Good morning and welcome to the Daily Read for Friday, as we wind down from the high-voltage presidential campaign. See something we missed? Drop us a line or post your suggested stories in the comments below.

Emanuel's Role at Freddie Mac » President-elect Barack Obama's newly appointed chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, served on the board of directors of the federal mortgage firm Freddie Mac at a time when scandal was brewing at the troubled agency and the board failed to spot "red flags," according to government reports. — ABC News

Not Guilty Pleas in Obama Plot » Two men loosely affiliated with the white supremacy movement pleaded not guilty yesterday to conspiracy and firearms charges in what authorities describe as a plot to assassinate President-elect Barack Obama. — Washington Post

Post-Campaign Complaints » At least two groups have filed IRS complaints related to the presidential election. Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AU) filed a complaint against the General Baptist State Convention of North Carolina for hosting Michelle Obama, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) filed a complaint against the Clarion Fund, a nonprofit organization that distributed an anti-Muslim film to 28 million households in swing states. — OMB Watch

First Gitmo Habeas Corpus Hearing » After years of legal clashes over whether detainees have the right to contest their detention in court, a federal judge yesterday opened the first hearing into the government's justification for holding suspects at Guantanamo Bay. — New York Times

Report: Chinese Hack White House Network » Chinese hackers have penetrated the White House computer network on multiple occasions, and obtained e-mails between government officials, according to a senior U.S. official. — Financial Times

Taxpayers May Pay Legal Bills for Mortgage Execs » When the government took over mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, taxpayers inherited more than just bad debts. They're also potentially on the hook for tens of millions of dollars in legal fees for the executives at the center of the housing market's collapse. — AP

Signs of Putin's Return? » Russian President Dmitri A. Medvedev's state of the nation address went on for 85 minutes and contained more than 8,000 words, but the section that prompted the most chatter yesterday was a single sentence that proposed lengthening the Russian president's term from four to six years. — New York Times

Mexico Calls Crash an Accident » Mexican officials say they believe an airplane crash that killed two of the country's top security officials was an accident, not an attack, but they promised a full probe and brought in U.S. and British investigators to help. — Wall Street Journal

Bolivia Accuses U.S. of Backing Drug Trade » Bolivian leader Evo Morales is accusing the U.S. government of encouraging drug-trafficking as he explained his decision to banish the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from the country. — AFP