Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby Poll: McCain Dominates GOP Races; Dems Locked in Tight Contests As Super Tuesday Polls Open  —  UTICA, New York - The final day of polling before Super Tuesday was one of hardening positions in key races across the country, the latest Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby survey work shows.

Limbaugh Defends Clinton and Obama on Iraq  —  Talk show host Rush Limbaugh is so exasperated about Senator McCain's surge in the Republican presidential contest that he is coming to the defense of Senators Clinton and Obama.  —  On Mr. Limbaugh's program today, he said people should not be rushing …

The Cooper Concerns  —  I'm not a Hillary-hater.  She's been an outstanding senator.  She hung tough on Iraq through the dark days of 2005.  In this campaign, she has soldiered on bravely even though she has most of the elected Democrats, news media and the educated class rooting against her.

The ‘Stimulus’ Deficit  —  If you want to know the real cost of Washington's economic stimulus, look no further than yesterday's Fiscal 2009 White House budget.  The federal deficit is taking a giant leap backward, thanks in substantial part to the $150 billion in “temporary” tax cuts.

THE POLLS  —  There's one guarantee I can make right now about tonight's results.  They are going take make either Zogby or SurveyUSA look like complete fools.  Which one I'm not completely sure, but definitely one of them.  —  Consider this spread.  Zogby has his final California number as Obama 49%, Clinton 36%.

Actor Jack Nicholson Endorses Hillary for President  —  In a surprise announcement on this morning's Rick Dees show, Oscar-winning actor Jack Nicholson endorsed Hillary Clinton for president.  —  “Mrs. Clinton has been involved in issues, everything from health care, which we know and prison reform …

Time Runs Out for an Afghan Held by the U.S.  —  KABUL, Afghanistan — Abdul Razzaq Hekmati was regarded here as a war hero, famous for his resistance to the Russian occupation in the 1980s and later for a daring prison break he organized for three opponents of the Taliban government in 1999.

Picking up, putting aside the poor  —  Some political moments are so bizarre that you have to believe they actually are sincere.  —  One such moment came this weekend, when Barack Obama mocked John Edwards in a speech.  —  Obama had done it before, but that was before Edwards suspended his campaign last Wednesday.

What's Really in the U.S. Military Budget?  —  MUCH MORE THAN THE OFT-CITED $515.4 BILLION.  —  It's time for our annual game: How much is really in the U.S. military budget?  —  As usual, it's about $200 billion more than most news stories are reporting.

Dissonance on Iraq  —  Cartoonish views of the war.  —  CONVENTIONAL WISDOM HAS it that, unlike in Vietnam, there is bipartisan support for “the troops” in Iraq despite the many arguments over the conduct of the war and whether U.S. forces should remain in Mesopotamia.

Marinating in ‘Decline’  —  In 1788, Massachusetts playwright Mercy Otis Warren took one look at the (unratified) U.S. Constitution and declared that “we shall soon see this country rushing into the extremes of confusion and violence.”  This, roughly, is the origin of American declinism — and it's been downhill ever since.

Economy Fitful, Americans Start to Pay as They Go  —  For more than half a century, Americans have proved staggeringly resourceful at finding new ways to spend money.  —  In the 1950s and '60s, as credit cards grew in popularity, many began dining out when the mood struck or buying …

In Berkeley, push to rescind letter to Marines  —  (02-04) 18:52 PST Berkeley — A week after blasting the Marines as “unwelcome intruders” in Berkeley, two City Council members want the city to back off the declaration that ignited the wrath of the nation's right wing and inspired …