Though geared towards Australians, this ad is a hilarious reminder of how thoughtful and convincing political tv ads are.

South Carolina:
Nikki Haley made history in the state by becoming not only the first woman but the first Indian-American woman to run for governor in last night's run off election.

Representative Tim Scott easily won against Strom Thurmond's son in the 1st District and could be come the Republican's first black congress in over a century. The South may indeed rise again, but with a slightly different look

Utah:
Tea Party backed candidate Mike Lee was selected to head up the GOP Senate race. Utah is overwhelming Republican, so no drastic changes there.

General Stanley McChrystal is set to meet with President Obama today, who will decide if McChrystal gets to keep his job as Commander of US forces in Afghanistan. The General made several unflattering comments about the administration in a Rolling Stone interview.

Considering McChrystal himself believes he comprised the mission, it doesn't look good for the General.

The White House'ss ban on off shore drilling has been struck down by a federal judge. The Administration promises to appeal.

Budget Director Peter Orszag is et to reside from the Obama administration in July. The New York Times says Budget Directors never stay around for long anyway and this gives the President time to find a replacement for the next budget cycle

Newt Gingrich see's a lot of similarities between this year's mid terms elections and those of 1994, when Republicans swept into Congressional power under a Democratic President. The New York Times notes a few differences, namely the lower number of retirements and some successful legislation (such as health care) for Democrats to run on.

On the House floor right now. CSPAN.

By a vote of 59-39, the Senate voted last night to pass legislation aiming to fix the US financial industry, which almost collapsed back in last 2008. Four Republicans, Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Charles Grassley and Scott Brown joined a majority of Democrats in voting for the bill. The Senate was hung up in debate until Scott Brown (MA) got assurances from Congressman Barney Frank that several concerns about Massachusetts' financial institutions would be addressed.

The bill now heads to conference committee to hammer out differences between the House version.

Arlen Spectator gets sunk by former Admiral Joe Sestak in PA, Blanche Lincoln heads to a run off in Arkansas, a Tea Party favorite edges out the Republican party candidate in Kentucky and Democrats easily keep John Murtha's seat.

So which party came out on top? Neither, the primaries signal a voter dissatisfaction with the establishment candidates. What do the primaries results say about the elections in November? Things aren't looking so certain for Republicans and Democrats still have a good chance to retain both houses.

President Obama has issued a presidential memorandum ordering major reforms in the cumbersome federal hiring process.

The current Solicitor General, Elena Kagan, will be nominated this morning to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice, John Paul Stevens.

No word yet on who Kagan's replacement will be.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist, currently running for a Senate seat in the state, is expected to switch from running as a Republican to an Independent.

The President and top Republican and Democrat leaders are meeting today to discuss possible replacements for retiring Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens. Obama promises that there is no abortion litmus test.

The White House is all about reforming the US financial industry, to prevent the need for massive bailouts in the future. The GOP is too, which totally explains Senators Mitch McConnell and John Coyrn meeting with leaders of the industry and the subsequent opposition of the current proposed bill by all 41 Republicans. When McConnell was asked what went on in the meeting by CNN, he blamed the President for politicizing the process. When the White House offered a concession, Republicans shrugged and suggested going "back to the drawing board".

Same sex partners get hospital visitation rights, as long as the hospital participates in Medicare or Medicaid, via a White House Memorandum. This isn't specifically aimed at gays, it just allows patients to designate who their visitors may be, regardless of color, gender identity (note how broad this is), race, disability etc. The memo also stipulates that patients have the right to designate who will be empowered to make medical decisions for them, regardless of sex/race/gender identity etc.

The Tea Party is set to unveil its Contract with America today. The interesting parts is the contract's ten points were decided via internet voting. Obviously the contract is a play on the Republican's 1994 Contract WITH America, which swept the party into congressional power in a landslide.

A lot is being made of Obama's recent use of recess appointments, particularly that of labor attorney Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board, but the undertone may have been missed by the general media:

Years ago, after Republicans filibustered a Carter nominee to the NLRB, the two parties made a deal: the board would have three appointees from the president's party and two from the other party. So after he took office Obama nominated two Democrats and one Republican to fill the NLRB's three vacant seats and got support from a couple of Republicans on the HELP committee for the entire slate. But when it got to the Senate floor John McCain put a hold on Becker, and his nomination — along with the others — died.

Fast forward to today and Obama finally decides to fill the board using recess appointments. But what does he do? He only appoints the two Democrats. This is not what you do if you're trying to make nice. It's what you do if you're playing hardball and you want to send a pointed message to the GOP caucus. You won't act on my nominees? Fine. I'll appoint my guys and then leave it up to you to round up 50 votes in the Senate for yours. Have fun.

With Becker and Mark Pearce appointed to the Board, it will contain 3 Democrats and one Republican, with the other, traditionally Republican slot, left vacant.

Sounds like someone may be getting tired of playing nice and wants to send a message.

Today the House votes on whether to pass the Senate bill. If it succeeds, the Senate will then use reconciliation to pass some changes to the bill.

Detailed analysis by Nate Silver at fivethirtyeight.com: Getting the 216 Yes votes (he puts the odds of the bill passing at about 80%). Democrats taking the biggest risk by voting Yes. Overview of the negotiating process. Increase in liberal support for the bill.

Paul Krugman summarizes what's in the bill.    Continues...

The Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act has been passed by the Senate and is headed to President Obama's desk, to be signed into law. The legislation designed to stimulate jobs by giving employers payroll tax exemptions through 2010 and extending federal highway and other public works projects. The bill passed 69-29, with 11 Republicans voting with the Democratic majority.

A riff on I Can Haz Cheeseburger, North Korea style.

Democrats are looking at adding the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA) to health care care reform legislation. SAFRA would abolish privater lenders of student loans, people would borrow directly from the government, increases Pell Grants and aims to keep loan interest rates loan.    Continues...

US Vice-President Joe Biden and US Special Envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell headed to Israel on Monday in hopes of restarting negotiations between Israel and Palestine again.

Then the Interior Ministry of Israel announced plans to build 1,600 new Jewish homes in east Jerusalem, which just happens to be where Palestinians would like to place the capital of their eventual separate state. Unsurprisingly, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is no longer interested in the current peace talks.

As a final vote on U.S. health care reform nears, Representative Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), known for being a far left liberal, has made clear that he'll vote against the final bill. Among his concerns are the "...timidity of the legislative language and, specifically, the unwillingness of lawmakers to seriously consider a single payer system".

With the final House vote promising to be close, Democrats are growing alarmed at Kucinich's position, with Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas promising a primary challenger if the Congressman proceeds to vote against reform.

The US Department of Transportation has furloughed 2,000 workers, unemployment benefits ended last night, doctors are facing a pay cut and rural satellite tv viewers will be facing dark screens.

What's the common thread? Senator Jim Bunning (Kentucky), who is holding up a $10 billion bill because of his objection to it not being paid for.

Today, from 10am EST to 4pm, the White House will be hosting a bipartisan meeting on health care reform and it will be televised live. Come on in if have a minute and comment on the fireworks!