La. Senator Caught Dialing DC Madam

(NEWSER) - Louisiana GOP Senator David Vitter will meet a substantial opponent in his 2010 bid for re-election: porn star Stormy Daniels, CNN reports. A grass-roots “Draft Stormy” campaign, unaffiliated with the state’s Democratic Party, has encouraged the buxom blond to run on a platform of the economy, women’s issues, and child safety. The push is shining the light back on Vitter’s 2007 prostitution scandal. More»

Stormy Daniels says she just can't afford it

(AP) - Louisiana-born porn star Stormy Daniels won't be running for the US Senate after all. In an e-mailed statement , Daniels said she simply can't afford to challenge David Vitter. She also compared herself to Sarah Palin, complaining that the media never took her interest in the race seriously. "Simply because I did not fit in their mold of what an independent working woman should be, the media and political elite have sought to relegate my sense of civic responsibility to mere sideshow antics." More»

The actions of a half-dozen employees doesn't represent the huge organization

(NEWSER) - The conservative campaign against ACORN—which has now, thanks to a few video “sting” operations, lost its federal funding—is built on an outrageous set of exaggerations and falsehoods, writes Joe Conason for Salon. “No doubt it was fun to dupe a few morons into providing tax advice to a ‘pimp and ho,’ but what ACORN actually does, every day, is help struggling families.” More»

Senator has crowd chuckling at Iowa fundraiser

(NEWSER) - As a latecomer to the Senate this year, Al Franken’s been playing it straight—but he loosened up enough to venture a few jokes at an Iowa fundraiser yesterday, CNN reports. Discussing Sen. Tom Harkin’s new post as head of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee,” Franken said: “Its not really that big a deal. I mean, it's only health. Education. Labor. And pensions.” More»

(NEWSER) - John Ensign, a Republican senator from Nevada said to be considering a presidential run in 2012, admitted today that he had an extramarital affair with a campaign staffer, reports Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post. "It's absolutely the worst thing I've ever done in my life," he said at a press conference. "I'm very sorry." His wife, Darlene, backed her husband and said their "marriage has become stronger" in a statement. More»