Chavez No! Putin Si! Venezuela's Hugo Chavez conceded defeat at the polls Monday on a referendum that would have vastly expanded his powers and allowed him to stand for president indefinitely, The Wall Street Journal reports. He congratulated his opponents who won the referendum and said the vote was the beginning of a long battle. This marks the first time he's failed to win a national vote by overwhelming margins. Meanwhile, in Russia, The New York Times reports that allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin are claiming his party's victory in a somewhat-tinkered-with election guarantees his status as "father of nation" even after he leaves the Russian presidency.
Subprime Nation: An analysis for The Wall Street Journal shows that many people who took out subprime loans had the credit scores needed to qualify for better, more conventional loans. More than half of the subprime loans packaged into securities appear to have gone to such borrowers, a statistic which may shape how the federal government responds to the market crisis and how lenders assign blame for the debacle.
Huckabeenomics: The Wall Street Journal reports that Arkansas Governor and Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee is gaining traction among conservative economic populists, and pitching a message of trade restrictions, health care subsidies, and anti-poverty efforts.
Detainees' Return: The New York Times's Linda Greenhouse previews Supreme Court argument on the question of whether U.S. courts have jurisdiction to hear lawsuits filed by Guantánamo detainees. The case is not just a repeat of 2004's Rasul v. Bush, she says, or Hamdan v. Rumsfield. At stake is whether the court itself is extraneous to the detainee question.
Refund Reconnaissance: The Washington Post reviews nine years worth of dubious tax refunds from the D.C. government, finding that more than 44 million may be missing — more than double the amount prosecutors have declared was stolen.
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