Schlesinger Steals The Show  —  The ghost of Crazy Eddie was channeled Monday by a man who would be Connecticut's next senator — and whose name is neither Lieberman nor Lamont.  —  This candidate's name is Alan Schlesinger (pictured in top photo).  He is the official candidate nominated …

China may back coup against Kim  —  THE Chinese are openly debating "regime change" in Pyongyang after last week's nuclear test by their confrontational neighbour.  —  Diplomats in Beijing said at the weekend that China and all the major US allies believed North Korea's claim that it had detonated a nuclear device.

Agents raid homes of Rep. Curt Weldon's daughter, close friend  —  Federal agents raided the home of the daughter of U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon (R., Pa.) and his longtime friend Charlie Sexton this morning.  —  The agents departed Karen Weldon's three-story brick home on Queen Street in Philadelphia with arms loaded with boxes.

Bush's Press Secretary Is Raising Money, and Some Eyebrows  —  Tony Snow draped his lanky frame across a wooden lectern, leaned forward and gazed out at 850 adoring Republicans who had paid $175 apiece to hear him speak.  There was a conspiratorial gleam in his eye, as if he was about to reveal …

Court official: Saddam verdict, sentence if guilty, to be announced Nov. 5  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq A verdict against Saddam Hussein and seven co-defendants charged with crimes against humanity in connection with an anti-Shiite crackdown in the 1980s will be announced Nov. 5, chief investigating judge Raid Juhi said Monday.

Civil rights lawyer sentenced to prison  —  NEW YORK - A firebrand civil rights lawyer who has defended Black Panthers and anti-war radicals was sentenced Monday to nearly 2 1/2 years in prison — far less than the 30 years prosecutors wanted — for helping an imprisoned terrorist sheik communicate with his followers on the outside.

Reality checks: some responses to the latest Lancet estimates  —  Hamit Dardagan, John Sloboda, and Josh Dougherty  —  Summary … - On average, a thousand Iraqis have been violently killed every single day in the first half of 2006, with less than a tenth of them being noticed by any public surveillance mechanisms;

Boycott Indonesia—Stop Murdering Christians Now!  —  Civil war is in the air in Indonesia.  Christians are daily being slaughtered and the government does little to protect them.  —  Two of our longtime blog-friends, Stan the Infidel and Big White Infidel, are furious over the treatment of Christians in Indonesia.

Reid to Reimburse Campaign for Donations  —  Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid has been using campaign donations instead of his personal money to pay Christmas bonuses for the support staff at the Ritz-Carlton where he lives in an upscale condominium.  Federal election law bars candidates …

What's That Smell?  —  The GOP is stinking up the joint.  —  LIKE OTHER DEEP-THINKING people, I'm full of principled, idealistic, high-minded indignation at the GOP.  What a stampede of sleaze.  Jack Abramoff is the world's best lobbyist—for the Federal Penitentiary System.

Iraq will wait to disarm militias  —  BAGHDAD — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said in an interview with USA TODAY that his government will not force militias to disarm until later this year or early next year, despite escalating violence in Baghdad fueled by death squads and religious warfare.

Jihadists and Jews  —  Democratic strategist and former Michael Dukakis campaign manager Susan Estrich, and the former American Civil Liberties Union president in Massachusetts, Harvey Silvergate, recently joined the attorneys representing two alleged Boston al Qaeda funders.

Iran leader in Bush 'Satan' claim  —  Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has reportedly delivered a scathing attack on US President George W Bush, saying he is inspired by Satan.  —  Speaking to a group of supporters, Mr Ahmadinejad said he himself had inspirational links to God, Iranian media reports.