Sources: GOP lawmakers tried to influence federal investigation  —  WASHINGTON - Sen. Pete Domenici and Rep. Heather Wilson of New Mexico pressured the U.S. attorney in their state to speed up indictments in a federal corruption investigation that involved at least one former Democratic state senator …

Pressed by U.S., Pakistan Seizes a Taliban Chief  —  The former Taliban defense minister was arrested in Pakistan on Monday, the day of Vice President Dick Cheney's visit, two government officials said Thursday.  He is the most important Taliban member to be captured since the American-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

Profiles In Political Courage?  —  It's not often I disagree with my friend John Podhoretz at The Corner, but today's post on John McCain and CPAC struck me as rather odd.  In response to a post by Kathryn Jean Lopez that scolded McCain for skipping both NRI and CPAC, John said that McCain was right to stay away:

New Bush, Iraq Poll Numbers  —  In the months since the Congressional elections, President Bush has lost substantial support among members of his own party, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll.  —  Mr. Bush's approval rating dropped 13 percentage points since last fall among Republicans …

Reading Hillary Rodham's hidden thesis  —  Clinton White House asked Wellesley College to close off access  —  Hillary Rodham, in a 1965 freshman photo when she was president of Wellesley College's Young Republicans, with the cover page of her senior thesis from 1969 on radical organizer Saul D. Alinsky.

Poll Shows Majority Back Health Care for All  —  A majority of Americans say the federal government should guarantee health insurance to every American, especially children, and are willing to pay higher taxes to do it, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll.

Oh George, what will we do when you're gone?  —  Our columnist on an easy target for America-bashers  —  Somewhere, deep down, tucked away underneath their loathing for George Bush, in a secret place where the lights of smart dinner-party conversation and clever debating-society repartee never shine …

Music Of the Spheres  —  You might not have noticed, but we broke another U.S. space record last month when astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria logged his 67th hour of spacewalking.  If you consider that the equivalent of the Guinness record for pogo-stick bouncing (23.11 miles in 12 hours and 27 minutes) …

Shortages Threaten Guard's Capability  —  Nearly 90 percent of Army National Guard units in the United States are rated "not ready" — largely as a result of shortfalls in billions of dollars' worth of equipment — jeopardizing their capability to respond to crises at home and abroad …

20 dead as tornadoes hit Ga., Ala., Mo.  —  ENTERPRISE, Ala. - A violent storm system that ripped apart an Alabama high school as students hunkered inside later tore through Georgia, hitting a hospital and raising the death toll to at least 20 across the Midwest and Southeast.

At Site of '65 March, an '08 Collision  —  Sunday's Selma Event to Be a Stage for Obama — and Clinton(s)  —  Bill Clinton will join Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton at a commemoration of the 1965 civil rights march in Selma, Ala., on Sunday, bringing his star power and popularity among African Americans …

A Suddenly Convenient Truth  —  We would like to believe that the Bush administration has finally figured out how dangerous and counterproductive it is to hype intelligence — and that that's why officials are admitting they're not sure North Korea ever got very far with a secret uranium-based nuclear program.

Best of the Web  —  Today's Video on WSJ.com: Inside the Editorial Page—Paul Gigot & Co. discuss Al Gore's energy gluttony and Vice President Cheney's trip to Pakistan.  —  The Color of Money  —  Tennessee blogger Bill Hobbs picks up the story of Al Gore's voracious household energy use, which we noted Tuesday:

Rightosphere Temperature Check: Polling Right-Of-Center Bloggers On Key Issues (1st Quarter, 2007)  —  Right Wing News emailed more than 240 right-of-center bloggers and asked them to answer 8 questions.  The following 63 blogs responded,  —  Aaron's CC, The Absurd Report, David All Group …

Santorum Says Anyone But McCain  —  Former Sen. Rick Santorum has drawn at least one conclusion about the Republican presidential primary field: Anybody but John McCain.  —  The Pennsylvania Republican, who signed a contract Thursday as a Fox News contributor, said he has spoken with every GOP candidate …

Walter Reed General Relieved of Command  —  The Army today relieved the commander of Walter Reed Army Medical Center, saying it had "lost trust and confidence" in his leadership in the wake of a scandal over outpatient treatment of wounded veterans at the Washington, D.C., hospital complex.