It’s “extremely unlikely” that TARP funds will ever be repaid in full, according to the program’s inspector general, Neil Barofsky, and that may not even be the worst news he delivered on Friday. In an interview with the Huffington Post Investigative Fund, Barofsky says, “We may be in a far more dangerous place today than we were a year ago.” He says, “If you see what has happened since then, banks that were too big to fail are bigger than ever. … With government encouragement, some of the largest banks became larger and are more interconnected than ever.”

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Friday that his country's recently disclosed nuclear-fuel facility had, in fact, never been secret, as was reported, and that the International Atomic Energy Agency had free rein to inspect the plant all along. Earlier Friday, President Obama made a joint appearance with Western leaders to say Tehran had been building the nuclear facility for several years and that it should address international concerns that the purpose of the site was to make weapons. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Iran had two months to meet international demands or face sanctions. The Iranian leader fired back: "It's not a secret site... They wanted to set up a sort of media game, take the stage to sort of set up the upper hand. This is not nice." U.S. intelligence officials told the Los Angeles Times that they have known about the facility for years, and that it is "deep underground" inside a mountain and guarded by Iranian Revolutionary Guards. They say it is not intended for industrial purposes.

The White House acknowledged on Friday that the infamous prison at Guantanamo Bay may not shut down in January as President Obama promised, sources tell the Associated Press. Backlogs in reviewing detainee files and resolving legal and logistical problems in relocating the prisoners have made it unlikely the prison can shut down on schedule. The prison, which is a target of anti-U.S. criticism around the world, holds 225 detainees. Obama officials began reviewing files of each detainee to determine who can be tried and whether to do so in military or civilian courts. They have also tried to determine which prisoners can be released to other nations, and which should be held indefinitely due to the danger they pose. Information on the prisoners was scattered througout multiple agencies, slowing down the process, officials complained. Top Republicans and some Democrats in Congress have demanded the prison stay open for now for safety reasons, and have refused Obama the funds to close it.

Unexpected circumstances forced President Obama into making the major intelligence disclosure Friday morning that the U.S. has known for years about Iran’s secret nuclear facility, Politico reports. The president did not want to announce his suspicions about the facility before beginning talks with Iran next week, administration officials say, but his hand was forced when Iran admitted in a letter to a U.N. watchdog agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency, that it was building the site. The New York Times reports that the IAEA notified the president of the letter on Tuesday, when the White House quickly began meeting with G-20 leaders about how to handle the information. Obama made the announcement flanked by Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy, but many key officials on Iran were still in New York, unable to arrive for the hastily organized press conference, Politico reports. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the nuclear facility had never been secret, and called Obama’s decision to chastise Iran a “mistake.”

The alleged terror plot to bomb commuter trains in New York City was intended to go down on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, a U.S. prosecutor reported Friday. "The defendant was in the throes of making a bomb and attempting to perfect his formulation," prosecutor Tim Neff told a federal judge in Denver. The defendant, Najibullah Zazi, a 24-year-old Afghan immigrant, has been indicted on terror charges and faces a possible life sentence. Though he denies the allegations, he is likely to be transferred from Denver to New York. Prosecutors allege that Zazi had accomplices, trained with al Qaeda, and purchased “unusually large quantities” of hydrogen peroxide and nail-polish remover to construct bombs.

Madonna may have had kind words for Michael Jackson at the Video Music Awards, but Jacko apparently didn’t think too much of her. In a new book, The Michael Jackson Tapes, Jackson told author Rabbi Shmuley Boteach that Madonna was “in love with” and jealous of him. “We had nothing in common,” Jacko said. “She is not sexy at all.” In the book, Jackson also said he admired Hitler’s oratory skills, said Princess Di “was my type for sure,” and claimed Cindy Crawford flirted with him. Asked if he thinks he could have changed Hitler, Jackson said, “You have to help them, give them therapy, teach them that somewhere, something in their life went wrong.”

Five American troops were killed on Thursday in Southern Afghanistan, according to the Associated Press, as part of a battle with Taliban militants. The deaths occurred in three separate attacks, with four soldiers dying in the same small district of Zabul province—three were killed when an IED hit their truck, and a fourth was shot. The chief commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, is seeking up to 40,000 new troops to add to the 68,000 that will be in Afghanistan by the end of 2009, but the Obama administration is considering other plans.

After airing only two episodes, The CW has axed Ashton Kutcher's much-hyped drama The Beautiful Life, marking the fall season's first casualty. Production on the seventh episode was abruptly shut down Friday, reports The Live Feed. The show, which was similar in setting to popular reality show America's Next Top Model, received buzz for the medical problems of its star Mischa Barton. Wednesday's episode reached only 1 million viewers and received abysmal ratings in its adult demo. The CW will air re-runs of its revamp of Melrose Place in the show's place.

Susan Atkins, one of Charles Manson's followers convicted in the killing of actress Sharon Tate, died Thursday night following a battle with brain cancer. Atkins had initially been sentenced to death for the series of August 1969 murders, but the sentence was changed to life in prison in the 1970s when the Supreme Court outlawed capital punishment for a brief period. Charles Manson, along with three others convicted of the crime—Patricia Krenwinkel, Leslie Van Houten, and Charles "Tex" Watson—continue to serve life sentences. After the fact, Atkins said of the killing, "it was right then and I still believe it was right," but in recent years had become a devout Christian and spoke of her sins against "God and everything this country stands for." She was 61 years old and is survived by her husband, James Whitehouse, who had been serving as her attorney.

In 2010, the Democrats may have some trouble putting their money where their mouths are: Through July of 2009, Democratic campaign committees’ receipts have dropped compared with the same period for the previous two years. The vast majority of those declines can be traced to the flight of large donors, who are upset over Democratic attacks on and attempts to regulate the behavior of financial firms. The three national Republican committees, meanwhile, combined to bring in $1.7 million more than their Democratic counterparts in August.

Hollywood has finally made room for an iconic fashion doll and one of the original Masters of the Universe. The Independent reports that Mattel has signed Barbie to Universal Pictures in a multimillion-dollar deal that will produce a series of "family-friendly" live-action movies. Rights to He-Man have been sold to Sony in a similar deal. Don't expect to see Barbie on screen too soon, though. It will take several years to develop the first film. Producer Laurence Mark of Jerry Maguire and Julie & Julia fame will oversee the project. Writers should have plenty to work with, as over the years Barbie has developed 120 careers, including astronaut, vet, and cocktail waitress.

The 2008 campaign is so yesterday—even for onetime rivals John McCain and Mitt Romney. The Arizona senator is co-hosting a two-part fundraiser with Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) for Romney’s Free and Strong America PAC on Wednesday. Supporters can shell out $300 to attend a luncheon or $3,000 for a VIP reception with McCain, Kyl, and the former Massachusetts governor. Time will tell if this means McCain will be an early endorser of Romney in the 2012 Republican primary.

Leno's new prime-time show started with a bang but it's surviving on a wheeze. MarketWatch reports that the program has already lost roughly two-thirds of its viewers, plummeting from a high of 18 million. It's not looking good for the rest of NBC either. NBC News will face heightened competition as Diane Sawyer succeeds Charlie Gibson in ABC's evening broadcast, and disgusted critics panned NBC Sports' coverage of the new Cowboys Stadium. The Wall Street Journal observed that the network's dominance "continues to wane." Finally, parent General Electric has hit hard times on Wall Street, leading MarketWatch to speculate that "the key question is when—not if anymore—[CEO] Immelt will sell NBC."

After a summer of controversy surrounding her appointment to the Supreme Court, Judge Sonia Sotomayor is opening up on the days surrounding the nomination process behind the scenes. In an interview with C-Span, Sotomayor explains the heads-up she received from the White House and subsequent day spent waiting by the phone for an official notification. After she finally got the call from President Obama, the judge rushed to write her acceptance speech as a friend drove her to Washington, D.C. from New York, getting lost in Virginia along the way. Sotomayor also says the president had her promise to remain herself and stay connected to her community. Her response? "I said to him that those were two easy promises to make, because those two things I could not change."

Coming to a consensus isn’t easy for the world’s leaders. Though the G-20 agreed on Friday to end government subsidies for fossil-fuel use and production, The Wall Street Journal points out that the decision doesn’t include a deadline or specific targets to combat climate change. The flexibility is good for the short-term interests of each economy but not the long-term well-being of the nation. One of the key agreements: to put off decision-making until December, when an additional international meeting of the minds is set for Copenhagen.

Five new fossils from northeastern China were found which add weight to the idea that birds descended from dinosaurs. According to The Guardian, the fossils are older than previous discoveries, and date from 151 to 164 million years ago. The specimens all show feathers or feather-like structures, including one fossil that has four wings, lots of plumage, and feathered feet. The discoveries suggest that there may have been a four-wing transition stage between dinos and birds, and will shed light on the mechanics of flight in early birds. On Friday, Xu Xing, who worked on the discovery, will detail his findings at the annual meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontologists.

World leaders arriving in Pittsburgh Thursday for the G-20 meeting received a raucous, and at times violent, welcome. Many self-identified anarchists filled the streets surrounding the convention center; police fired canisters of pepper spray, smoke, and rubber bullets to subdue people attempting to march; and there were reports of at least 17 arrests. "We were barely even protesting," said one Pittsburgh man. "Then all of a sudden, they come up and tell us we're gathered illegally and start using force, start banging their shields, start telling us we're going to be arrested and tear gassed... We haven't broken any laws."

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was hospitalized after feeling sick after work Thursday night. Ginsburg, who is 76, fell ill after getting her intravenous treatment for iron deficiency, which is part of her ongoing treatment for pancreatic cancer. The Washington Post reports that Ginsburg felt better after being attended to by a physician for the court, but went to the Washington Hospital Center just to be safe. Ginsburg has kept a busy schedule throughout her cancer battle, and says she has no plans of retiring for years to come.

After a series of missteps, the White House is regrouping to meet its self-imposed deadline of closing Gitmo in four months. But officials are saying that it will be hard to meet that goal of shuttering the notorious military prison. To help the cause, the White House has bumped administration counsel Gregory B. Craig off the job and put another top adviser, Peter Rouse, in his place. The Obama folks are doing their best to try to preserve Craig's reputation through the shake-up. One official told the Washington Post: "Greg Craig is a hero."

Is Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi capable of sympathy for Americans who lost relatives in the Lockerbie bombing? After his long diatribe at the U.N., during which he called the Security Council a "terror council," Qaddafi said in an interview that he could "comprehend" the anger that the families of Lockerbie victims feel, noting that "we all feel the pain for such a tragedy,” according to the Wall Street Journal. During the interview, he strongly denied the idea that his government whipped up a hero's welcome for Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, the convicted bomber who returned home on compassionate release last month, and argued that al-Megrahi's release had come through proper legal channels. Between al-Megrahi's release, and the $2.7 billion his government paid to victim's families—amounting to about $10 million per family—the chapter is over for Col. Qaddafi. "It's come to an end, legally, politically, financially," he said, adding, "Thank Allah that this problem has been solved to the satisfaction of all parties." But some victims' families don't seem to agree. One woman who lost her brother in the bombing called him a "devil" and "murderer" who is not "capable of remorse."

Could Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Raytheon become casualties of the law of unintended consequences? A House bill meant to de-fund the nonprofit group ACORN in the wake of hidden-camera videos showing the group’s employees chatting criminally with a fake pimp and prostitute might have farther-reaching consequences than intended. Florida Rep. Alan Grayson, a Democrat, says that, yes, ACORN must be held to a high standard, but “there are bigger fish to fry.” The bill in question bans federal contracts with "any organization that has filed a fraudulent form with any federal or state regulatory agency." That, Grayson says, is “like a who's who of government contracting." KBR, for example, installed faulty wiring on military bases that led to a Green Beret’s death, ruled by the Army a “negligent homicide.”

Al Gore—former vice president, Oscar-winner, Nobel laureate, and self-proclaimed inventor of the Internet—is jumping into the auto industry. The Wall Street Journal reports that a “tiny” Gore-financed car company specializing in hybrid luxury vehicles just got a $529 million loan from the U.S. government. Produced by a pair of Californian companies, the Karma will be a four-door plug-in electric hybrid featuring a lithium-ion battery slated to achieve 100 MPG fuel efficiency. Its audience, says car designer Henrik Fisker, is people like Gore: wealthy, environmentally enlightened drivers looking to ditch the Mercedes in favor of an environmentally P.C. ride. Naturally, Karma—and its hefty federal loan—already has critics. Citizens Against Government Waste notes, “This is not for average Americans,” a claim Fisker does not deny. The goal, he says, is to imitate the flat-screen television market: Start with something expensive and breathtaking, then work the price down.

With violent clashes taken place on the streets of Pittsburgh, the leaders of the world's 20 biggest economies meet Friday poised to crack down on banker pay and coordinate economic policies. President Obama is meeting with other G-20 leaders to discuss forcing banks to tie compensation to risk and make tighter capital requirements. “Europeans are horrified by banks, some reliant on taxpayers’ money, once again paying exorbitant bonuses,” the president of the European Commission said.

Iran has kept an underground nuclear fuel facility a secret for years, President Obama and allies from Britain and France announced Friday, hoping to add urgency to the ongoing diplomatic confrontation. The president demanded that the International Atomic Energy Agency be allowed to conduct an immediate inspection of the facility where they say production is taking place. The U.S. has been tracking the covert project for years, but Obama decided to make findings public after Iran recently discovered Western intelligence agencies had breached the secrecy surrounding the project, The New York Times reports. U.S. officials said that while the plant is not up and running it could be in operation next year. “They have cheated three times,” one administration official told The Times. “And they have now been caught three times.”

Surreal. With a ring at the door and a gun pointed at a head, thieves stole a painting Thursday from the home of René Magritte. The Belgian artist died in 1967. But the 1948 portrait he painted of his wife is valued at $4.4 million and was hanging in a house he used to live in that is now an appointment-only museum. The two assailants did not wear masks and didn't injure anyone inside the Brussels home. "This painting, which is highly recognizable, is very unlikely to be attempted to be sold on the open market," an art loss expert told The Guardian.

There's good news and bad news for the President in the latest New York Times/CBS News poll. Barack Obama has retained a job approval rating of 56 percent but that's down from earlier in the year. At the same time, the public seems unconvinced by Obama's recent effort to rally support for his health-care plan. According to the survey, the president still has a ways to go to gain the public's confidence in his handling of the Afghanistan war. At this time in their first term, Ronald Reagan had a 53 percent job approval rating while Bill Clinton was down at 43 percent.

Everyone's a cable-television critic, including the president. As Politico points out, although Obama claims not to watch much television, he sure enjoys disparaging it. Obama told NBC's Brian Williams that the standard talk show format "feels like WWF wrestling" because "everybody's got their role to play." He's repeatedly talked about how easy it is to get caught up in the "chatter of cable television." The phrase is meant to stand in for coverage that Obama finds simplistic and un-nuanced. Evidently, his staff regularly briefs him on cable news' topic du jour. According to press secretary Robert Gibbs, Obama's frustration with cable networks isn't one of political slant, it's that they "want to boil something down like Afghanistan to more troops or no more troops," when really the possible decisions are much more complex.

The U.S. and China better get ready for some serious scrutiny. An agreement that is likely to be signed by leaders of the G-20 nations on Friday would require members to submit their economic policies to the group for review, with the International Monetary Fund providing technical help, The Wall Street Journal reports. The reviews would focus on whether policies promoted "strong and balanced" growth of the world economy. However, the deal doesn't include penalties for noncompliance, such as sanctions. In addition to the new economic deal, the G-20 is expected to announce that it is supplanting the Group of Eight as the permanent prevailing body for international economic cooperation in an initiative championed by Obama and lauded by large developing countries such as Brazil, China, and India, who had been denied admission to the G-8.

In the wake of the disclosure of Iran's secret nuclear facility, President Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown opened the G-20 economic summit Friday with some tough talk aimed at Tehran. "Iran is breaking rules that all nations must follow," Obama said, while Brown accused Iran of "serial deception," and Sarkozy said Iran must comply by December or face international sanctions. "Everything, everything must be put on the table now," Sarkozy said. The U.S. has been tracking the covert project for years, but Obama reportedly decided to make findings public after Iran recently discovered Western intelligence agencies had breached the secrecy surrounding the project. At the summit Friday morning, Obama called the newly revealed uranium enrichment facility "inconsistent with a peaceful [nuclear] program" and asked Iran to "take concrete steps" to show its willingness to comply with its international obligations. Iran's president remained defiant. "This does not mean we must inform Mr. Obama's administration of every facility that we have," he said.

The drinking water at thousands of the nation's public schools contains unsafe levels of lead, pesticides, and other toxins, according to an Associated Press investigation. About 2,250 schools were found to have safety violations. Problems were found in both public and private schools, located in both the city and country. Schools with wells were the most likely to have problems—those with their own water supply had a one in five chance of violating the Safe Drinking Water Act in the past 10 years. "In California's Farm Belt, wells at some schools are so tainted with pesticides that students have taken to stuffing their backpacks with bottled water for fear of getting sick from the drinking fountain," the AP reports. Some of the toxins found can cause problems in major organs or retard kids' learning abilities.