Biden: Bush Policies Gave Al Qaeda A Recruitment Tool
Speaking yesterday at CIA Headquarters, Joe Biden told the assembled employees that the new administration will "reverse the policies that in my view and the view of many in this agency caused America to fall short of its founding principles and which gave Al Qaeda a powerful recruiting tool."

Today: Obama And Biden Talking Up Stimulus To Mayors
President Obama and Vice President Biden will be speaking today at the White House to a group of mayors from across the country, to discuss the implementation of the stimulus bill. Mayors who will be in attendance include San Francisco's Gavin Newsom, New Orleans' Ray Nagin, Dallas' Tom Leppert (a Republican) and others.

Hillary On Global Listening Tour
The Washington Post reports that Clinton's first overseas trip has essentially become a global listening tour, in an effort to repair America's image abroad. "My trip here today is to hear your views, because I believe strongly that we learn from listening to one another," she told students at Tokyo University earlier this week. "And that is, for me, part of what this first trip of mine as secretary of state is about."

New York Post Apologizes For Chimp Cartoon
The New York Post has now apologized for the controversial "chimp" cartoon, but they're still, um, sticking to their guns. "It was meant to mock an ineptly written federal stimulus bill. Period," the paper says. But they do acknowledge that some have seen it as a racist depiction: "This most certainly was not its intent; to those who were offended by the image, we apologize."

Appointed Senators Hitting The Trail -- Except Burris
Three of the four appointed Senators are spending the Congressional recess touring their states and discussing the economy, mostly in preparation for re-election -- and even Delaware's Ted Kaufman, who is serving as a caretaker, is meeting with constituents to discuss the issues. The one exception seems to be the embattled Roland Burris, who has canceled his public events and is holding private meetings to figure out his next move.

Report: Cornyn Approaches Pataki For New York Senate Race
The Associated Press reports that NRSC chairman John Cornyn has approached former New York Governor George Pataki to run in the special Senate election in 2010. Pataki served three terms as governor of a Democratic state, so he could be a strong candidate if he runs, though his popularity did go down in the home stretch of his administration.

GOP Candidate In Gillibrand's Seat Won't Say How He Would Have Voted On Stimulus Bill
The stimulus bill is quickly becoming a big issue in the special election for Kirsten Gillibrand's former House seat -- namely, a refusal by Republican candidate Jim Tedisco to say how he would have voted had he been in the House. Tedisco has criticized the bill, but has responded to queries about his bottom-line vote by saying it's a "hypothetical question."