GOP sees Rev. Wright as pathway to victory  —  For months, Republican party officials have watched with increasing trepidation as Barack Obama has shattered fundraising records, packed arena after arena with shrieking fans and pulled in significant Republican and independent votes.

Volcker: Fed's ‘Extreme’ Intervention ‘Raises Some Real Questions’  —  Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker said the Fed's decision to lend money to Bear Stearns Cos. to keep it from collapsing is unprecedented and “raises some real questions” about whether that's the appropriate role for the Fed.

John Murtha Endorses Hillary Clinton  —  LANCASTER, Pa. — Rep. John P. Murtha has announced his endorsement of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, bringing his clout as a 17-term member of the House and a prominent anti-war Democrat to bear with more than a month until the primary here in his home state.

McCain Was Right, Iran Works with Al Qaeda  —  Some bloggers are jumping all over Senator John McCain for his supposed “gaffe” today.  According to The Trail, a blog over at the Washington Post, McCain said that Iranian operatives were “taking al-Qaeda into Iran, training them and sending them back.”

Arthur C. Clarke, 90, Science Fiction Writer, Dies  —  Arthur C. Clarke, a writer whose seamless blend of scientific expertise and poetic imagination helped usher in the space age, died early Wednesday in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where he had lived since 1956.  He was 90.

Obama's faith in the reasoning abilities of the American public  —  (updated below)  —  I haven't written about the Obama speech yet (video here) because I spent much of the day reading the instantaneous reactions of virtually everyone else, and because the issues raised by the speech …

Calls Mount for Olympic Ceremony Boycott  —  PARIS (AP) - Moves to punish China over its handling of violence in Tibet gained momentum Tuesday, with a novel suggestion for a mini-boycott of the Beijing Olympics by VIPs at the opening ceremony.  —  Such a protest by world leaders …

Bearing Arms ... Against Bears  —  JUSTICE KENNEDY THINKS D.C. RESIDENTS NEED PROTECTION—FROM GRIZZLIES.  —  With all due respect to those who complain that the justices on the Supreme Court are too secretive, and for those who wish, perhaps, that David Souter was more like David …

Mr. Obama's Profile in Courage  —  There are moments — increasingly rare in risk-abhorrent modern campaigns — when politicians are called upon to bare their fundamental beliefs.  In the best of these moments, the speaker does not just salve the current political wound, but also illuminates larger …

The Right And Obama's Speech  —  For me, this is an epiphany of sorts.  Not that I have changed my mind about the things I wrote in “The Conservative Soul.”  Not that I have stopped believing in limited government, individual freedom, personal responsibility, pragmatic change.

Estimates of Iraq War Cost Were Not Close to Ballpark  —  WASHINGTON — At the outset of the Iraq war, the Bush administration predicted that it would cost $50 billion to $60 billion to oust Saddam Hussein, restore order and install a new government.  —  Five years in, the Pentagon tags …

Clinton Tries to Keep Plan for Two Revotes Alive  —  WASHINGTON — Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's hopes of ending the primaries with game-changing victories from new contests in Florida and Michigan grew dim on Tuesday as Florida officially scuttled plans for a new vote and Michigan lawmakers appeared far from a deal.

Paul slighted by the ‘neoconservative’ GOP  —  Ron Paul says the legions of newcomers his presidential campaign brought to the Republican Party are getting the cold shoulder from John McCain and from the party.  —  The Texas congressman says neither he nor his supporters have heard …

Obama's Spine  —  A reader points out: … I don't know if it will “work” against the likes of O'Reilly and Hannity and cable news, which seems unable to show any other of Wright's speeches except the now-almost mind-numbingly familiar clips.  What I do know is that it was the right speech, with the right nuance and brave.

Bush to mark 5 years of war in Iraq  —  WASHINGTON - Five years after launching the U.S. invasion of Iraq, President Bush is making some of his most expansive claims of success in the fighting there.  Bush said last year's troop buildup has turned Iraq around and produced “the first large-scale Arab uprising against Osama bin Laden.”

The beer v. wine vote  —  (CNN) - As some Americans recover from hangovers induced by St. Patrick's Day, a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll released Tuesday suggests a voter's drinking preferences may also reveal their political preferences.  —  Beer drinkers appear more likely to vote …