Occupy Wall Street: ‘Pepper-spray’ officer named in Bush protest claim  —  Anthony Bologna, NYPD officer named in pepper-spray incident, is accused of civil rights violations at the time of the 2004 Republican national convention protests  —  A senior New York police officer accused …

Huntsman Spot in Oct. 18 Debate Endangered  —  Jon Huntsman, the former governor of Utah, has been in every presidential debate since he threw his hat in the ring last June.  —  Now, that may change.  —  CNN, which is hosting a debate in Las Vegas on Oct. 18, has set criteria for participation …

Obama advisors raised warning flags before Solyndra bankruptcy  —  Treasury chief Timothy F. Geithner and others were worried that the selection process for federal loan guarantees fell short and raised the risk that funds could be going to the wrong firms.  —  Reporting from Washington …

MSNBC Is Close to Falling to Third Place in Cable News Ratings  —  How badly has MSNBC been hurt by the loss of Keith Olbermann?  Enough, apparently, to be on the verge of falling back into third place among the cable news networks.  —  The ratings results for the month of September show that CNN …

Sarah Palin Threatens to Sue ‘Rogue’ Book Publisher  —  Sarah Palin's family attorney John Tiemessen has written a letter to Maya Mavjee, the publisher of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, that Palin may sue her, the company, and the book's author Joe McGinniss …

The Lost Decade?  —  If you want a big swig of despair, listen to the people who know something about the global economy.  Roger Altman, a former deputy Treasury secretary, is arguing that America and Europe are on the verge of a disastrous double-dip recession.

Wealthy, Influential and Pushing a Christie Bid for President  —  They are rich.  They are unattached.  They are looking for a little excitement.  —  Meet the Draft Christie committee, a small but influential group of Republican-leaning donors and activists, many based in New York …

Senate leaders announce bipartisan agreement to avert government shutdown  —  Senate leaders announced a bipartisan agreement Monday evening that would keep government agencies funded until Nov. 18, potentially ending a contentious dispute over how to pay for disaster funds.

The Republicans Can Win, but They Can't Lead  —  ORLANDO — Jon Huntsman, poor dear, truly is a lost soul.  He came here this weekend, for the Florida presidential debate and the ensuing straw poll, running what appeared to be a complicated simulacrum of a national presidential campaign.

POTUS testy in BET interview  —  Making the cross face: Obama sits down with Emmett Miller  —  President Obama, slipping in the polls among black supporters and under fire from black Democratic leaders for policies they say fail to address black poverty and unemployment …

Perry moves to reassure Republicans in Iowa, South Carolina  —  Washington (CNN) - As he faces growing scrutiny about his conservative credentials, Texas Gov. Rick Perry called grassroots activists in the key early states of Iowa and South Carolina on Monday evening to address his record and take questions.

Bible-thumping heckler identified as David Serrano calls President Obama ‘the Antichrist’  —  A bizarre Bible-thumping heckler called President Obama “the Antichrist” as the Secret Service dragged him out of a presidential fund-raiser Monday.  —  The bearded young man …

Blue-State Math Is Boon to Obama, Target for GOP  —  Amid those dark political clouds overhead right now, President Barack Obama can console himself with this silver lining: The electoral map remains stacked in favor of him and his Democrats.  —  In a close presidential election …

Decision on health-care law means Supreme Court will likely determine constitutionality next summer  —  The constitutionality of the 2010 health-care law will likely be determined by the Supreme Court this term, meaning the decision could come next summer in the thick of the 2012 presidential campaign.

Class Warfare - Yuck!  —  Let me get this on the record.  —  My dad was a waiter.  My mom was a secretary.  Neither attended college.  I grew up in Brooklyn, NY and Lowell, Massachusetts.  I attended public schools.  My parents - in their best year - earned $31,000 combined.

Obama aide Axelrod acknowledges hurdles to president's reelection  —  GOFFSTOWN , N.H.- With a still-foundering economy and Americans increasingly fed up with the government, President Obama's top campaign strategist today acknowledged the difficulties the incumbent president will face.

Super Committee's Cuts Anything But Automatic … WASHINGTON — The 12-member super committee created to slash the federal deficit is powered by the threat that if it doesn't come up with $1.2 trillion in savings, automatic, across-the-board cuts will be instituted to reach that same goal, with half of those cuts hitting the Pentagon.

Saudi woman to be lashed for defying driving ban  —  Saudi women will soon be allowed to vote but driving remains a banned activity  —  A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced a woman to 10 lashes for breaking the country's ban on female drivers.  —  The woman, identified only as Shema, was found guilty of driving in Jeddah in July.

Stimulus Tales  —  Dean Baker is upset with David Brooks — not for the first time.  Let me just put in a word here.  —  The story of Keynesian economists and the Obama stimulus, as anyone who's been reading me knows, runs as follows: When information about the planned stimulus began emerging …

Health Insurance Premium Update  —  Today, we received two updates on health insurance premiums.  The Kaiser Family Foundation's annual survey on health insurance looked back at the premiums insurers charged businesses and families in 2011, while the Office of Personnel Management looked ahead …