The Obama Messiah Watch  —  INTRODUCING A PERIODIC FEATURE CONSIDERING EVIDENCE THAT OBAMA IS THE SON OF GOD.  —  Is Barak Obama—junior U.S. senator from Illinois, best-selling author, Harvard Law Review editor, Men's Vogue cover model, and "exploratory" presidential candidate …

Senators Assert Right to Block Bush on Iraq  —  Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee began laying the constitutional groundwork today for an effort to block President Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq and place new limits on the conduct of the war there, perhaps forcing a withdrawal of American forces from Iraq.

Beyond Baghdad  —  Since President Bush announced that he would send more American troops to Iraq, the debate on Iraq policy has reached new levels of stridency.  Opponents of the war have rallied against what they see as an unjustified escalation, while the administration has dismissed opposition as defeatism.

Libby Live: Judy One  —  Ground rules: not a court reporter.  Limit refreshes, but not refreshments.  Shameless commerce: buy this.  —  Fitz in his seersucker-esque taking a drink of water, looking through his notes.  —  Here she comes.  White shirt, big lapels.  No glasses.

Lara Logan & al Qaeda: What's the 411, CBS?  —  First, read this heart-rending appeal from Lara Logan complaining about CBS News refusing to air one of her Haifa Street reports, which highlighted a masked "Haifa Street resident" who "blamed the fighting on the U.S. Here's a screen shot of her source:

Fleischer Handles Questioning in the Usual Fashion  —  It's been almost four years since Ari Fleischer stepped down from the podium, but he has lost nothing off the old curveball.  —  Questioning the former White House press secretary in the Scooter Libby trial yesterday …

U.S. missile defense maturing, latest test a success  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Within a year, the U.S. missile defense system should be able to guard against enemy attacks, while testing new technologies, the deputy director of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency said on Monday.

Senate clears way for minimum wage vote  —  WASHINGTON — The Senate cleared the way for an increase in the minimum wage Tuesday, but only with business tax breaks that House Democrats want removed.  —  Final Senate passage of the legislation is expected later this week …

Democrats unveil massive spending bill  —  WASHINGTON - Democrats have unveiled a massive spending bill combining the budgets of 13 Cabinet agencies with increases in aid for lower-income college students, while cutting President Bush's funding requests for foreign aid and closing military bases.

FAQ - John Edwards' New House!  —  1) Why should I care about John Edwards' new house?  —  Well, it's quite a house.  28,000 square feet of magnificent splendor located in one of North Carolina's most fashionable counties.  This isn't a McMansion we're talking about here.  This is the real deal - A Mansion!

Is Nick Cohen right about the left?  His critics reply  —  Last week, we printed an extract from Nick Cohen's provocative new book, What's Left?, a searing account of how the British liberal-left has lost its way and, in the process, turned a blind eye to Islamic fascism.

10 years to save the planet  —  Global Cool ... Pearl Harbor star Josh Hartnett  —  A NEW worldwide movement backed by celebrities, musicians, politicians and business leaders is aiming to reverse the effects of global warming over the next decade.  —  Global Cool launched in London …

Webb to Secretary Rice: Ahem  —  A couple weeks ago, Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) asked Secretary Condoleeza Rice if the administration thought President Bush had the power to take military action against Iran without permission from Congress.  —  She deferred an answer, saying …

How Mitt Romney Avoided Campaign-Finance Rules  —  Federal law limits how much money individuals can give to presidential candidates — $2,300 per election.  But what about Compuware Inc. founder Peter Karmanos?  Last year, he gave $250,000 to presidential aspirant and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

GAZE IN THE MILITARY  —  MCCAIN-CLINTON LOVE-IN AT BASE  —  WASHINGTON - Looks like things are getting serious in the race for the White House - seriously lovey-dovey, that is.  —  Judging from this photo, the spirit of bipartisan cooperation appeared to be alive and well yesterday between …

Hillary Clinton and the Politics of Resenting History  —  When Abraham Lincoln decided to run for a second term in the midst of the Civil War, he used a homespun analogy that nearly everybody could relate to: "You don't swap horses in the middle of a stream."  In 1864, after all, people still rode horses to go places.

Soldier's Death Strengthens Senators' Antiwar Resolve  —  Kerry, Dodd Demand Stronger Challenge to Bush  —  Just before Christmas, an Army captain named Brian Freeman cornered Sens. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) and John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) at a Baghdad helicopter landing zone.

GOP Right Sees Lemons in White House Race  —  Contemplating the current field of Republican presidential candidates, Rush Limbaugh sounded like a man with malaise.  —  "To be honest with you, there's nobody out there that revs me up," he confessed to his audience of several million conservative sympathizers …