Bush's Man From Humble
Is Alberto Gonzales, a self-made Hispanic lawman, a kinder, gentler version of John Ashcroft? The Democrats aim to find out

Who Might Be Nominated? (Nation/The Supreme Court)
Bush may get to fill as many as three Supreme Court openings, remaking the court for a generation. Democrats have become experts at blocking nominees they oppose, but they can't stop them all

Herding the Democrats
A Westerner with a tough skin and quiet savvy will take on Bush in the Senate. What fights will he pick?


Taking The Plunge
On the way to his vision of an "ownership society," President Bush picks a big fight over Social Security

Why Canada Won't Be Our Pharmacy
Importing cheaper drugs from up north isn't as simple as it seems


Meltdown! (Environment)
The Arctic is warming up even faster than scientists feared. That could spell doom for the polar bear


Bordering On Nukes?
New accounts from al-Qaeda to attack the U.S. with weapons of mass destruction

Letters (Letters)

The Values Gap (Notebook/In the Arena)

20 Years Ago in Time

People
Sitting down with William H. Macy; celebrity lawsuits and more

A New Don For The Dems?

Aftermath Of A Murder

Is It the End of the World as This Author Knows It?

Milestones

Numbers

Red States Weigh In As The Court Goes To Pot

Sales By Cinema

The Folklore of Election '04

Verbatim

What's a Dejected Democrat to Do?
Since Nov. 2, countless Kerry supporters have been flocking to the Internet in search of a postelection pick-me-up. Here are some of the imaginative ways they are coping with sorrow and anger online

10 Questions For Whoopi Goldberg

The Eternal Agitator (World/Yasser Arafat 1929-2004)
He shook the world by demanding justice for the Palestinians. But Arafat's defiance ruined his chances to win them independence

Who Will Lead Them Now? (World/Yasser Arafat: 1929-2004)
Arafat's death raises hopes for a new push for peace. But much depends on who takes charge and how the U.S. responds

Where's Arafat's Money? (World/Yasser Arafat*1929-2004)

An Icon's Journey (World/Yasser Arafat 1929-2004)


How to Save a Troubled Kid? (Society/Education)
Tough-love academies march on, despite criticism. TIME looks inside one school's techniques


Mysterious Ways (Arts/Music)
Making records has always been misery for U2. But on 'How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb,' they rediscovered the secret: fusion

An Offer You Can Refuse (Arts/Books)
A new novel tries to continue The Godfather saga

On Her Time (Arts/Books)
Marilynne Robinson's second novel — finally

The Gorgeous Wreck (Arts/Books)
A superb biography looks at the exalted art and difficult life of the painter Willem de Kooning

All Aboard the Big Train (Arts/Movies)
Tom Hanks doesn't turn Polar Express into much of a thrill ride. For that you need 3-D goggles

Sex and the '50s Guy (Arts/Movies)
Kinsey turns the story of America's first bedroom statistician into a comedy of midcentury manners

Still Plump. Still Pleasing (Arts/Movies)
That scrappy heroine Bridget Jones has more comically charming and romantic misadventures

Getting Down Deep into It (Arts/Music)
Jazz pianist Bill Charlap is breaking through as a nonpareil interpreter of American pop classics

Scorn Is the Best Medicine (Arts/Television)
And it makes for good TV, as proved by Fox's House


Are Drugs Color Blind? (Your Time/Health)

Support Hose For A Broken Heart (Your Time/Health)

The New Family Tree (Your Time/Health)
The holidays are a perfect time to gather your family's medical history

To E or not to E (Your Time/Health)

Art Of The Close Shave (Your Time/Lifestyle)

Crazy For Keepsakes (Your Time/Lifestyle)
An album for couples is the latest title in the growing scrapbooking market

Going Postal (Your Time/Lifestyle)

New-Look Denim (Your Time/Lifestyle)

Ballad of Big Nothing (Your Time/Tech)
The first years of Seinfeld, masterpiece of minutiae, finally come to DVD

Living For The City (Your Time/Tech)

Uncertain Sailing For Microsoft (Your Time/Tech)


Power Play (TIME Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business/Russia)
The Kremlin clampdown on Yukos hasn't stopped the dealmaking frenzy

Quest for Crude (TIME Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business/China)
The Middle Kingdom can't find enough oil to meet booming domestic demand — and the world is paying at the pump

Alternative Paths to Power (TIME Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business/China)
China's energy crunch

Libya's New Face (TIME Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business/Libya)
Gaddafi's son is opening his isolated country to business — and Big Oil is looking for deals

People to Watch in International Business (TIME Bonus Section December 2004: Global Business/World Beaters)