When Neel Kashkari was tapped as the TARP inspector general, the 35-year-old Goldman Sachs alumnus was thrust under a spotlight so bright and hot that most people would have been reduced to ash. As the face of the $700 billion bailout, he instantly had 300 million enemies. His life was turned upside down, his high-school yearbook photos were published, he was battered to a bloody pulp in front of Congress (figuratively), and, oh yes, he had the economy to save. So it's little wonder that since his term ended, Kashkari has been in the woods of California with his wife, dieting and decompressing by immersing himself in the Kafkaesque task of building a backyard shed, which seems to have little purpose other than to be a vessel for memories of his trauma. What is a wonder is his decision to let Washington Post reporter Laura Blumenfeld into his life and basically spill his entire guts to her. As a public-relations move, (Kashkari has said he has political aspirations, though it seems he doesn't anymore) this was either the worst idea ever, the most brilliant idea ever, or both.

Sarah Palin was one of the guests at the annual Gridiron dinner for D.C. journalists, and while the dinner is usually a strictly off-the-record affair, this year organizers made an exception. Politico reports that the Maverick joked that being there was like being in front of a death panel, and made frequent references to her book and book tour, comparing it to the McCain/Palin campaign: "The view is so much better inside the bus than under the bus." Then she sang a parody of "The 12 Days of Christmas" about Rush Limbaugh. She's definitely getting slightly better joke writers.

Palin Cracks Wise at Gridiron Dinner [Politico]

The New York Times reports on the growing controversy surrounding the verdict in the Amanda Knox trial. A Senator is now getting involved:

"Senator Maria Cantwell, Democrat of Washington, said, “I have serious questions about the Italian justice system and whether anti-Americanism tainted this trial.” She added, “The prosecution did not present enough evidence for an impartial jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Ms. Knox was guilty.”

Verdict in Italy, but American's Case Isn't Over [NYT]

Wow: After a long, sensational trial, a jury in Perugia, Italy, has found American exchange student Amanda Knox guilty of stabbing her British roommate, Meredith Kercher, to death two years ago, despite a startling lack of physical evidence. Her Italian boyfriend, who was accused of helping her slash her roommate's throat during a "sex game gone wrong," has already been convicted and is serving 25 years in prison. Knox, now 22, has been sentenced to 26 years in prison. Together, the pair will have to pay the family of Meredith Kercher $7 million, in part to ensure that this follows them for the rest of their lives.

Update: Apparently, the jury was "captivated" by an animated movie made by the prosecution that laid out what supposedly happened. A CNN reporter described the "reenactment" (imagineactment?) as being of "Lara Croft"–level quality.

Related: Perugia's Prime Suspect [VF]

“The entire U.S. financial system and all the major firms in the country, and even small banks across the country, were at that moment at the middle of a classic run, a classic bank run,” the Treasury secretary told Bloomberg today, in response to a question about Goldman Sachs's repeated insistence that it would have survived without government intervention. “None of them would have survived a situation in which we had let that fire try to burn itself out."

Okay, you think. From the pitch of Tim's voice and the redness in his ears, this is obviously getting to be a very sore subject; perhaps now Goldman Sachs will take stock of its situation, its robust health, luck with the ladies and general awesomeness, kiss itself on each one of its toned biceps and let the little guy have this one by admitting defeat? Sorry, no: "We didn’t know what was going to happen and were very glad as a result of government intervention we didn’t have to find out," spokesman Lucas Van Praag responded.

Geithner Slams Bonuses, Says Banks Would Have Failed [Bloomberg]