circle of friends growing up, I can think of quite a few folks who, between the ages of 16 and 22, briefly fell under the spell of Ayn Rand.  Someone loaned them a copy of Atlas Shrugged; they were convinced it was brilliant …

GOP Shifts on Fannie, Freddie Overhaul  —  Republicans Say Quickly Privatizing Mortgage Giants Would Squeeze Access to Home Loans and Depress Sales, Prices  —  Earlier this year, leading House Republicans proposed to privatize mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac or place them in receivership starting in two years.

Guest Post: Underneath the Happy Talk, Is This As Bad as the Great Depression?  —  The following experts have - at some point during the last 2 years - said that the economic crisis could be worse than the Great Depression: … How could that possibly be, when the stock market has largely recovered?

House Republicans Could End Lame Duck Sessions  —  Little-noticed over the holiday week: Rep. Lynn Jenkins tweeting this promise. … Jenkins linked to a story by David Farenthold explaining that the 20th amendment was supposed to end lame duck sessions by truncating the life of expired Congresses …

Monetary policy in fiction  —  “It's too bad, ” writes Matthew Yglesias, that “'You Shall Know Our Velocity' isn't a novel about monetary policy.”  —  That got me wondering about whether there are any novels about monetary policy.  Some believe ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’ is an allegory …

14th official state delay keeps Palin e-mail requests in limbo  —  HUGE VOLUME: State now projects May 31 as compliance goal.  —  rmauer@adn.com  —  The governor has come and gone, another has assumed the office and then has been elected in his own right, and activist Andree McLeod …

Carol Moseley Braun also warns Bill Clinton to stay out of Chicago mayoral race  —  Chicago Mayoral hopeful former Sen. Carol Moseley Braun (D-Ill.) added her voice to a warning issued by mayoral rival Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.): Don't come to Chicago to campaign for Rahm Emanuel or risk his relationship with African Americans.

No Labels, but still sworn enemies  —  JUST IN time for the holidays, a new movement has arrived seeking to promote goodwill toward men (and women) across the political spectrum and to counter the nastiness and polarization that pervade our public discourse.

Crist's Future  —  There hasn't been a lot of good news for Charlie Crist this year but as he prepares to leave office here's a little piece of it: he's actually finishing up with the best approval numbers PPP has found for him all year.  50% of voters approve of the job he's doing to 39% who disapprove.