Obama claims delegate lead  —  In a surprise twist after a chaotic Super Tuesday, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) passed Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) in network tallies of the number of delegates the candidates racked up last night.  —  Clinton was portrayed in many news accounts …

Hillary Loaned Her Campaign $5 Million, Spokesperson Confirms  —  This morning, Mark Halperin floated an intriguing question: Are the Clintons financing Hillary's campaign with their own money?  —  Now the Clinton campaign has finally answered: Yes, they are.  Hillary spokesperson Howard Wolfson sends over the following:

ONCE JOHN WINS, HE'LL MAKE A LEFT  —  RUNNING as a conserva tive, John McCain rolled up huge victories last night in New York, New Jersey and beyond.  —  But if history is any guide, the McCain we've seen of late on the campaign trail is the most conservative McCain we'll ever see.

Seven Reasons To Support The GOP's Nominee  —  As of this morning, McCain has earned 615 delegates and 4,220,296 votes; Romney 268 delegates and 3,497,341 votes, and Huckabee 169 delegates and 2,232,530 votes.  —  Senator McCain has a clear path to the nomination, Romney a very uphill battle …

Haggard exits restoration process early  —  Recommend  —  New Life Church said Tuesday that former pastor Ted Haggard has prematurely ended a “spiritual restoration” process begun when he was fired for sexual misconduct.  —  Haggard was fired from New Life Church and resigned as president …

Gallup Daily: Tracking Election 2008  —  Based on daily polling from Feb. 3-5, 2008  —  PRINCETON, NJ — The increase in support for Hillary Clinton at the national level that Gallup saw in interviewing conducted Sunday and Monday continued in interviewing Tuesday night.

McCain-Huckabee  —  The upsides are obvious.  They're the first- and third- best vote-getters in the Republican field.  Huckabee helps to make up for McCain's weakness with evangelical Protestants and, to a lesser extent, his weakness on domestic policy.  The most frequently mentioned downside …

Buchanan: John McCain ‘Will Make Cheney Look Like Gandhi’  —  On the NBC Today Show, liberal radio host Rachel Maddow, conservative pundit Pat Buchanan, and Democratic strategist Paul Begala discussed the importance of “change” in the upcoming election.  Voters want a “clean break from Bush,” argued Maddow.

McCain Sends ‘Chill Down Spine,’ Reid Cites Cochran  —  On the Spot (CNSNews.com) - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said the possibility of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) becoming president “sends a cold chill down my spine.”  —  Reid made his remarks Tuesday outside the Senate chambers …

Inside Iraqi politics - Part 1.  Examining the Iraqi executive branch  —  Security gains in Iraq have maintained momentum for five months and the focus has turned to spurring and gauging the country's political progress.  The ultimate goal of the troop surge executed by the military …

Voters are told pen had ‘invisible ink’  —  When it comes to election shenanigans, Chicago has been accused of just about everything.  —  But invisible ink?  —  Twenty voters at a Far North Side precinct who found their ink pens not working were told by election judges not to worry.

After Super Tuesday  —  Now that Super Tuesday voters have made their wishes known, this is where we stand.  On the Republican side, it's no surprise that Arizona Sen. John McCain is a lot closer today to securing the Republican nomination.  He had significant victories in many Super Tuesday states.