State poll shows huge gains by Obama, McCain  —  A startling surge of support for Barack Obama has catapulted the Illinois senator into a virtual tie with Hillary Rodham Clinton in California's Democratic presidential primary, a Field Poll released Saturday shows.

Fall back, men, Afghanistan is a nasty war we can never win  —  Britain's commanders ignored every warning that the Taliban were the toughest fighters on earth  —  The American secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, flies to Britain this week to meet a crisis entirely of London and Washington's creation.

Evangelicals a Liberal Can Love  —  At a New York or Los Angeles cocktail party, few would dare make a pejorative comment about Barack Obama's race or Hillary Clinton's sex.  Yet it would be easy to get away with deriding Mike Huckabee's religious faith.  —  Liberals believe deeply …

Breaking News: Pro-Clinton push poll erupts in California  —  Ed Coghlan was just starting to prepare his dinner in the northern San Fernando Valley the other night when the phone rang.  The caller was very friendly.  He identified himself as a pollster who wanted to ask registered independents …

The Glenn and Helen Show: Mitt Romney Talks Super Tuesday  —  We've already done our big get-to-know-you interview with Mitt Romney, but with Super Tuesday coming up in a couple of days and the race tight, we thought we'd catch up with him again.  We asked him about gun control …

The Wrong Experience  —  Clinton has immense experience and is an attractive candidate.  But she is terrified to act on her beliefs.  —  The Democratic Party's two remaining candidates have become so cordial toward one another that you could easily believe there are few substantive differences between them.

Because I'm B.A.D., ya know it!  —  Today is the anniversary of a dark day in Blogtopia (© Skippy, the Bush Kangaroo).  —  One year ago, Atrios (also known as Duncan Hunter), proprietor of the feebly-written (except for his co-bloggers) blog, “Eschaton,” decided to trim his blogroll for...well, his own reasons.

The Conservative Minority  —  I feel like I'm beating a dead horse on the issue, but the continued high pitched battle between conservative Republicans who have rallied around conservative-come-lately Mitt Romney in hopes of defeating Teddy Kennedy's Good Friend John McCain remains the most interesting story this election cycle.

Why Republicans Like Obama  —  Barack Obama is not only popular among Democrats, he's also an appealing figure to many Republicans.  Former GOP House member Joe Scarborough, now a host on MSNBC, reports that after every important Obama speech, he is inundated with e-mails praising the speech …

McCain's Support Soars, Democratic Race Tightens  —  Obama Gains Among Whites, Moderates and Middle-Income Democrats  —  Summary of Findings  —  Barack Obama and John McCain have made significant gains in support as the field of candidates has narrowed in both parties.

State Secret Abuses Come to a Boil  —  Imagine members of a Mission Impossible team listening to their assignment.  They get the usual warning about the government disowning them if they're caught.  Then the voice on the tape casually adds, “If we screw up, don't even think of complaining, much less suing.”