Hubdub’s Hot Predictions this week, as decided by Hubdub users and staff, are selected based on their newsworthiness for the week. These stories are bound to be big news this week - and we have forecasts on how they’re likely to turn out.

Politics

It may come as a surprise to many but arch rival of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton is the front runner for Secretary of State. After all that confrontation on the campaign trail, by over 55% Hubdubbers forecast Hillary will be named the new Secretary of State.

Will Hillary Clinton be Secretary of State?

Here’s some good news! Apparently there’s a stray nuclear bomb somewhere in the world. No one is quite sure where it is, although a Hubdubber said he sold it on Ebay awhile back… If you think you have it, check the serial number it’s 78252.

Has Anyone Seen the Stray H-Bomb?

Business

With the financial markets in crisis and the economic slowdown finally staring to effect everyone, the question children are asking is will I still get Christmas presents? Unfortunately for the kiddies Hubdub forecasts holiday retail sales will fall by more than 1% this year, meaning people will buy less presents.

Will U.S. holiday retail sales fall by 1 percent or less this year?

Sports

The Titans are still undefeated this season, and from our Hubdub forecast it seems the Jets will have less than a 40% chance of ending the Titan winning spree this week.

NFL - Which opponent will be the first to defeat the Tennessee Titans in 2008?

Entertainment

For those out there who don’t care about the missing nuclear bomb or important stuff like that you can always watch Dancing with the Stars. This week we’re forecasting who will win the prized mirror ball trophy. Brooke Burke seems is the front runner with Hubdub giving her a 60% chance of winning the award.

DWTS-Who will win the mirror ball trophy this year on Dancing with the Stars?

Popularity: 18% [?]

The election might be over, but for the politics geeks out there the fun is nowhere near done! Everyone seems to be talking about who’ll be in Obama’s cabinet, but if you’re looking for the real numbers breakdown based on the wisdom of the crowds, look no further. We’ve already correctly predicted Rahm Emanuel as Obama’s Chief of Staff!

Secretary of State: Initially many suspected John Kerry, in recent days though his stock dropped significantly (less than 20% chance now), even being overtaken by Bill Richardson at one point. Hubdub forecasts though that Obama won’t pick either Richardson or Kerry instead he’ll look for someone else, not currently known.

Who will be Obama’s Secretary of State?

Secretary of Defense: Along with others, Hubdubbers see Robert Gates, the current SecDef to be continuing his role after Bush leaves. Gate’s price is over 50% which is a good indicator, and his closest competitor is Chuck Hagel at just 16%.

Who will be President Obama’s Secretary of Defense?

Attorney General: Janet Napolitano is the front runner for Attorney General. Some rumors from the beltway even point to Napolitano being quite happy with the possibility.

Who will be President Obama’s Attorney General?

Energy Secretary: For all the Schwarzenegger fans out there I’m sorry to say, but it’s unlikely we’ll get Arnie in the cabinet to ‘terminate’ global warming. However I’ll admit it’d be awesome!

Will Arnold Schwarzenegger be President Obama’s Energy Secretary?

Treasury Secretary: Although suggestions of either Paulson staying on or Obama adviser, friend and billionaire Warren Bufftet taking Paulson’s place were intriguing, Hubdub is forecasting Federal Reserve Bank of New York President Timothy Geithner will take the spot.

Who will be the selection of a new Treasury secretary under President Obama?

Other Notable Picks According to Hubdub Markets:

• Al Gore is unlikely to be included in a formal role in the Obama administration.
• Gregory Craig has over a 50% chance of being Obama’s National Security Adviser.
• The new Obama cabinet will only have two or three Republicans in it
• Neither Colin Powell or Linda Darling-Hammond are likely candidates for Secretary of Education.

To get the most up to date forecasts on likely picks for Obama’s cabinet check out our new RSS Feeds here.

Popularity: 15% [?]