Journalist Bette Dam describes the attack on a luxury hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan, by Taliban gunmen and suicide bombers.

CLICK HERE to read a column Dam filed Wednesday afternoon (June 29) on The Guardian website.

"In The Arena" host Eliot Spitzer grills GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain for specifics about his economic plan. FULL POST

Saiz Ahmed is an American citizen who was in Kabul's Hotel Inter-Continental when it was attacked Tuesday by the Taliban.

James Rubin and Patricia DeGennaro say an attack on a Kabul luxury hotel may complicate negotiations with the Taliban.

Journalist Erin Cunningham says a "fairly intense" artillery and gun battle at a luxury hotel in Kabul lasted 5 hours.

Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) - Taliban gunmen and suicide bombers attacked Kabul's Hotel Inter-Continental in a carefully orchestrated attack that began Tuesday night and continued into Wednesday.

About four hours after the attack began, International Security Assistance Force helicopters fired at insurgents on the roof, killing as many as three of the gunmen, ISAF spokesman Maj. Tim James told CNN.  FULL POST

Today’s Number of the Day is -0.1 percent.

In real dollars-meaning adjusted for inflation—that’s how much consumer spending dropped in the month of May.

Not good news for the economy.

With 70 percent of GDP driven by consumer spending, it’s going to be hard to see the economy growing at any meaningful number, with consumer spending flat to slightly negative.

Since personal income went up a little bit last month—savings must be increasing a bit—which means consumers are paying down debt—or “deleveraging” as economists would call it—which is a good thing long-term.

But it is harder every day to see where the engine is going to come from to get business hiring again. If consumers aren’t spending, and the government’s fiscal policy has run out of steam, and interest rates are already at a historic low, what is left to get us firing on all cylinders again?

That is the policy problem nobody has really been able to answer.

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Editor’s note: GOP Presidential candidate Herman Cain is the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza - (“A Pizza You Can’t Refuse.”)  See his economic answers In The Arena at 8 pm ET Tuesday.) FULL POST

Answering today's five OFF-SET questions is Stephen K. Bannon, writer and director of the new film, "The Undefeated," which chronicles former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s rise from obscurity to national prominence.

Bannon's films include “Generation Zero,” "Fire from the Heartland: The Awakening of the Conservative Woman," "In the Face of Evil: Reagan's War in Word and Deed," and “Battle for America,” among others. Bannon spent 15 years in media investment banking and film financing. A former Goldman Sachs banker, he formed his own firm and sold it in 1998. From 1976 to 1983, Bannon served as a “surface warfare officer” in the U.S. Navy.

Gov. Palin and her husband Todd are scheduled to attend the premiere of the film on Tuesday, June 28, 2011 at the Pella Opera House in Pella, Iowa, to be followed by a traditional Iowa cookout. The movie will then be shown at AMC Theaters in 10 cities beginning the week of July 15.

Did you make this film for people who already support Sarah Palin, or for those who haven't formed an opinion yet?

No, I made this film for everybody. I specifically made this film for those who might have formed a negative impression of Governor Palin because of the mainstream media’s portrayal of her and for those who had not formed an impression.

The National Review called the film “the introduction America never got to Palin in the hot political days of late August 2008.”

What I wanted to do is to introduce Sarah Palin through her through her actions and her accomplishments, because as a filmmaker it seemed to me that, while she is one of the most “media-drenched” people in the world, the real story of her record and her accomplishments has been hiding in plain sight. So I specifically did not make this for “Palinistas.” FULL POST

ONLY ON THE BLOG: Answering today's OFF-SET questions is Capt. Tammy Sparkes, Executive Officer, Office of the Chief of Staff, Nevada Army National Guard.

Tammy and her husband, Dana, own the Empire Store in what used to be Empire, Nevada-around 100 miles north of Reno–the last company town in America that closed officially on June 20. No more gypsum mining. No more Zip Code. No more town.

The United States Gypsum Corporation built the town in 1948 for its workers and at one point, some 700 people lived and worked in the town. A sign at the gas station said, "Welcome to Nowhere." What was life like in Empire during better days?

I lived there during my teenage years and it was a very tight-knit community and ALL were considered family. You always felt completely safe and relaxed.  The rat race that most Americans live in does not exist there. 

The employees worked normal shifts got off work and went home and relaxed.  There isn't any shopping, movies, restaurant choices, or need to spend hours running errands. But what it did have was thousands of acres of history, fishing, hunting, quadding, camping and endless room to roam and explore. 

There was a pool, golf course, community center, tennis courts and countless other recreation. 

What's quadding?

Sorry, ATV riding. All-terrain vehicles. FULL POST

GREEKS PROTEST CUTS – Greek police fired tear gas in Athens to disperse stone-throwing demonstrators Tuesday, as thousands marched to protest proposed austerity measures on the first day of a two-day strike. The protesters are rallying outside the Greek Parliament building in the center of the Greek capital, where lawmakers are set to vote Wednesday on a tough five-year package of tax increases and spending cuts.

PAWLENTY TO ACCUSE OBAMA OF FAILING IN MIDEAST - In what his campaign is billing as a major foreign policy address Tuesday in New York, Republican presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty will accuse the Obama administration of dithering on Iran and failing to pursue American interests during the so-called "Arab Spring." FULL POST