Bernard Kerik: America's Cop Indicted  —  Federal Grand Jury Indicts Kerik on Various Corruption Charges  —  A federal grand jury has voted to indict former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik on charges stemming from the acceptance of free rent and apartment renovations …

Exclusive: FBI: Al Qaeda May Strike U.S. Shopping Malls in LA, Chicago  —  Richard Esposito and Vic Walter Report:  —  The FBI is warning that al Qaeda may be preparing a series of holiday attacks on U.S. shopping malls in Los Angeles and Chicago, according to an intelligence report distributed …

SPEAK FOR YOURSELF....Responding to my suggestion earlier today that the American public increasingly opposes the Iraq war regardless of how well it's going, Tobin Harshaw of the Opinionator says: … Not only is this baseless (read the post and judge for yourself), it's craven.  Even worse, it's bad writing.

Tidal wave heading for England's east coast poses 'extreme danger to life'  —  Tens of thousands of householders are today preparing for some of the worst coastal floods in decades.  —  Sea levels could rise up to 9ft this morning along part of the East Coast, putting lives at risk.

British Muslim woman convicted of penning poems about beheadings  —  An airport worker who wrote poems about beheadings is the first woman to be found guilty under new terror laws.  —  Samina Malik, who liked to call herself a "lyrical terrorist", called for attacks on the West and described …

In First Bush Veto Override, Senate Enacts Water Bill  —  The Senate voted overwhelmingly today for a popular $23 billion water projects measure affecting locales across the country, thereby handing President Bush his first defeat in a veto showdown with Congress.

Centrism  —  Let's be clear that "centrism" is, for the most part, a cosmetic pose for the benefit of Beltways journalists who know that The Most Important Thing Is To Be A Centrist.  —  In terms of what those centrists actually support in terms of policy, I'd say there are roughly 3 kinds of things.

WaMu and The Rep War  —  Via PJ at Housing Wire, I see that WaMu put a PR out yesterday on the matter of Mr. Cuomo's investigation into its appraisal practices.  As PJ notes, this is the part that matters: … That last sentence is clearly a direct response to the last sentence of this part of Fannie Mae's PR from earlier yesterday:

Prostitute tells her Vitter tale in skin mag  —  She says he bristled about 'these damn politicians' out to get him  —  WASHINGTON — A former New Orleans prostitute who has said David Vitter was a regular customer in 1999 says the soon-to-be congressman and U.S. senator was sometimes stressed during …

Iraqi passengers sue airline, claim discrimination  —  A group of Iraqi Pentagon contractors is suing American Airlines claiming racial discrimination for delaying its flight, but a police report shows that some of the men might have been intoxicated, behaved in a frightening and belligerent manner and scared one family off the plane.

Bush's Disastrous Dollar Policy  —  President Bush doesn't talk about the dollar much, but when he does, he's got exactly one thing to say about it: "We have a strong dollar policy."  —  It's becoming increasingly clear, however, that Bush's "strong dollar policy" is driving the greenback into the ground.

Lieberman: 'Paranoid, Hyper-Partisan' 'Left-Wing Blogs' Wrote 'Conspiracy Theories' On Iran  —  Speaking today at the Johns Hopkins Center for Politics and Foreign Relations, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) accused "left-wing blogs" of making up "conspiracy theories" about the Kyl-Lieberman amendment, which passed the Senate last month.

Paul vs. Bernanke on Value of the Dollar  —  Candidate Rep. Ron Paul Faces Off With Fed Chairman  —  When you are Ron Paul, your public enemy No. 1 is the chairman of the Federal Reserve.  —  Because when you are Ron Paul, although you are technically a Republican, you are really a libertarian …

Veteran Interrogator: You Don't Need to Torture Even in 'Ticking Bomb' Case  —  During today's hearing in the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ), fresh off an intellectually stimulating comparison of torture to abortion (he questioned why the committee isn't concerned about abortion …

Mukasey confirmed as attorney general  — Mukasey confirmed as attorney general  —  WASHINGTON - The Senate confirmed retired judge Michael Mukasey as attorney general Thursday night to replace Alberto Gonzales, who was forced from office in a scandal over his handling of the Justice Department.