This week in politics for October 13

• The North Korean nuke test is the big news at the beginning of the week. Everyone is pointing fingers in every which direction for who is to blame for letting the crazies get the bomb. Meanwhile Bush has to try and walk the thin diplomatic line (while still failing to pronounce “nuclear” correctly): Bush comments on N. Korea nuclear test
• A press conference on Wednesday proved nobody bother to correct the President’s pronunciation: Press Conference by the President
• Polls continue to show Republican hopes of maintaining control of the house and senate fading: Democrats' Momentum Mounts
• Last Friday, this one slid under the door: The top aide to Karl Rove, Susan Ralston, who is also former top assistant to convicted criminal lobbyist Jack Abramoff. She is supposedly leaving under questions of exceeding personal gift limits, but she was also the one who was hiding the number of contacts Abramoff and his associates had with the White House. I think there’s more there as well, but we’ll likely not learn about it until after the election: White House aide to Rove resigns
• Remember the thing about Sandy Berger stuffing classified documents down his pants? Well, the GOP wants to be sure that they’re not the only one subject to scandals and probes: GOP leaders seek probe of Berger papers
• Aide to Arlen Specter (R-PA) is being investigated for earmarking legislation for her lobbyist husband. How this doesn’t implicate Specter I don’t know: Specter: FBI investigating senate aide
• Dirty Harry Reid (D-NV) is tied up in a questionable land deal; my defense for Reid: it’s how things are done in Nevada: AP: Reid got $1 million in land sale
• Another Abramoff related item, Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) is expected to plead guilty to taking bribes: Abramoff figure Rep. Ney to plead guilty
• And in what will be depressing news for many Democrats, former Virginia Governor Mark Warner has decided not to run in the 2008 presidential election. If he’s opted out this early, I think there’s more than likely a good (scandalous) reason: Warner Decides Not to Run for President
• Finally, just so you don’t think we’ve forgotten about a good scandal, the House Ethics Committee continues to interview pages (Ex-Aide to Foley Testifies of Warning Speaker’s Office) and the President has come to the aid of embattled Speaker Hastert (Bush Joins Hastert at Rally, and Lavishes the Praise).