Obama and the Minister  —  In a sermon delivered at Howard University, Barack Obama's longtime minister, friend and adviser blamed America for starting the AIDS virus, training professional killers, importing drugs and creating a racist society that would never elect a black candidate president.

A Free-Spirited Wanderer Who Set Obama's Path  —  In the capsule version of the Barack Obama story, his mother is simply the white woman from Kansas.  The phrase comes coupled alliteratively to its counterpart, the black father from Kenya.  On the campaign trail, he has called her his “single mom.”

FISA bill passes House; time for Spring Break '08!  —  Minutes ago, the House passed its version of the amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance act.  —  The measure passed 213-197.  —  Because the bill differs substantially from the Senate version, the bills will have to be reconciled …

Obama's True Beliefs  —  Derb: I am coming to believe that Barack Obama is one of the greatest con artists we've seen.  His entire campaign has been about “coming together,” a post-racial consensus, etc.  Any mention of his middle name was immediately condemned as ignorant fear-mongering.

Obama Cuts Into Clinton's Delegate Lead Among Elected Officials  —  Barack Obama has pulled almost even with Hillary Clinton in endorsements from top elected officials and has cut into her lead among the other superdelegates she's relying on to win the Democratic presidential nomination.

Petraeus: Iraqi Leaders Not Making ‘Sufficient Progress’  —  Iraqi leaders have failed to take advantage of a reduction in violence to make adequate progress toward resolving their political differences, Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said Thursday.

The Romance of Empire  —  George W. Bush laments that his advanced age doesn't let him participate in his own screw-ups: … Need we note that when Bush had an actual opportunity to put his life on the line in a war, he chose to avoid doing so?  The guy who sent me the link observed …

WHY CLINTON DOESN'T WANT A RE-VOTE.  —  <p>p.s.  Commenter <a href="http://www.nycweboy.com/ “>weboy </a>complained that I should have sought out more pro-Clinton blogs, and recommends a few, so I will link to Tom Watson's recent post, <a href="http://tomwatson.typepad.com/ tom_watson/2008/03 …

McCain says al Qaeda might try to tip U.S. election  —  SPRINGFIELD, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain said on Friday he fears that al Qaeda or another extremist group might attempt spectacular attacks in Iraq to try to tilt the U.S. election against him.

OMG!  I JUST DID THE GOVERNOR!  —  SPITZ HOOKER'S DC DISCOVERY  —  The high-priced hooker at the center of Gov. Spitzer's sex scandal trysted with him several times before he was caught on a wiretap - but it was only during their last encounter that she realized the real identity of her john, sources said yesterday.

US Faces Severe Recession, Feldstein Says  —  The United States has entered a recession that could be “substantially more severe” than recent ones, former National Bureau of Economic Research President Martin Feldstein said Friday.  —  “The situation is very bad, the situation is getting worse …

President weakens espionage oversight  —  Board created by Ford loses most of its power  —  President Ford with Vice President Dick Cheney (left), then Ford's chief of staff, and Jim Baker.  Cheney said in 2005 that postWatergate reforms went too far.  (New york times/file 1976)

Gallup Daily: Obama Leads Clinton 50% to 44%  —  McCain presents stiff competition for Obama and Clinton  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Barack Obama leads Hillary Clinton in national Democratic nomination preferences by a statistically significant 6-percentage point margin, 50% to 44% …

Getting the Politics of the Press Right: Walter Pincus Rips into Newsroom Neutrality  —  “The important thing is to show integrity— not to be a neuter, politically.  Having good facts that hold up is a bigger advantage than claiming to reflect all sides equally well.”