Nation: Jon Stewart made his last appearance as host of the Daily Show last night but the Republican presidential candidates also had their first debate so, sadly, and without Jon Stewart, we lead with that. Standing center stage among 10 …

Nation: The strict Texas voter identification law discriminates against black and Hispanic voters in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, according to a ruling by a federal appeals court. It’s one of several state voter identification laws winding …

Final Cut: Republican candidate Rick Perry of Texas didn’t make the final cut for the debate tomorrow night on Fox News. Neither did Rick Santorum, or the only female candidate, Carly Fiorina. Here’s the roster: Donald Trump, Jeb Bush, Scott …

Regulation: A coalition of states, coal producers, and power companies immediately announced plans to fight President Obama’s new greenhouse gas regulations. A lawyer for the coalition said at the announcement, “Our coalition, in short order, will comprise of many states, …

  The Big Sell: Greece’s primary stock market dove 22.87 percent this morning when trading resumed after the markets were closed for five weeks during the country’s financial crisis. It didn’t come as a surprise. By comparison, the biggest drop …

Executive Order: President Obama is expected tomorrow to announce tough new regulations to dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions by power plants. If they pass legal challenges, the regulations would probably shut down hundreds of coal-fired power plants that can’t meet …

Nation: A federal judge in San Francisco has agreed to block an anti-abortion group from releasing more sting videos purporting to show employees of Planned Parenthood discussing the illegal sale of aborted fetal tissue. The Center for Medical Progress had …

Ski Report: The International Olympic Committee has chosen the winter wonderland of Beijing for the 2022 winter games. Beijing will re-use the Bird’s Nest stadium and the Water Cube from its summer games for indoor events like hockey. The mountain …

Clue: A piece of airplane wing that washed up on a remote island east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean has been identified as probably coming from a Boeing 777, leading investigators to suspect it may have been a wing …

Permawar: Afghanistan is investigating reports that Mullah Muhammad Omar, the one-eyed leader of the Taliban, is dead. Omar has not been seen in public since before the Taliban regime was toppled in 2001. A breakaway group of the Taliban claims …