- While voters head to the polls in Georgia today, The Hill reports that the Al Franken campaign could petition the U.S. Senate to intervene in the Minnesota ballot recount, invoking the Constitutional clause that each congressional chamber shall be "Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members" in order to make sure disqualified absentee ballots are counted.
- In news that shouldn't surprise anyone, Bill Clinton will not be taking his wife's Senate seat, and New York Gov. Paterson will only appoint a replacement after the secretary of state-designate resigns. Down in Florida, Mel Martinez will not seek reelection in 2010, potentially giving Gov. Charlie Crist an opportunity to appoint a successor, and Sam looks at the potential Senatorial brouhaha brewing between Lisa Murkowski and Sarah Palin in Alaska.
- The Washington Post reports that many deputies to Defense Secretary Robert Gates might not stay on in the Obama administration. This bit stuck out: "The sensitive position of undersecretary for intelligence, created by Donald H. Rumsfeld while he was leading the Pentagon, is also likely to see a leadership change, transition sources said. 'There is a real issue about how to fully recuperate' that office from the Rumsfeld era, and it would require a 'team player' to promote more effective cooperation with the rest of the intelligence community, one source close to the transition said."
- David Gregory is slated to be the late Tim Russert's permanent replacement as host of the venerable Sunday show Meet the Press, Mike Allen reports.
- Apropos of the film version of Frost-Nixon, First Read rounds up some gems from the latest round of National Archive releases of the lost Richard Nixon White House tapes.
- Vice president-elect Joe Biden sure loves him some trains, talking up the benefits of rail at the National Governor’s Association. Ezra has more here.
- The Commission on the Prevention of WMD Proliferation and Terrorism has issued its Congressionally-mandated report titled "World at Risk," and the conclusions aren't pretty: "The Commission believes that unless the world community acts decisively and with great urgency, it is more likely than not that a weapon of mass destruction will be used in a terrorist attack somewhere in the world by the end of 2013." The use of WMDs by terrorists always seemed to me to be more or less inevitable, so the great variable was when. If the Obama administration wants to avoid such a calamity on its watch, pursuing a robust policy of containing the proliferation of such weapons seems to be essential, if this report is correct.
- Job market got you down? Rick Perlstein looks at the possibilities of an exciting career in wingnut welfare: "Given the daily headlines, the short-term outlook for freedom looks bearish; your career investment in freedom is long-term however. At the next AFF Roundtable we will discuss strategies, tips, and pitfalls to building a career working in the Conservative/Libertarian movement. Our panelists will discuss and debate questions like: how to find you dream job, how to become the next Ed Crane/Ed Feulner and how to make a real living in “the movement” in addition we’ll take your questions." Hey, maybe they can get this guy to be a motivational speaker:
--Mori Dinauer
