Free Republic

WASHINGTON - The number of laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits fell last week by the sharpest amount in nearly two months, indicating the labor market remains healthy despite the sluggish economy. The Labor Department reported Thursday that applications for jobless benefits totaled 321,000 last week, a decline of 20,000 from the previous week. That was the biggest decline in claims in nine weeks and was more than double what economists had been expecting. Analysts said part of the improvement reflected trouble adjusting the weekly claims data around Easter, which does not fall in the same week every year.

Lawrence O'Donnell: Update on Rove Lawrence O'Donnell 2 hours, 22 minutes ago On Friday, I broke the story that the e-mails that Time turned over to the prosecutor that day reveal that Karl Rove is the source Matt Cooper is protecting. That provoked Rove’s lawyer, Robert Luskin, to interrupt his holiday weekend to do a little defense work with Newsweek and the Los Angeles Times. On Saturday, Luskin decided to reveal that Rove did have at least one conversation with Cooper, but Luskin told the Times he would not “characterize the substance of the conversation.” Luskin claimed that the prosecutor...