Bill Clinton's Old Politics  —  I write this more out of sadness than anger.  Bill Clinton's ill-tempered and ill-founded attacks on Barack Obama are doing no credit to the former President, his legacy, or his wife's campaign.  Nor are they helping the Democratic party.

Let's Hear Some Straight Talk  —  BEGIN TRANSCRIPT  —  RUSH: A new California poll taken just after Fred Thompson's withdrawal from the Republican primary shows Mitt Romney as leading big over McCain in California when it comes to which candidate best represents the Republican Party.

Tentative Deal on Economic Stimulus Plan  —  WASHINGTON — House leaders and the White House on Thursday announced a tentative agreement on an economic stimulus package of roughly $150 billion that would pay stipends of $300 to $1,200 per family and provide tax incentives for businesses to encourage spending.

Kucinich drops presidential bid  —  Cleveland Congressman Dennis Kucinich is dropping out of the Democratic race for president.  —  Kucinich will make the announcement Friday at a news conference in Cleveland.  In an exclusive interview with Plain Dealer editors and reporters, Kucinich said he will explain his “transition” tomorrow.

The Dems just gave away your stimulus check  —  According to AP, congressional leaders have reached a deal on those economic stimulus checks.  And rather than being geared towards helping the economy, they're apparently geared towards redistributing wealth (that would be our wealth) to the poor.

Jay Rockefeller's unintentionally revealing comments  —  As the Senate takes up “debate” today over granting the President new warrantless eavesdropping powers and granting immunity to lawbreaking telecoms, the individual who joined forces with Dick Cheney to get this ball rolling …

Bill backlash?  —  There's a fair amount of chatter today about whether Bill Clinton has gone too far, whether he'll trigger “backlash."  —  It's a plausible story, and the media is clearly sick of him.  But here's my question: Has anyone met an uncommitted voter, or one likely to support Hillary, who expresses this view?

Attacks Imperil U.S.-Backed Militias in Iraq  —  BAGHDAD — American-backed Sunni militias who have fought Sunni extremists to a standstill in some of Iraq's bloodiest battlegrounds are being hit with a wave of assassinations and bomb attacks, threatening a fragile linchpin of the military's strategy to pacify the nation.

Bill Gates Issues Call For Kinder Capitalism  —  Famously Competitive, Billionaire Now Urges Business to Aid the Poor  —  Free enterprise has been good to Bill Gates.  But today, the Microsoft Corp. chairman will call for a revision of capitalism.  —  In a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos …

Gibson Defends His Mockery Of Ledger's Death: ‘No Point In Passing Up A Good Joke’  —  On his radio show yesterday, Fox News host John Gibson responded to ThinkProgress' criticism of his comments mocking the death of Heath Ledger, saying that it was just “a little Brokeback Mountain joke” …

Bono confesses sins to ‘father’ Al Gore  —  Having climate campaigner Al Gore round to your house is to open yourself to a self-flagellating guilt trip, Irish rock star Bono confessed Thursday.  —  Sharing a stage with the former US vice president at the annual gathering of world movers …