Last week Maine became the fifth state in the country to legalize same-sex marriage. Maine's Democratic-controlled Senate voted 21-13 in support of the bill, which redefines marriage as the legal union of two people rather than between a man and a woman. Maine's Democratic-controlled House of Representatives voted 89-57. The House spent nearly three hours in what has been described as an emotionally-charged debate. One of the seven Republicans Representatives to vote in favor of the bill is Representative Pat Flood. He talk sabout how he wrestled with the issue and reached his decision.

Justice David Souter's retirement gives President Obama the chance to start reshaping the Supreme Court. Who's on Obama's short list? And what are the quialities that make someone a high-impact justice? Joining the Takeaway are Adam Liptak, Supreme Court correspondent for the New York Times and Dahlia Lithwick, senior legal correspondent for Slate . They discuss what role the new justice could play.

For more, read Dahlia Lithwick's and Hanna Rosin's article, An Unnatural Woman: The secret life of a Supreme Court short-lister and Adam Liptak's article, Souter’s Exit Opens Door for a More Influential Justice in the New York Times.

Get ready to start hearing about Rule IV. An arcane regulation among the rules of the Senate Judiciary Committee has emerged as the best, and probably only, hope for the GOP to block President Obama's Supreme Court nominee if they choose to try. How will they use their leverage? Takeaway Washington Correspondent Todd Zwillich explains Rule IV and why it could be even more powerful than the “nuclear option” of a filibuster.

When Senator Arlen Specter switched political parties last week, some Republicans saw his move as a huge blow to the party, while others simply said good riddance. The Senator's switch was the latest in a series of challenges for the Republican party. So what is a Republican loyalist to do? New Hampshire Republican Charlie Bass spent 12 years in Congress before losing his seat in 2006. He joins The Takeaway to talk about what Republicans need to do to re-build their party, their national support, and to maintain a broad appeal to the American public.

Senator Arlen Specter shocked the political scene yesterday when he announced that after 29 years as a Republican, he was switching teams. His move puts the Democrats in position to have an almost filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Today Arlen Specter was greeted with open arms by President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. The Takeaway's Washington Correspondent Todd Zwillich joins us with an update from the press conference.

Shell-shocked Republicans are still reeling after losing one of their own to the Democratic party. After years of being wooed, Sen. Arlen Specter decided it was time to cross the aisle. Senator Specter will be appearing at a press conference with President Obama and Vice President Biden in less than two hours. For more The Takeaway talks with our Washington Correspondent Todd Zwillich, and Laura Vecsey, Political Reporter for The Patriot-News in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Watch Senator Specter discuss his party switch in the video below.

It's special election day in New York State and some see this race as a barometer of how Americans regard President Obama's first few months in office. The special election is set to fill the seat left by Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand when she was nominated by Governor Paterson to fill Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's vacant seat in the U.S. Senate. While the 20th district in upstate New York is traditionally conservative, the race is tight enough to allow Congress watchers to speculate about what the outcome could mean for the President. Emily Cadei, political reporter for Congressional Quarterly, explains the significance of the race.

Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill have been a united party over the past few weeks, as they refused to help pass President Obama’s plan to stimulate the economy. Now that the stimulus bill has become law, despite the lack of Republican support, how are Republicans on the state level handling the stimulus money heading to their states? Joining us to talk about where he comes down on the plan is Minnesota's Republican Governor Tim Pawlenty. He joins us this morning from Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Click through for the transcript!

There are reports that Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius is about to be selected as the new Secretary of Health and Human Services in President Obama’s cabinet. She has a history of involvement in health care reform in Kansas. And, as a Democrat in a largely Republican state, she’s developed a reputation for bipartisanship. We’re joined by Steve Kraske at KCUR in Kansas City, a political columnist for the Kansas City Star and public affairs talk show host in KCUR in Kansas City, Missouri, who has followed Ms. Sebelius' political career. We are also joined by Time Magazine's Jay Newton-Small for some Washington perspective.

Who else is in President Obama's cabinet? Check out our handy guide!

The Obama administration is finding few Republican allies in Washington these days, despite having high hopes of reaching across the aisle to enlist Republican support for some early initiatives. Only three Republicans in the Senate voted for the passage of the economic stimulus bill last Friday and not one Republican in the House supported the bill. To make matters worse, Republican Senator Judd Gregg withdrew his nomination as Commerce Secretary because of disagreements with the new administration. Is this the end of the effort at bipartisanship? Julie Mason, White House correspondent for the Washington Examiner joins the Takeaway for a rundown of the issues.

Sen. Judd Gregg, a New Hampshire Republican who was asked to join President Obama's Cabinet as Commerce secretary, has declined the invitation. He announced his decision at a press conference yesterday, claiming it would be "difficult day in and day out to serve in this cabinet." We are joined by Charles Mahtesian, national political editor for Politico.com for more details on Gregg's decision.

For a look at who is in the president's Cabinet, check out our handy guide.

Judd Gregg's press conference on his decision to withdraw:

Senator Ben Nelson (D-Neb) has a long history of reaching across party lines to reach consensus on pressing issues in the Senate. His ability to bring together Republicans and Democrats to compromise on key policy has been instrumental to passing important legislation in the past. In the face of the partisan bickering over the stimulus, and the President's statement that he wants a bipartisan solution to the economic crisis, Senator Nelson finds himself in the center of the debate.

Despite President Obama's confidence that the stimulus bill will pass the Senate with bipartisan support, Senate Republicans aren't quite as confident. There are some provisions in the bill that they just aren't comfortable with and won't sign off on. Republican Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa joins us to talk about the GOP's take on the stimulus package.

For more on the partisan political debates over the stimulus package, watch the AP's report courtesy of Youtube:

After the dramatic appointments of replacement Senators in New York and Illinois, is the nation ready for another one? President Obama would like to nominate New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg, a Republican, as Secretary of Commerce. But, Sen. Gregg will only accept the nomination if the New Hampshire governor, a Democrat, will replace him with another Republican. It's party politics at its finest and Josh Rogers, a reporter at New Hampshire Public Radio, is here with all the details.

Click here for more on Obama's cabinet picks.

President Obama's $819 billion stimulus plan passed the House last night. Despite the new president’s calls for bipartisanship, all House Republicans and eleven Democrats opposed the bill. What does this mean for the future of bipartisanship and the bailout? We are joined by Nate Silver, founder of FiveThirtyEight.com, a blog that analyzes political data, who has been looking at which Congress members support the president’s bill and why. Greg Ip, U.S. Economics Editor at The Economist, also joins The Takeaway with an analysis of which parts of the bill are likely to have the most effect. Finally we speak with Republican Congressman Vernon Ehlers of Michigan’s 3rd District. Ehlers didn't vote for the bill because he didn't think it had projects to create the kind of jobs that would stimulate Michigan’s ailing economy.

Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives passed their version of the stimulus bill with a vote of 244 to 188. Despite President Obama’s calls for bipartisan support, not one Republican voted for the bill. Chris Hayes, Washington Editor of The Nation, joins The Takeaway to hash over the bill, the votes and exactly how the dollars are allotted.

The Republican National Committee begins its winter meeting today and by the end of the week they will have elected a new chairman. The race for the chairmanship has just started to heat up and there are no shortage of contenders for the job. Politico reporter Alex Burns joins us from Washington, D.C. for a look at the horse race. Or is that an elephant race?