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.

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.

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 …

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 …

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.

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 …

Jeb Bush talks presidential run, Common Core in Nashville  —  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, speaking in Nashville on Tuesday as he weighs a run for president, discussed his positions on Common Core and immigration, two stances that might complicate his candidacy in a GOP primary.

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

Does Edwin Edwards have a legitimate shot at being elected to Congress?  —  With an accent reared in Avoyelles Parish, Edwin Edwards insists to the journalists, colleagues, friends or anyone else who asks: “I just feel like running for Congress.”  —  “In spite of the fact that there may be obstacles …

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 …

Ebola doctor lied about his NYC travels  —  New York City police officers enter the building where Dr. Craig Spencer (inset with fiancée Morgan Dixon) lives in New York on Oct. 24.  —  The city's first Ebola patient initially lied to authorities about his travels around the city following …

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 …

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 …

Lawyer for Fort Kent nurse held on Ebola fears says she won't abide by quarantine  —  Attorneys for a nurse released from isolation in New Jersey after returning to the U.S. from West Africa say she will not comply with Maine health officials' requirements that she remain under quarantine at home for 21 days.