But he nominated her anyway.

President Barack Obama nominated his predecessor's press secretary, Dana Perino, to the bipartisan Broadcasting Board of Governors.

We asked Perino about it, and she told us that Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell put her name forward for the position.

"I was honored that Senator McConnell recommended me, and humbled when I found out it was accepted. I look forward to meeting the senators and to hopefully earning their support for confirmation."

Yup, she still has to get the Senate's stamp of approval.

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Photo credit: Reuters/Larry Downing (Perino at White House daily press briefing in 2007)

Senator Harry Reid, the leader of Democrats, last night unveiled a healthcare bill cobbled from two Senate versions. 

At 2,074 pages, it is longer than the 1,990-page House bill. But the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office put the plan's 10-year cost at $849 billion, which is below President Barack Obama's $900 billion goal and the House bill which came in at more than $1 trillion.

So apparently when it comes to legislation, more pages mean lower cost.

Republicans are gearing up for a fight including possible delay tactics such as forcing the whole bill to be read out loud on the Senate floor. "It's going to be a holy war," Senator Orrin Hatch, a Republican from Utah, tells the Los Angeles Times.

Offerings from morning TV shows: NBC's Andrea Mitchell is following Sarah Palin's book tour and reported from Fort Wayne, Indiana, in front of a long line of people waiting for the former Alaska governor turned former Republican vice presidential candidate turned current author.

NBC's "Today" show also had Twilight's Robert Pattinson ahead of the movie release of "New Moon" -- this is one of those if you have to ask (as I did) moments... One woman in the crowd outside the NBC studio was excitedly showing Pattinson a doll and telling him it was of him -- that's real star power.

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Photo credit: Reuters/Jim Young (Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in October), Reuters/Fred Prouser (Pattinson at Los Angeles premiere)

To use the words of TV detective Monk, "here's what happened..."

Newsweek put Palin on the cover ahead of the release of her book "Going Rogue."

Usually magazine covers before a big book launch are prized, but the former Republican vice presidential candidate didn't quite see it that way.

Palin criticized Newsweek for using the photo of her in athletic gear which was taken for an interview with a running magazine, and wrote on her Facebook page: "The out-of-context Newsweek approach is sexist and oh-so-expected by now."

Newsweek Editor Jon Meacham responded with a statement of his own on the magazine's Web site: "We chose the most interesting image available to us to illustrate the theme of the cover, which is what we always try to do,” he said. "We apply the same test to photographs of any public figure, male or female: does the image convey what we are saying? That is a gender-neutral standard."

Now Runner's World has decided to join in and put an Editor's Note on its Web site saying the Newsweek cover photo of Palin was shot exclusively for the August issue of the running magazine and those photos are "still under a one-year embargo."

So we called Newsweek and spokesman Frank De Maria said: "We purchased the photo from an agency and we were not aware of any issues with it."

A year since the election, Palin still manages to stir controversy -- and this wasn't even about her book...

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Photo credit: Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi (man holding guitar with Palin written on it in July)

In the well-worn tradition of those who entered the White House before him, the president's hair has greyed. And it's only his first year in office.

Perhaps not exactly the change he was hoping for.

"My hair has gotten a lot greyer because I was at the age where my hair was going to start getting grey. Having said all that, you know this has been an extraordinary year," Obama said in an interview with NBC.

The economy, healthcare, Afghanistan war are all on his mind -- "I would be lying if I said that those aren't weighted questions that I carry around on my shoulders every day."

As for questions about whether he is losing weight under the stress of the office, Obama says his weight is about the same.

"My weight fluctuates about five pounds - it has for the last 30 years, it's unchanging, I still wear the same stuff when I got married 17 years ago," the president told NBC.

(Perhaps it may be time to update the wardrobe?)

But after the initial splash of Obama's round of TV interviews, the president still couldn't command the obvious excitement on some of the morning TV shows that Sarah Palin's book tour was about to begin.

NBC's Andrea Mitchell was out near Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she talked about how some people had camped OVERNIGHT so they could get a wrist band so they could meet Palin.

ABC showed more of Barbara Walters interview with Palin.

And Hillary Clinton has landed in Afghanistan. It's her first visit to the country as Secretary of State.

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Photo credit: Reuters/Jim Young (Obama in Shanghai this week), Reuters/Mike Segar (Obama when presidential candidate with former President Bill Clinton in September 2008)

It shows Alaska closer to the center of the top of the world than Washington, D.C. -- deliberate perhaps?

Then wandering through the book, the quotes at the start of each chapter caught our eye.

There's the famous words from college football coach Lou Holtz: "I don't believe that God put us on earth to be ordinary."

Greek philosopher Aristotle: "Criticism is something we can avoid by saying nothing, doing nothing, being nothing."

That is followed by chapters that feature wise words from basketball coach John Wooden, Christian pastor Charles Swindoll, humor columnist Dave Barry and American author Mark Twain.

The lead in for Chapter 6 is a quote from Palin's father, Chuck Heath Sr.: "Sarah's not retreating; she's reloading!"

What do these quotes say about Palin?

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Photo credit: Reuters/Mike Segar (Rodin sculpture "The Thinker" outside Philosophy Department of Columbia University)

We can think of no other losing vice presidential candidate who has captured so much media coverage a year AFTER losing the bid for the White House.

The Palin phenomenon perseveres (this week anyway).

The Washington Post has TWO columnists writing about her today -- Eugene Robinson's "Our Evita," and Richard Cohen "Time for some Palintology."

The front page of the Post showcases a quote from Sarah Palin's book "Going Rogue" which is out in bookstores today: "I always remind people from outside our state that there's plenty of room for all Alaska's animals -- right next to the mashed potatoes."

The New York Times op-ed page carries a column from Michael Carey of the Anchorage Daily News in which he flips the viewpoint to why Alaskans are fascinated by Palin -- "how a woman who takes pride in calling herself a homemaker from Wasilla brought celebrity culture to the Last Frontier."

She's been interviewed by Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters. CNN's Larry King had a whole discussion about Palin last night. And David Letterman has been having fun on his late-night show by coming up with things that are more fun than reading Palin's memoir  (number 61 - getting run over by a lawnmower).

She's on the cover of Newsweek magazine, but she objected to its use of a photograph of her in shorts that was originally taken for a sports magazine. "The out-of-context Newsweek approach is sexist, and oh-so-expected by now," Palin writes on her Facebook page.

Can a talk show be too far off?

"I'd probably rather write than talk," Palin tells Walters in an interview segment shown on ABC's "Good Morning America."

Her response to offers of reality TV shows: "Absolutely not. I would never. No I would not ever want to put my kids through such a thing. Shoot, our life has become kind of a reality show."

Why do you think Palin is still able to grab this amount of attention?

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Photo credit: Reuters/Larry Downing (Palin's book on display in a bookstore)

In the post-9/11 era, government officials want to show that they are doing everything they can to protect the public and, when something happens, that they will get to the bottom of it.

The FBI says there is no information that Major Nidal Malik Hasan was involved in a "broader terrorist plot."

But that hasn't stopped questions about whether authorities missed signs that could have somehow prevented the shooting.

U.S. officials say intelligence agencies learned that Hasan contacted an anti-American cleric in Yemen who was sympathetic to al Qaeda and relayed the information to law enforcement authorities, but it's unclear whether any action was taken.

President Barack Obama has ordered an inventory of all intelligence in U.S. government files related to Hasan, and a review of how any intelligence was handled by government agencies.

Members of Congress are talking about launching congressional investigations.

It has only just begun.

Congressional inquiries are notorious for dragging out. The White House review will likely be done first.

But the bottom line in the usual Washington blame game is going to be finding who messed up.

After the Sept. 11 attacks and the large-scale revamping of U.S. intelligence operations in which a whole new entity was created -- the  Director of National Intelligence -- that is no small question.

"There is still a reluctance among different (intelligence and law enforcement) actors to share across what they consider to be their own turfs. It seems difficult to understand," counterterrorism expert Evan Kohlmann said.

What do you think?

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Photo credit: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque (soldiers at Fort Hood memorial service), Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi (Obama at Fort Hood memorial ceremony)

For President Barack Obama it was a "courageous vote" by members of Congress.

Obama went to Capitol Hill Saturday to personally press for passage. Today he was full of praise.

"Given the heated and often misleading rhetoric surrounding this legislation, I know that this was a courageous vote for many members of Congress," Obama said in the Rose Garden.

For Sarah Palin the healthcare bill was a mess.

"We've got to hold on to hope, and we've got to fight hard because Congressional action tonight just put America on a path toward an unrecognizable country," Palin said on her Facebook page.

"This out-of-control bureaucratic mess will be disastrous for our economy, our small businesses, and our personal liberty," she says.

For Congressman Anh "Joseph" Cao, the only Republican to vote for the House bill, it was "the right decision for my district, even though it was not the popular decision for my party."

Watch CNN's interview of the first-term congressman from Louisiana below:

Who do you agree with?

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Photo credit: Reuters/Yuri Gripas (Obama on way to making statement on healthcare)

The religious beliefs of suspect Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a Muslim Army psychiatrist, have led to speculation about motive in the shooting rampage that killed 13 people.

"I'm concerned that this increased speculation could cause a backlash against some of our Muslim soldiers. And I've asked our Army leaders to be on the lookout for that," Casey told CNN's "State of the Union."

Asked on NBC's "Meet the Press" whether Muslim soldiers are conflicted in fighting wars in Muslim countries like Afghanistan and Iraq, Casey said: "I think that's something that we have to look at on an individual basis. But I think we as an Army have to be broad enough to bring in people from all walks of life."

The bottom line is the military benefits from diversity, he said.

"Our diversity, not only in our Army, but in our country, is a strength. And as horrific as this tragedy was, if our diversity becomes a casualty, I think that's worse," Casey said.

President Barack Obama also mentioned military diversity in his Saturday radio address which was focused on Fort Hood.

Veterans Day is a chance to honor Americans who served in battlefields all over the world, Obama said. "They are Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus and nonbelievers."

"They reflect the diversity that makes this America. But what they share is a patriotism like no other," Obama said.

Photo credit: Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi (Casey at Fort Hood after shooting), Reuters/Jim Young (Obama leaving podium after remarks about Fort Hood shooting)

The unemployment rate jumped to 10.2 percent, the highest since April 1983 when it was also 10.2 pct. If you don't want to do the math, that was 26 years ago. It was worse than expectations for 9.9 percent.

This is not good news for President Barack Obama who is struggling to pull the economy out of the worst recession since the Depression.

The employment numbers were also worse than expected with October payrolls falling 190,000, a bigger drop than the 175,000 decline expected.

It's a day of mourning at Fort Hood in Texas after an Army psychiatrist went on a shooting rampage that killed 12 soldiers and one civilian and wounded 30.

"It's difficult enough when we lose these brave Americans in battles overseas. It is horrifying that they should come under fire at an Army base on American soil," President Barack Obama said yesterday.

"I was saddened to learn of the tragic incident at Fort Hood. Laura and I are keeping the victims and their families in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time," former President George W. Bush, who lives in Texas, said in a statement.

Suspected gunman Major Nidal Malik Hasan was in stable condition but investigators had not yet been able to interrogate him, Lt. Gen. Robert Cone, Fort Hood commanding officer, said on NBC's "Today" show.

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Photo credit: Reuters/Jim Young (Obama makes remarks about shooting at Fort Hood on Nov. 5)