Richardson withdraws as Commerce nominee  —  New Mexico governor cites pending investigation of business dealings  —  New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, tapped in December by President-elect Barack Obama to serve as secretary of Commerce, has withdrawn his name for the position …

Gaza Update: Cluster Bombs  —  There's more evidence today of Israeli use of cluster bombs, originally noted by Laura Doty at Oxdown.  The Times of London features a photo in it's coverage (see Gaza Conflict slide show) with the following description:

Orwell, blinding tribalism, selective Terrorism, and Israel/Gaza  —  (updated below)  —  Former McCain-Palin campaign spokesman and current Weekly Standard editor Michael Goldfarb notes that Israel, a couple of days ago, dropped a 2,000-pound bomb on a Gazan home which killed a top Hamas leader …

George H. W. Bush: I'd like to see Jeb elected president.»  —  This morning on Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace asked former President George H.W. Bush about the possibility of his son, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, running for Senate.  The former president expressed his hope …

Charity homes built by Hollywood start to crumble  —  RESIDENTS of a model housing estate bankrolled by Hollywood celebrities and hand-built by Jimmy Carter, the former US president, are complaining that it is falling apart.  —  Fairway Oaks was built on northern Florida wasteland by 10,000 volunteers …

Reid cracks Senate door open for Burris  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) indicated Sunday that there is a chance that controversial Illinois Senate appointee Roland Burris could be seated in the upper chamber.  —  Reid, who appeared on NBC's “Meet the Press,” …

Va. Governor Kaine to Become DNC Chairman  —  Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine will become chairman of the Democratic National Committee later this month, serving as the top political messenger for Barack Obama's administration even while he finishes his final year in the governor's mansion, several sources said.

The End of the Financial World as We Know It  —  AMERICANS enter the New Year in a strange new role: financial lunatics.  We've been viewed by the wider world with mistrust and suspicion on other matters, but on the subject of money even our harshest critics have been inclined to believe that we knew what we were doing.

More Groups Than Thought Monitored in Police Spying  —  New Documents Reveal Md. Program's Reach  —  The Maryland State Police surveillance of advocacy groups was far more extensive than previously acknowledged, with records showing that troopers monitored — and labeled as terrorists …

Pro-Israeli rally draws thousands to Paris  —  French capital sees 12,000 demonstrators gather in show of support for Israel, Operation Cast Lead.  'Israel is simply fighting for its freedom, the survival of its people," says France's chief rabbi  —  Several thousand demonstrators waved Israeli flags …

Schumer: Franken is the winner  —  Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the outgoing chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, declared Sunday that Al Franken has won the Minnesota Senate recount against Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.).  —  “With the Minnesota recount complete, it is now clear that Al Franken won the election.