OBAMA TANGLES WITH THE PRESS  —  From NBC/NJ's Aswini Anburajan  —  SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Led by the Chicago press corps that has covered Obama for years, the candidate today faced a barrage of questions in what turned out to be a contentious news conference.

Melanie Morgan canned from KSFO  —  Melanie Morgan — the conservative radio talk show host who chairs Move America Forward, the group which has led efforts to shame and boycott Berkeley for its anti-U.S. Marine Corps recruiting stand — has lost her job at KSFO 560 AM.

Limbaugh urges listeners to vote for Clinton  —  (CNN) - As Hillary Clinton battles to keep her presidential bid alive, she may be getting help from an unlikely source: conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh.  —  Limbaugh has been actively urging his Texas listeners to cross over and vote …

Obama camp: HRC needs double digits  —  In a statement emailed to reporters, and reiterated on a conference call just now, Obama's campaign Manager, David Plouffe, says: … “They were sitting on enormous leads as recently as two weeks ago,” he said on the call, dismissing the notion of a Clinton “comeback.”

The Assbiting Strategy  —  Yglesias: … To the extent that this is about his successor, my guess is that they figure that Congress will rediscover its interest in oversight and objections to presidential executive power overreach.  The very powers Bush claimed will, for a Democratic president, be the foundation for impeachment.

If Clinton Wins in Ohio or Texas, Most Democrats Want Her to Stay in the Race  —  Two-thirds of Democrats say a victory in either Ohio or Texas would be reason enough for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) to keep her historic bid for the party's presidential nomination alive, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Wiretap Compromise in Works  —  FISA Update May Hinge On Two Separate Votes  —  House and Senate Democratic leaders are headed into talks today that they say could lead to a breakthrough on legislation to revamp domestic surveillance powers and grant phone companies some form of immunity …

Every Voter Should Hear This Phone Call  —  In the closing hours before the March 4th elections, I wanted to share an amazing phone call with you.  It comes on the heels of a new tracking poll showing Hillary doing better than Sen. Obama against John McCain - as well as public polls …

South America on brink of war  —  SANTA CRUZ, Bolivia — South America was on the brink of war yesterday as Venezuela and Ecuador amassed troops on the Colombian border in response to the killing of a Marxist rebel leader.  —  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez threatened to join the rebels …

Hope!  Change!  Together!  Cliche!  —  In my line of work (writing marketing copy), I'm often asked not to use the word “luxury.”  Why?  Because so many profoundly cheap products have used the word as to render it meaningless.  The same dismemberment of the language is happening in politics as well.

Inspired by God, Hamas fighters battle on  —  Abu Mohammed picked up his rifle, said farewell to his wife and six children and went out to face the Israeli tanks, helicopter gunships and missile-firing airborne drones.  —  “Being unable to defeat Israel is no reason to surrender,” …

Hillary Clinton's anti-Obama zinger of the day  —  It's a theme she's been driving home for days now, a variant on the “experience” argument she's flogged with mixed success.  —  Sen. Hillary Clinton was up very early this morning — before dawn, in fact — to shake hands at a factory gate …

Pace Student Who Dumped Korans in Toilet Gets Community Service  —  Charges reduced from hate crime  —  NEW YORK (AP) — A former Pace University student who twice threw copies of the Koran into a toilet at the school after disputes with Muslims pleaded guilty Monday to disorderly conduct in connection with the incidents.

Author Admits Acclaimed Memoir Is Fantasy  —  In “Love and Consequences,” a critically acclaimed memoir published last week, Margaret B. Jones wrote about her life as a half-white, half-Native American girl growing up in South-Central Los Angeles as a foster child among gang-bangers, running drugs for the Bloods.