Obama best choice for Democrats  —  Or do they prefer a re-run of 'It came from Little Rock'?  —  As state Democrats prepare to hold their Saturday caucuses, cynical Republicans might well encourage them to choose Sen. Hillary Clinton, figuring her high “negatives” — the unusual number …

ON DEADLINE: Mitt Won, Authenticity Lost  —  WASHINGTON - Mitt Romney's victory in Michigan was a defeat for authenticity in politics.  —  The former Massachusetts governor pandered to voters, distorted his opponents' record and continued to show why he's the most malleable — and least credible — major presidential candidate.

The Democratic Debate in Las Vegas  —  The following is a transcript of the Democratic debate in Las Vegas, as provided by the Federal News Service.  —  DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES DEBATE PARTICIPANTS:  —  FORMER SENATOR JOHN EDWARDS (D-NC) SENATOR BARACK OBAMA (D-IL)  —  MODERATORS:

“The Diebold Effect”: Hillary's Votes Higher From Diebold Machines Even Controlling for Demographics (education, income, population, etc)  —  UPDATES 1, 2, 3 (But the Diebold effect still remains...)  —  In contrast to exit pre-election polls, the final vote tally from the NH democratic primary shows …

Bush Asks Saudi King to Open Oil Spigots  —  Makes Personal Appeal After Public Rejection  —  President Bush dons a traditional Arab fur robe as he accompanies Saudi King Abdullah before his departure today.  (Saudi Press Agency/Reuters)  —  One hour after his plea for more Saudi oil …

Station Chief Made Appeal To Destroy CIA Tapes  —  Lawyer Says Top Official Had Implicit Approval  —  In late 2005, the retiring CIA station chief in Bangkok sent a classified cable to his superiors in Langley asking if he could destroy videotapes recorded at a secret CIA prison in Thailand …

Who Wrote Ron Paul's Newsletters?  —  Libertarian movement veterans, and a Paul campaign staffer, say it was “paleolibertarian” strategist Lew Rockwell  —  Ron Paul doesn't seem to know much about his own newsletters.  The libertarian-leaning presidential candidate says he was unaware …

CNN's John King responds  —  Over the weekend, I wrote about an adulating interview which CNN's John King conducted with John McCain while riding on the storied Straight Talk Express bus.  The interview was broadcast on “Situation Room” with Wolf Blitzer.  In that post, I printed all of the …

RETIREES AND THE FAIRTAX....Matt Yglesias reprints a chart showing that Mike Huckabee's 30% national sales tax would be good for the rich and bad for the middle class, and then adds this: … A big national sales tax is such a loopy idea that I feel like my IQ drops every time I even acknowledge it as something worth discussing.

Iraqi Spending to Rebuild Has Slowed, Report Says  —  Highly promising figures that the administration cited to demonstrate economic progress in Iraq last fall, when Congress was considering whether to continue financing the war, cannot be substantiated by official Iraqi budget records …

FRIED SQUIRREL: I'M LOVING IT!  —  Mike Huckabee explains how he'll appeal to SC voters by explaining how he and his crew ate fried squirrel made in a popcorn popper in college ...

In Child Porn Case, a Digital Dilemma  —  U.S. Seeks to Force Suspect to Reveal Password to Computer Files  —  The federal government is asking a U.S. District Court in Vermont to order a man to type a password that would unlock files on his computer, despite his claim that doing so would constitute self-incrimination.