Thousands of mourners lined the Mall and gathered on the steps at the foot of the Capitol to say farewell to Sen. Edward Kennedy, whose hearse made its final journey to Arlington Cemetary, where his brothers are buried. The crowd sang "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" in an impromptu moment, and burst into applause when Kennedy's hearse arrived. Kennedy's widow, Victoria, and other family members greeted some of the well-wishers, who included the longest-serving senator, 91-year-old Robert Byrd, among other prominent politicians. The motorcade traced the same route traveled during the funerals of John and Bobby Kennedy. The senator's grave is within a few hundred feet of his brothers'. Several hundred former and current staff members waved American flags to celebrate their old boss. At Kennedy's funeral, President Obama praised Kennedy as "a champion for those who had none; the soul of the Democratic Party; and the lion of the U.S. Senate."

A recently released report from 2004 by the CIA's then-inspector general offered no conclusion as to whether waterboarding and other torture methods were effective in securing valuable information from detainees, but intelligence officials are trying to anonymously inflate its findings. According to the report, 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed "provided only a few intelligence reports prior to the use of the waterboard, and analysis of that information revealed that much of it was outdated, inaccurate or incomplete," but cooperated after being waterboarded some 183 times and subjected to over a week of sleep deprivation while being shackled and put in a diaper during his first few weeks in custody. "What do you think changed KSM's mind?" one former senior intelligence official told The Washington Post this week, after being asked about the effect of waterboarding. "Of course it began with that." But the report's author, former inspector general John L. Helgerson, told the Post that he was not in "a position to reach definitive conclusions about the effectiveness of particular interrogation methods" and that while waterboarding elicited information, the report did not include any systematic review of whether it worked in comparison to non-torture techniques or whether the information gleaned by the technique was accurate.

It was a somber morning as 1,500 people packed Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica in Boston, where Sen. Ted Kennedy was laid to rest. The mourners sang “Holy God We Praise Thy Name” as a military honor guard carried Kennedy’s flag-draped coffin into the church. President Obama delivered a eulogy, calling Kennedy a “force of nature.” Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama sat in the first row, and Bill and Hillary Clinton sat a row behind them. Vice President Biden, Jimmy Carter, and George Bush also attended with their wives. And though politicians filled the pews, their constituents lined the streets outside. Over 50,000 people have visited Kennedy’s coffin in the last two days. “We do not weep for him today because of the prestige attached to his name or his office,” Obama said of Kennedy. “We weep because we loved this kind and tender hero who persevered through pain and tragedy-- not for the sake of ambition or vanity; not for wealth or power; but only for the people and the country he loved.” 

Leaked ministerial documents show the British government had decided it was "in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom" to release the Lockerbie bomber, the Times of London reports. The letters were sent two years ago by Jack Straw, the justice secretary, to Kenny MacAskill, the Scottish justice secretary, and show that Straw initially wanted to exclude the Lockerbie bomber, Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, from a prisoner-transfer agreement arranged with Libya. But Straw changed his position as Libya began using its multimillion-pound deal with British Petroleum as a bargaining chip. Libya had refused to ratify the deal for six months. “The wider negotiations with the Libyans are reaching a critical stage and, in view of the overwhelming interests for the United Kingdom, I have agreed that in this instance the [prisoner-transfer agreement] should be in the standard form and not mention any individual,” Straw wrote. Six weeks after the government reversed its position on the bomber, the BP deal went through. The son of Libya's leader, Saif Gaddafi, said it was "obvious" the two countries were talking about al-Megrahi during the negotiations. BP and Lord Mendelson maintain the deal had nothing to do with the bomber's release.

No love for South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford on Saturday at this year’s annual Republican retreat. South Carolina’s House GOP Caucus stopped short of resolving to impeach Sanford, but did say they were "disgusted," and that Sanford had "disgraced" the state. "Members of the caucus are disappointed in him, angry with him and in some ways disgusted by the whole thing and they want to deal with it as quickly as possible," said House Speaker Bobby Harrell. One lawmaker asked "Is there anybody in this room that feels the governor should not resign?" No one came to the governor's defense. Sanford's use of state planes and other travel expenses have come into question since he admitted an affair with a woman in Argentina. Harrell has urged the GOP to hold off on impeachment until the state's ethics commission wraps up their investigation.

Four years ago today, Hurricane Katrina ripped through New Orleans, causing unprecedented devastation. In his weekly radio and Internet address, President Barack Obama marked the anniversary, vowing that the federal government will continue to assist with the city's recovery and that it has learned from the disaster. “As we remember all that was lost, we must take stock of the work being done on recovery, while preparing for future disasters,” Obama said. "None of us can forget how we felt when those winds battered the shore, the floodwaters began to rise, and Americans were stranded on rooftops and in stadiums." Earlier this week, the president announced the creation of a federal task force to help restore the Louisiana and Mississippi coastlines.

In a column in Newsweek, Jacob Weisberg argues that Republicans shouldn't be afraid of "death-panel" rumors and warnings that the health-care bill will "pull the plug on Grandma." Instead, the scariest policy in the pipeline is a provision in the 2001 GOP-led tax cuts that reduces the estate tax to zero beginning next year and lasting for exactly 12 months, Weisberg argues. The estate-tax revision that Sen. Chuck Grassley fought for will incentivize "ailing, elderly rich people to end their lives" before December 31, 2010, when the estate tax will jump back to 55 percent, he says. Economists have produced evidence showing that benefactors die in greater numbers just before tax hikes and just after tax cuts. One Australian study showed that more than half of the people who would have normally died the last week of June 1979 made it to July, when Australia abolished its inheritance tax. Weisberg also cites a University of Michigan study that came to the same conclusion.

Imprisoned since she was 11 by Phillip Garrido, Jaycee Dugard never told her two children by her kidnapper that she had been abducted by their father. "Jaycee has strong feelings with this guy," her stepfather, Carl Probyn, told the San Jose Mercury News on Friday. "She really feels it's almost like a marriage." Upon being reunited with her mother earlier this week, Jaycee's first words were reportedly "Hi, Mom, I have babies." Probyn said that Dugard regretted not escaping earlier. "She is feeling guilt for having bonded with this guy the way she did," Probyn said. "He had her for 18 years, we had her for 11.'' Meanwhile, authorities are looking into how police missed a series of opportunities to discover Dugard during visits to Garrido's home. Garrido, a registered sex offender, was released from prison after only 11 years in 1988 on kidnapping and rape charges that had earned him separate sentences of 50 years and life in prison. It is not yet clear why he was released in the first place, the Associated Press reports.

As one of the few remaining moderate Republican senators, Olympia Snowe (R-ME) is under heavy pressure from both sides in the health-care debate. Given Ted Kennedy's death, her importance is only magnified, as she could provide the 60th vote to break a Republican filibuster over a bill. “I certainly hope not,” Snowe told The New York Times when asked about the prospect of being the lone Republican to jump ship. Snowe has not yet decided on her vote, but she has been clear in acknowledging a health-care crisis and has even said she would consider some form of public option in finding a solution, a heretical position among Republicans. It's earned her some fans in the White House, however, who appreciated her vote in favor of the stimulus plan earlier. “She is really in it for the policy," Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, told the Times. "When you think of an ideal senator, regardless of party or philosophy, Olympia Snowe really fits that mold."

Adam Goldstein, known as DJ AM, was found dead at 36 years old in his New York apartment on Friday, TMZ reports. The NYPD confirmed his death, after a source said he hadn't been heard from in several days. The Daily News reports that police discovered DJ AM on his stomach with a near-empty bag of crack stuck to his chest. A glass crack pipe and seven bottles of prescription pills like Xanax, were found at the scene, the Daily News reports. In 2008, Goldstein survived a plane crash with Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker. The four other passengers died. Goldstein battled drug addiction and obesity as a teen, and was set to star in a MTV show about interventions.

President Obama pledged during the campaign to not raise taxes on the middle class and the White House has insisted that it will remain the case despite rising deficits and new spending to finance. "The administration is very concerned about these [future] deficits, and getting those deficits under control is a top priority of the administration," budget director Peter Orszag told reporters this week. How they will do so is another story, however, and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has avoided giving a clear answer to questions about potential tax increases. Budget analysts say that options are limited. "If you rule out inflating our way out of the problem and defaulting on the debt, there are two ways: Cut spending or raise taxes," William G. Gale, an expert on fiscal policy at the Brookings Institution, told The Washington Post. Gale added that cutting spending was extremely difficult in comparison, given large commitments to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, as well as defense spending.

Their wonderwall seems to be crumbling: Noel Gallagher, lead guitarist and songwriter for Oasis, called it quits Friday. "It's with some sadness and great relief to tell you that I quit Oasis tonight," Gallagher wrote on the British band's Web site. "People will write and say what they like, but I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer." Gallagher's brother, Liam, founded the band in 1991, and Noel joined shortly after—the brothers were its longest standing members, producing hits like “Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova.” The band was scheduled to perform Saturday in Konstanz, Germany, and Sunday in Milan, Italy, but both performances are canceled.

Are North Korea's recent charitable acts too good to be true? The historically unreasonable state on Saturday released four fishermen who had been held captive since July, when their boat drifted into the country's waters. "I am very pleased and it's beyond expression," the wife of the boat's captain told the Associated Press. This uncharacteristically generous act came on the heels of a joint announcement Friday that North and South Korea would continue to reunite families that have been divided—without mail, phone, or email exchanges—for more than 50 years, since the Korean War. And after weeks of improved relations on the continent. one North Korea expert told the Los Angeles Times that the moves signal a new diplomatic policy. "North Korea sees relations with South Korea in parallel with those with the United States," he said.

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) told a crowd at a town-hall meeting that the House will pass a bill by October requiring a "complete audit" of the Federal Reserve, with limiting its lending power in mind. Frank chairs the House Financial Services Committee and said he wants "to restrict the power of the Fed in a number of ways." Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) introduced the bill, which is supported by a majority of the House. Frank said he wants to curtail the Fed's lending power. "[Ron Paul] agrees that we don't want to have the audit appear as if it is influencing monetary policy, because that would be inflationary and Ron and I agree on that," Frank said. Politicizing monetary policy would destabilize the financial system, say proponents of an independent monetary policy, which include members of both parties. Frank said information about the Fed's audit will be made public, but at a delay, to avoid impacting the market.

At a private service for Senator Edward Kennedy, prominent politicians used his death as a rallying cry for health-care reform while also sharing personal memories of the senator. Senator John Kerry and Kennedy's nephew, Rep. Joe Kennedy, vowed to carry on Kennedy's fight. "Don't ever, ever, ever, ever give up," Joe Kennedy said to applause. The audience included a dozen U.S. senators, as well as the vice president and the entire Kennedy clan. Joe Biden remembered Kennedy’s support when Biden's wife and son were killed in a car crash in 1972. “He crept into my heart and before I knew it, he owned a piece of it,” Biden said. “He took on the role of being my older brother—I couldn’t understand why he was going out of his way for me.” Sen. Orrin Hatch remembered Kennedy donning an Elvis outfit for an office Christmas party. Sen. John McCain said he was "excellent company" and that "the place won't be the same without him." More than 50,000 mourners flocked to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library to pay their respects to Kennedy over the past two days. All living presidents except George H.W. Bush will attend Kennedy’s Boston funeral on Saturday.