Christie camp held Sandy relief money hostage, mayor alleges  —  Two senior members of Gov. Chris Christie's administration warned a New Jersey mayor earlier this year that her town would be starved of hurricane relief money unless she approved a lucrative redevelopment plan favored by the governor …

Obama's NSA ‘reforms’ are little more than a PR attempt to mollify public  —  Obama is draping the banner of change over the NSA status quo.  Bulk surveillance that caused such outrage will remain in place  —  In response to political scandal and public outrage, official Washington repeatedly uses the same well-worn tactic.

Wonkblog sells out.  —  Ezra Klein is back in line.  The Journolist founder, who now runs Wonkblog for the Washington Post, took some flak from other left-liberal journalists last year when he acknowledged that the ObamaCare exchanges had serious technical flaws.

Iraq's Maliki says he has asked for weapons from U.S., will also seek training for troops  —  BAGHDAD — Iraq has asked the United States for new arms to beat back the dramatic resurgence of al-Qaeda-linked militants in a western province and would like U.S. troops to train its counter­terrorism forces …

Freedom Industries files for bankruptcy  —  CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Freedom Industries, the company that fouled thousands of West Virginians' water with a chemical leak last week, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy today.  —  The company's assets and liabilities are “unknown,” according to the filing.

Judicial Giant Quietly Retired Under Investigation For Travel Expenses  —  When federal appellate court judge Boyce F. Martin Jr. announced his retirement in July, he was praised as “one of the giants of the Kentucky judiciary.”  —  But what was unknown publicly until Friday was that Martin left …

After Leaving Office, Bloomberg Is More Hands-On at Old Company  —  At editorial meetings in Bloomberg L.P.'s headquarters this week, Michael R. Bloomberg gave clear signs that he would not be taking a hands-off approach as he returned to his old company.  —  Just two week's removed from City Hall …

Pennsylvania Voter ID Law Struck Down as Judge Cites Burden on Citizens  —  In a strongly worded decision, a state judge on Friday struck down Pennsylvania's 2012 law requiring voters to produce a state-approved photo ID at the polls, setting up a potential Supreme Court confrontation …

2 students shot in Philadelphia high school gym; suspect nabbed  —  (CNN) — A student pulled a handgun Friday afternoon inside a Philadelphia high school gymnasium, firing and hitting two students, police said.  —  The injured boy and girl, each 15, were transported in stable condition …

Andreessen Horowitz raising $1.5 billion for new fund  —  Andreessen Horowitz is raising its fourth fund in six years.  —  FORTUNE — Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz is in the process of raising around $1.5 billion for its fourth fund, Fortune has learned.

Supreme Court to take major look at privacy in digital age  —  (CNN) — The Supreme Court will undertake a major examination of privacy in the digital age, after accepting review Friday of a pair of appeals over whether police must obtain a warrant to search data on the cellphone of a person under arrest.

Bloggers = Media for First Amendment Libel Law Purposes  —  So holds today's Obsidian Finance Group v. Cox (9th Cir. Jan. 17, 2014) (in which I represented the defendant).  To be precise, the Ninth Circuit concludes that all who speak to the public, whether or not they are members of the institutional press …

Hillary?  Really?  —  This week's Time magazine splashes the question on its cover: “Can Anyone Stop Hillary?”  The Weekly Standard is happy to provide our friends at Time with an answer to their query: Yes.  Hillary Clinton can be stopped.  How?  Let us count the ways.