Ickes: Blame Penn  —  Harold Ickes definitely doesn't buy the argument that Mark Penn isn't responsible for everything that has happened to the Hillary Clinton campaign.  —  “Mark Penn has run this campaign,” said Ickes in a brief phone interview this morning.

McCain Endorsement Angers Catholic League President  —  Updated 6 p.m.  —  HOUSTON — The president of the Catholic League today blasted Sen. John McCain for accepting the endorsement of Texas evangelicalist John Hagee, calling the controversial pastor a bigot who has “waged an unrelenting war against the Catholic Church.”

Obama Has The Lead, But Potential Problems Too  —  Increasing Optimism About Iraq  —  Summary of Findings  —  Barack Obama is riding high as the March 4 primaries approach.  Obama has moved out to a broad-based advantage over Hillary Clinton in the national Democratic primary contest …

1 in 100 U.S. Adults Behind Bars, New Study Says  —  For the first time in the nation's history, more than one in 100 American adults is behind bars, according to a new report.  —  Nationwide, the prison population grew by 25,000 last year, bringing it to almost 1.6 million.

American Traitor Adam Gadahn is Dead Update  —  A source tells The Jawa Report that Adam Gadahn is dead  —  ***Sticky: Scroll down for newer posts***  —  Is American al Qaeda member and indicted traitor Adam Gadahn dead?  Shortly after a U.S. Predator drone attack killed Abu Laith al-Libi …

Obama's Open Letter To Gay Americans  —  Money quote: … The full thing after the jump:

Staying to Help in Iraq  —  The request is familiar to American ears: “Bring them home.”  —  But in Iraq, where I've just met with American and Iraqi leaders, the phrase carries a different meaning.  It does not refer to the departure of U.S. troops, but to the return of the millions …

Geldof and Bush: Diary From the Road  —  I gave the president my book.  He raised an eyebrow.  “Who wrote this for ya, Geldof?” he said without looking up from the cover.  Very dry.  “Who will you get to read it for you, Mr. President?”  I replied.  No response.

Clinton raises $35 million in February  —  Hillary Clinton's camapign is set to announce later today that she's on track to raise roughly $35 million in the month of February, a huge month by any standard measure of political fundraising and her best of the campaign.

McCain Steps Up Criticism of Obama  —  Senator John McCain stepped up his critique of Senator Barack Obama on Thursday by accusing him for the second consecutive day of a willingness to hand over Iraq to Al Qaeda, as the Democratic contenders released record-breaking fund-raising figures.

Canadians deny Obama call  —  A spokesman for the Canadian Embassy to the United States, Tristan Landry, flatly denied the CTV report that a senior Obama aide had told the Canadian ambassador not to take seriously Obama's denunciations of Nafta.  —  “None of the presidential campaigns …

Democrats Want To Fund ACORN, La Raza With Stimulus Bill  —  The Democrats reacted in anger when Senate Republicans blocked their latest economic stimulus bill.  Harry Reid said that bankers and lenders were high-fiving each other in hallways after the GOP torpedoed the bill …

McCain: 'Chris carries on the spirit of his dad with a great sense of humor.'  —  John McCain, in between fund-raisers and events in Texas, held another conference call with bloggers.  Selected highlights:  —  McCain: My one opening comment is on Senator Obama's comment that he would consider …

Pelosi Letter to Attorney General Mukasey on Contempt Citations of Miers and Bolten  —  February 28th, 2008 by Office of the Speaker  —  Washington, D.C. - Today, Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent the following letter to U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey, informing him of the referral letter sent …

Iran ‘number one world power’: Ahmadinejad … President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared on Thursday that Iran was the world's “number one” power, as he launched a bitter new assault on domestic critics he accused of siding with the enemy.  —  “Everybody has understood that Iran is the number …

Joint Chiefs Chair Warns Obama & Clinton on Iraq  —  ABC News' Jonathan Karl Reports: The Joint Chiefs chairman has a word of warning to Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton: A rapid of withdrawal from Iraq would lead to a “chaotic situation” and would “turnaround the gains we have achieved …

Press Conference of the President  —  THE PRESIDENT: Good morning.  Laura and I, as you know, recently came back from Africa, where we saw firsthand how the Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief is saving lives.  I had a chance to go to the — speak to the Sullivan Foundation the other day about our trip …

Black backers steadfast for Clinton  —  African-American superdelegates said Thursday that they'll stand up against threats, intimidation and “Uncle Tom” smears rather than switch their support from Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton to Sen. Barack Obama.  —  “African-American superdelegates are being targeted …