The Crisis in U.S.-Israel Relations Is Officially Here  —  The Obama administration's anger is “red-hot” over Israel's settlement policies, and the Netanyahu government openly expresses contempt for Obama's understanding of the Middle East.  Profound changes in the relationship may be coming.

Release Detail  —  October 29, 2014 - Ernst Inching Ahead In Iowa Senate Race, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Branstad, The Iowa Institution, Cruising To Reelection  —  Iowa Republican State Sen. Joni Ernst is inching ahead among likely voters in the U.S. Senate race and now has 49 percent …

The Red Cross' Secret Disaster  —  IN 2012, TWO MASSIVE STORMS pounded the United States, leaving hundreds of thousands of people homeless, hungry or without power for days and weeks.  —  Americans did what they so often do after disasters.  They sent hundreds of millions of dollars to the Red Cross …

Hackers breach some White House computers  —  Hackers thought to be working for the Russian government breached the unclassified White House computer networks in recent weeks, sources said, resulting in temporary disruptions to some services while cyber teams worked to contain the intrusion.

Jeb: Obama ‘incompetent’ on Ebola  —  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is calling President Barack Obama's initial response to Ebola “incompetent.”  —  “It looked very incompetent to begin with, and that fueled fears that may not be justified,” Bush said during a discussion at Vanderbilt University, according to The Tennessean.

Ferguson police chief expected to step down, officials say  —  (CNN) — The police chief in Ferguson, Missouri, is expected to step down as part of the effort by city officials to reform the police department, according to government officials familiar with the ongoing discussions between local, state and federal officials.

Important Announcement  —  I regret to announce that after several weeks of discussions, Matt Taibbi has left First Look.  We wish him well.  —  Our differences were never about editorial independence.  We have never wavered from our pledge that journalistic content is for the journalists to decide, period.

Mississippi, burned  —  How the poorest, sickest state got left behind by Obamacare.  —  By SARAH VARNEY NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014 … The first year of the Affordable Care Act was, by almost every measure, an unmitigated disaster in Mississippi.  In a state stricken by diabetes, heart disease …

It's time for an “American jihad”  —  Among the many definitions of jihad are a “war or struggle against unbelievers” and “a crusade for a principle or belief.”  Given those definitions, I believe it's time for an American jihad.  —  An American jihad would reawaken in American citizens …

The Big Role of Black Churches in Two Senate Races  —  Early voting on Sundays has been one of the biggest fronts in the voting wars of recent years.  Some of this past Sunday's early voting numbers make the reason quite clear.  —  Data from two states that permit Sunday early voting …

Homeownership in America Has Collapsed—Don't Blame Millennials  —  Homeownership Rate, Seasonally Adjusted  —  The U.S. homeownership rate has fallen to a 19-year low.  Why?  —  Let's begin with the youths, as we must.  It is a truth universally acknowledged that a journalist in possession …

Senate Update: The Momentum Mirage  —  You might be hearing that Democrats or Republicans have “momentum” heading into the final week of the 2014 campaign.  On Tuesday, for example, a Washington Post headline asserted “Midterm momentum belongs to GOP.”  That was based on a generic ballot poll showing …

In Texas, the Death Penalty is Slowly Dying Out  —  On Tuesday night, the state of Texas executed Miguel Paredes by lethal injection for murdering a woman and her two children sixteen years ago.  With no executions scheduled by the state department of criminal justice for November or December …

Lobbyists, Bearing Gifts, Pursue Attorneys General  —  When the executives of the company that makes 5-Hour Energy, the popular caffeinated drinks, learned that attorneys general in more than 30 states were investigating allegations of deceptive advertising — a serious financial threat …

Fall 2014 Survey  —  LIKELY MILLENNIAL VOTERS UP-FOR-GRABS IN UPCOMING MIDTERM ELECTIONS, HARVARD YOUTH POLL FINDS … Cambridge, MA - A new national poll of America's 18- to 29- year-olds by Harvard's Institute of Politics (IOP), located at the John F. Kennedy School of Government …

Toward Better Teachers  —  More than halfway through Joel Klein's forthcoming book on his time as the chancellor of New York City's public schools, he zeros in on what he calls “the biggest factor in the education equation.”  —  It's not classroom size, school choice or the Common Core.

To Republicans: Watch out for traps after midterms  —  Most pundits are predicting a Republican takeover of the U.S. Senate next Tuesday.  I am ready to go on record against the conventional wisdom: I predict Democrats will surprise the pundits on election night and hold the Senate …

Investigator in Secret Service Prostitution Scandal Resigns  —  WASHINGTON — The investigator who led the Department of Homeland Security's internal review of the Secret Service's 2012 prostitution scandal quietly resigned in August after he was implicated in his own incident involving a prostitute …

BREAKING: Court Refuses To Intervene In Case of 40,000 Missing Voters In Georgia  —  Dr. Francys Johnson with the NAACP leads an occupation of the Georgia State Capitol to protest voter suppression.  —  CREDIT: Alice Ollstein  —  ATLANTA, GEORGIA—On Tuesday, Judge Christopher Brasher …

Do Americans believe there should be a quarantine to deal with Ebola?  —  Shares -  —  A new CBS News poll finds that Americans overwhelmingly support quarantine for travelers arriving from West Africa.  Eighty percent think U.S. citizens and legal residents returning from West Africa …