CEA Chief Christina Romer blogs on the GDP numbers : After four consecutive quarters of decline, positive GDP growth is an encouraging sign that the U.S. economy is moving in the right direction. However, this welcome milestone is just another step, and we still have a long road to travel until the economy is fully recovered. The turnaround in crucial labor market indicators, such as employment and the unemployment rate, typically occurs after the turnaround in GDP.

Photo: Susan Walsh (AP) Daniel Nasaw at Guardian.uk Barack Obama last night came face to face with the true cost of the war in Afghanistan , as the remains of 18 US soldiers and drug enforcement agents were unloaded from a military aircraft and returned to US soil. Under George Bush, who launched the conflict in retaliation for the terrorist 9/11 attacks, news media were barred from observing the return of fallen troops through Dover airbase.

With all due respect to Nate Silver , buying Joe Lieberman a puppy won’t work. Furthermore, I think his conclusion about what motivates Joe Lieberman leaves out a very important factor, and is therefore dangerously inaccurate: What Joe Lieberman wants, in all probability, is attention. He wants Harry Reid to have to stand up and say things like : “I don’t have anyone that I’ve worked harder with, have more respect for, in the Senate than Joe Lieberman.” He wants face time on Meet the Press.

October 29, 2009 — by Tinker Ready Killer viruses, computers that see all, and the undead public option. (Or, as Jon Stewart said last night –”It’s alive!) Welcome to the haunted edition of the Health Wonk Review –  the  floating digest of posts from the health policy blogosphere. This week, we put the death back into death panels. The health care system is an out-of-control beast,  promising to heal us while sucking more and more out of our pockets. The shadowy Blob of the drug, device and insurance industries threatens to eat more and more of the GNP each year.

Talk about killing the messenger, the White House is angry because the Associated Press dared to fact-check the administration’s false claim that the first $16 billion in the stimulus created 30,083 jobs.AP said that paltry number was inflated by at least 5,000 jobs as there were numerous errors — all in favor of boosting job numbers — in the job calculations.AP cited:• A company working with the Federal Communications Commission reported that stimulus money paid for 4,231 jobs, when about 1,000

This is pretty good actually. Most liberals and conservatives probably didnt know about Fergie and J. Lo being owners of the Miami Dolphins. Which kind of drives the point home that if a couple of people like that can own a football team, why did Goodell rush to judgement on the Rams stuff? King dishes out some quality verbage from Fergie and J. Lo from their music, but as we all know, the NFL is not about decisive and deragatory language or actions. No, the NFL is clean as the wind driven snow.

October 29th, 2009American Power blog writes that, after the stunning attack on UN members at a guest house yesterday, the United Nations is reconsidering their mission in Afghanistan. Still the President dawdles. John Boehner, Ohio Republican, says it’s time for a decision from this White House; “This has gone on now for well over two months, and I think it’s time for the President to make a decision.

Via CNSNews.com Under press to make a decision on sending more U.S. troops to Afghanistan, President Barack Obama made a midnight dash to this Air Force base Wednesday to honor the return of fallen soldiers who absorbed the ultimate cost of war as the United States endures its deadliest month of the Afghanistan campaign. On a clear fall night, Obama flew by Marine One helicopter to Dover Air Force Base to greet the flag-draped cases of 18 Americans killed in action this week.

Earlier this week, Bill O’Reilly slammed Orly Taitz: Not surprisingly, this has Orly and the Birthers — and, again, I submit that “Orly And The Birthers” would be a great name for a Beach Boys tribute band — in an uproar. Within hours after the segment aired, the dentist/lawyer was telling her minions to write Fox News (you know that blatantly pro-Obama cable news channel) and demand equal time for her to respond. And, boy did the minions ever respond.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is considering a scaled-down version of the war plan advanced by his top Afghanistan commander, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, U.S. officials say. Such a narrowed military mission would increase American forces to accomplish the commander’s broadest goals of protecting Afghan cities and key infrastructure.