If McCain vs. Obama, 28% of Clinton Backers Go for McCain  —  If McCain vs. Clinton, 19% of Obama backers go for McCain  —  PRINCETON, NJ — A sizable proportion of Democrats would vote for John McCain next November if he is matched against the candidate they do not support for the Democratic nomination.

BILL: ‘SADDLE UP’  —  From NBC/NJ's Mike Memoli  —  PARKERSBURG, W.V. — Bill Clinton kicked off a day of campaigning here by making a personal appeal to voters, saying Hillary's success depends on “real” people like those who came to see him.  And as the rhetoric heats up between the Democratic campaigns …

BREAKING: Condi Rice Flirts With VP Possibility — Speaks to Grover Norquist's Wednesday Group Meeting  —  Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is speaking this morning to Grover Norquist's weekly powerhouse gathering at Americans for Tax Reform of conservative associations, think tanks, and political operations.

Pentagon says new Iraq fighting arises from surge's success  —  WASHINGTON (AFP) — The Pentagon on Wednesday said an eruption of violence in southern Iraq, where US-backed government forces were battling Shiite militias, was a “by-product of the success of the surge.”

Obama's Pastor Slurs Italians in Latest Magazine  —  (CNSNews.com) - Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., pastor emeritus of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago where Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) has been a member for two decades, slurred Italians in a piece published in the most recent issue of Trumpet Newsmagazine.

Judicial Watch: Obama ‘intended to leave no paper trail’  —  The president of a prominent watchdog group said Wednesday that he believes Democratic presidential frontrunner Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) “intended to leave no paper trail” during his time in the Illinois Senate.

Big Phat Liar  —  How a federal inmate duped the Los Angeles Times, fabricated FBI reports, and linked Sean “Diddy” Combs to 1994 ambush of Tupac Shakur  —  Last week's bombshell Los Angeles Times report claiming that the 1994 shooting of Tupac Shakur in the lobby of a Manhattan recording studio …

In Letter, Top Clinton Donors Chastise Pelosi For Statements About Super-Delegates  —  Twenty top Hillary fundraisers and donors have sent a scathing private letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, chastising her for publicly saying that the super-delegates should support the winner …

Federal judge: Michigan's presidential primary law unconstitutional  —  DETROIT — A federal judge on Wednesday ruled Michigan's presidential primary law unconstitutional and blocked the state from giving voter lists from the Jan. 15 election to the state's major political parties.

Remarks By John McCain To The Los Angeles World Affairs Council  —  ARLINGTON, VA — U.S. Senator John McCain's will deliver the following remarks as prepared for delivery today at the World Affairs Council in Los Angeles, California:  —  When I was five years old, a car pulled up in front …

Hillary's Minister Problem  —  Barack Obama isn't the only candidate with ties to a controversial religious group.  —  Since Hillary Clinton has launched a frontal attack on her opponent's church and pastor, it's worth noting that she has some odd religious ties of her own.

The rescue of Bear Stearns marks liberalisation's limit  —  Remember Friday March 14 2008: it was the day the dream of global free- market capitalism died.  For three decades we have moved towards market-driven financial systems.  By its decision to rescue Bear Stearns, the Federal Reserve …

Pastor Of Clinton's Former Church: Don't Use Wright To Polarize  —  On Tuesday, Sen. Hillary Clinton re-stoked the flames of the controversy surrounding Sen. Barack Obama's former pastor, saying she would have long ago distanced herself from Rev. Jeremiah Wright if she had attended his church.

The McKinnon and Dowd Show  —  Last night I moderated/facilitated a conversation at the Headliner's Club in Austin between old (and still) friends and (possibly future) collaborators Mark McKinnon and Matthew Dowd, whose work on the '00 and '04 Bush-Cheney campaigns is near-legendary.