Coakley Takes Slap Shot At Fenway Fans  —  The Massachusetts special election continues to amaze.  Democratic candidate Martha Coakley has taken a swipe at Fenway Park fans: … Well yes, politicians go out to meet the voters even if it means standing out in the cold.

Reid, Lieberman clash over letter  —  For the second time in a week, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) finds himself at the center of a political imbroglio stemming from something that he said in private that was subsequently broadcast to the outside world by unnamed sources.

Palin, Beck rail against ‘system’  —  Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin portrayed herself as a reluctant warrior for freedom on Tuesday during an hour-long interview with Fox News host Glenn Beck.  —  Despite having just signed a multi-year deal with Fox that will require her to spend time in New York …

Haiti, the devil and Pat Robertson  —  Pat Robertson is at it again.  The purported Christian minister who suggested assassinating Venezuela leader Hugo Chavez and nuking the U.S. State Department, the reputed follower of Jesus who blamed the 9/11 terrorist attacks and Hurricane Katrina on pagans …

Obama to raise $90B with bank fee  —  President Barack Obama intends to raise $90 billion over the next decade through a special fee on the largest financial firms.  —  The administration is proposing the fee on the largest firms, not all of which received direct emergency money …

Amid Untold Dead, Haiti's Devastation Hobbles Efforts to Reach Survivors  —  PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Foreign aid trickled into Haiti's devastated capital on Thursday morning as the victims of Tuesday's earthquake, many of them injured and homeless, began to wake from another night spent in makeshift accommodations or out in the open.

Majority Would Vote Against Obama  —  A year into his tenure, a majority of Americans would already vote against Pres. Obama if the '12 elections were held today, according to a new survey.  —  The Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor poll shows 50% say they would probably or definitely vote for someone else.

Harold Ford's Manhattan makeover  —  The success of Harold Ford's prospective run against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand would seem to rest largely on a curious strategy - convincing New Yorkers that he didn't really believe in most of the centrist positions that made him a Tennessee political wunderkind.

Sex sting in Poconos nets former chief U.N. weapons inspector … A former chief United Nations weapons inspector is accused of contacting what he thought was a 15-year-old girl in an Internet chat room, engaging in a sexual conversation and showing himself masturbating on a Web camera.

Jobless Claims, Retail Sales Show Economy Still Weak  —  The number of newly laid-off workers requesting unemployment benefits rose last week as jobs remain scarce amid a sluggish economic recovery, while holiday retail sales were weaker than expected as well.

Discrimination on Trial, but Not on TV  —  The trial that started on Monday in San Francisco over the constitutionality of California's voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage could have been a moment for the entire nation to witness a calm, deliberative debate on a vitally important issue in the era of instant communications.

Nelson tries to repair damage at home  —  Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson and his wife were leaving dinner at a new pizza joint near their home in Omaha one night last week when a patron began complaining about Nelson's decisive vote in favor of the Senate's health care bill.  —  Other customers started booing.

Mistakes a High School Newspaper Wouldn't Make  —  The New York Times—described by a reader earlier today as “the junk-bond issuing, Mexican-controlled New York Times”—continues to decline.  The paper's grasp of history is illustrated by these corrections, just a few days apart.

Parts sent to Iran could be used for nuclear weapons; 3 charged in alleged plot  —  Three men, including an Iranian-born chemical engineer living in Glendale, have been charged in a scheme to smuggle sophisticated industrial components into Iran that could be used in the development of a nuclear weapon, authorities said Wednesday.

2006 GOP sweep victims plot return  —  Four years after getting swept out of office by a Democratic tide, nearly one-third of the 21 GOP House members who lost reelection bids in 2006 are plotting their 2010 comebacks.  —  Some of them are running for their old seats.  Others are looking at higher office.