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.

Potentially troubling news for Clinton in Michigan ‘win’  —  (CNN) — Hillary Clinton faced a grim statistic in Michigan tonight, despite her primary “win” there: results revealed that she may have reason to worry about her grasp on the African-American vote.

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:

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 …

“The Diebold Effect”: Hillary's Votes Higher From Diebold Machines Even Controlling for Demographics (education, income, population, etc)  —  In contrast to exit polls, the final vote tally from the NH democratic primary shows a surprise victory for Hillary Clinton.

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 …

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 …

Thompson trying to be heard in South Carolina  —  Republican presidential candidate jabs at rivals, hopes to make a stand  —  tgillman@dallasnews.com  —  ROCK HILL, S.C. - Past the cherry cobbler and soft serve, voters crammed the back of a buffet joint to hear Fred Thompson poke …

High-Profile Officer Nagl to Leave Army, Join Think Tank  —  One of the Army's most prominent younger officers, whose writings have influenced the conduct of the U.S. troop buildup in Iraq, said he has decided to leave the service to study strategic issues full time at a new Washington think tank.