Republicans Against Science  —  Jon Huntsman Jr., a former Utah governor and ambassador to China, isn't a serious contender for the Republican presidential nomination.  And that's too bad, because Mr. Hunstman has been willing to say the unsayable about the G.O.P. — namely, that it is becoming the “anti-science party.”

Is Rick Perry dumb?  —  Another Texas governor who drops his “g's” and scorns elites is running for president and the whispers are the same: Lightweight, incurious, instinctual.  —  Strip away the euphemisms, and Rick Perry is confronting an unavoidable question: is he dumb - or just misunderestimated?

Michele Bachmann rally draws over 1,000 in Sarasota, but some prefer Rick Perry  —  SARASOTA — Hurricane Irene bypassed the state and spared Michele Bachmann's first campaign foray in Florida this weekend, but now she has to contend with Hurricane Perry.  —  Even as the Minnesota congresswoman …

Labor Economist to Fill Key Post  —  President Barack Obama on Monday plans to nominate Princeton University's Alan Krueger to be chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, a White House official said.  —  If confirmed by the Senate, Mr. Krueger, a labor economist …

CNN Exclusive: Lockerbie bomber comatose, near death, family says  —  Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — Lockerbie bomber Abdel Basset al-Megrahi is comatose, near death and likely to take secrets of the attack on Pan Am Flight 103 to his grave.  —  CNN found al-Megrahi under the care of his family …

Ugly?  You May Have a Case  —  Daniel S. Hamermesh, a professor of economics at the University of Texas, Austin, is the author of “Beauty Pays,” published this month.  —  BEING good-looking is useful in so many ways.  —  In addition to whatever personal pleasure it gives you …

For President Obama, more storms await on the horizon  —  President Obama arrived back in Washington after his August vacation to deal with a hurricane, but Irene was only the first of many tests awaiting the embattled commander-in-chief.  —  With his approval ratings at the lowest point in his presidency …

A Hurricane of Hype  —  Irene fell far short of the media's dire warnings even before it was downgraded.  Howard Kurtz on the scaremongering by television and local officials.

George Will Slams Dick Cheney For Not Apologizing For Iraq  —  Damn it, I hate it when this happens.  I actually agree with George Will.  As I reel from worlds colliding, let's look at the astonishing admission of wrongness on behalf of a Republican to which George Will wants an apology:

Irene leaves damaging floods, widespread destruction  —  Brattleboro, Vermont (CNN) — The torment from Irene isn't over as parts of the Northeast grapple with dangerous floodwaters, widespread power outages and stranded residents.  —  At least 21 deaths across eight states were blamed on Irene …

American Theocracy Revisited  —  During George W. Bush's presidency, many liberal and secular Americans came to regard religious conservatives not merely as their political opponents, but as a kind of existential threat.  The religious right, they decided, wasn't a normal political movement.

Postal Service paying fewer workers to do nothing  —  The U.S. Postal Service, expecting $7 billion in losses this year amid slumping mail volume, is still paying thousands of its workers millions of dollars each year to do nothing.  —  But it's paying tens of millions of dollars less for …