Little Blue Pills Among the Ways CIA Wins Friends in Afghanistan  —  The Afghan chieftain looked older than his 60-odd years, and his bearded face bore the creases of a man burdened with duties as tribal patriarch and husband to four younger women.  His visitor, a CIA officer, saw an opportunity …

Poll: Obama is man Americans admire most  —  WASHINGTON — A month before his inauguration, Americans choose Barack Obama as the man they admire most in the world, according to a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll.  It's the first time a president-elect has topped the annual survey in more than a half-century.

Retail Sales Plummet  —  Price-slashing failed to rescue a bleak holiday season for beleaguered retailers, as sales plunged across most categories on shrinking consumer spending, according to new data released Thursday.  —  Despite a flurry of last-minute shoppers lured by the deep discounts …

Barack Be Good  —  Times have changed.  In 1996, President Bill Clinton, under siege from the right, declared that “the era of big government is over.”  But President-elect Barack Obama, riding a wave of revulsion over what conservatism has wrought, has said that he wants to “make government cool again.”

White House Press Corps Faces Unique Challenges in Hawaii  —  It's prime time and CNN's Ed Henry is standing on the white sand of Waikiki Beach, reporting live on President-elect Barack Obama's holiday vacation in Hawaii.  With the volcanic mountain Diamond Head in the distance …

Calendar offers chance to spend 2009 with Sarah Palin  —  We're NOT “your friends”!!!  —  This is just wrong, so wrong.  I do hope she runs again.  She's one of the best things the Dems have going for them, except GWB!  —  Carol  —  December 26th, 2008 11:13 am ET  —  I got one for Christmas and I LOVE IT!

Caroline has stiffed N.Y. Dems for years  —  Caroline Kennedy's supporters say she could raise tons of money as a senator, but when it comes to writing checks to New York Democrats, she's been largely AWOL.  —  This decade, other than a $1,000 donation to City Council Speaker Christine Quinn …

Blagojevich Attorney Asks Illinois Panel to Subpoena Emanuel and Others  —  An attorney for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) has asked the legislative panel considering impeachment of the governor to subpoena more than a dozen witnesses, including President-elect Barack Obama's incoming chief of staff.

Study Criticizes Bush Approach to War Funding, Calls for Changes  —  President-elect Barack Obama's administration needs to monitor war spending much more closely than the current White House has, according to a new study that criticizes President Bush's approach to funding the Iraq and Afghanistan wars …

Chinese Savings Helped Inflate American Bubble  —  “Usually it's the rich country lending to the poor.  This time, it's the poor country lending to the rich.”  —  WASHINGTON — In March 2005, a low-key Princeton economist who had become a Federal Reserve governor coined a novel theory …

Palestinian rocket kills 2 Gaza girls  —  Palestinians misfire rocket, two Gaza girls killed after Qassam hits home in northern Strip; earlier Friday, Palestinian man wounded by misfired rocket taken for treatment in Israeli hospital  —  A rocket apparently fired by Palestinians on Friday struck …

Agencies' report warns of faster climate change  —  Reporting from Washington — The United States faces the possibility of much more rapid climate change by the end of the century than previous studies have suggested, according to a report led by the U.S. Geological Survey.

Pakistan moves troops toward Indian border  —  ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Pakistan began moving thousands of troops to the Indian border Friday, intelligence officials said, sharply raising tensions triggered by the Mumbai terror attacks.  —  India is blaming Pakistani-based militants …

California Crisis May Crunch $3.8 Billion of Jobs in Slowdown  —  A A A  —  Dec. 24 (Bloomberg) — Just $5 million of work is needed to complete a new California Court of Appeals building in Santa Ana.  The state may not have the money, and come July judges may be writing opinions in their living rooms.

Missing Words Suggest Path to a Pardon  —  Those wondering how it came to pass that President George Bush pardoned a businessman on Tuesday and retracted the pardon on Wednesday might find hints to what went wrong by comparing the language in the pardons that preceded them.