On Defensive, Obama Plans Talk on Race  —  Faced with what his advisers acknowledged was a major test to his candidacy, Senator Barack Obama sought on Monday to contain the damage from incendiary comments made by his pastor and prepared to address the issue of race more directly than at any other moment of his presidential campaign.

Gov. Paterson admits to sex with other woman for years  —  The thunderous applause was still ringing in his ears when the state's new governor, David Paterson, told the Daily News that he and his wife had extramarital affairs.  —  In a stunning revelation, both Paterson, 53, and his wife …

Gun-Rights Showdown  —  Today, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case of Heller v. District of Columbia, a suit brought by several D.C. citizens contending that the ban on the possession of operable firearms inside one's home violates the Second Amendment.

The Fed Can't Do It Alone  —  Psychology has now overwhelmed economics.  What started last summer as a serious problem in a little-known — but not so little — corner of the U.S. mortgage market has blossomed into a worldwide financial panic, the sort we read about in history books.

Florida Democrats Won't Vote Again, Official Says  —  WASHINGTON — The Florida Democratic Party chairwoman on Monday officially buried the possibility of redoing the state's disputed January presidential primary, saying there was no practical or affordable way to conduct a new election.

Iraq reconciliation meeting off to shaky start  —  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A conference to reconcile Iraq's warring political groups began to unravel even before it got under way on Tuesday, with the main Sunni Muslim Arab bloc pulling out and protesting it had not been properly invited.

McCain's 67% Favorable Rating His Highest in Eight Years  —  Obama has a 62% favorable rating, while Clinton's is 53%  —  PRINCETON, NJ — John McCain's 67% favorable rating is the highest of any of the three major candidates running for president, and ties for his highest in Gallup polling history.

How Did I Get Iraq Wrong?  —  I DIDN'T. … An “anniversary” of a “war” is in many ways the least useful occasion on which to take stock of something like the Anglo-American intervention in Iraq, if only because any such formal observance involves the assumption that a) this is, in fact …

Anniversary Highlights Iraq War's Role in Campaign  —  WASHINGTON — This week's fifth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq provoked an intense exchange over the war Monday among the three presidential candidates, illustrating the deep divisions over how to proceed there even as the violence has ebbed.

Obama camp: HRC is taking the low road  —  Is it possible to win the Democratic nomination in such a way as to make winning not worth it?  —  The Barack Obama campaign thinks so.  It thinks Hillary Clinton's campaign is willing to take any road to the White House, including the low road.

Memo To The Fed: Stop Those Rate Cuts  —  The markets rallied last Tuesday in response to the Fed's growing assistance to holders of mortgage-backed securities.  Yet many onlookers are convinced that an aggressive cut in the federal funds rate at the upcoming March 18 meeting is still necessary to avoid a painful recession.