GOP defies Obama overtures  —  House Republicans have proposed an alternative that leaders say would create 6.2 million jobs for only $478 billion.  —  “What Member can't go back his or her District and explain: Rather than voting for a bloated bill, ... I voted for an alternative …

Pelosi dismisses need for bipartisanship  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she didn't come to Washington to be “bipartisan”, one day after shuttling through an $819 economic stimulus bill without a single Republican vote.  —  “I didn't come here to be partisan …

Military Judge Denies Obama Request to Suspend Hearings at Guantanamo  —  A military judge in Guantanamo Bay has denied the Obama administration's request to delay proceedings for 120 days in the case of a detainee accused of planning the October 2000 attack on the USS Cole warship …

The Age of Obama: Heat for me, but not for thee  —  Last week, Barack Obama caused quite a stir when he allowed himself to be photographed in the Oval Office without wearing a suit jacket, ending the Bush tradition of coat-and-tie for the West Wing.  The New York Times reports …

Obama Made a Rash Decision on Gitmo  —  The president will soon realize that governing involves hard choices.  —  During his first week as commander in chief, President Barack Obama ordered the closure of Guantanamo Bay and terminated the CIA's special authority to interrogate terrorists.

Obama Seeks Accord With Military on Iraq  —  WASHINGTON — As President Obama moves to redefine the nation's mission in Iraq, he faces a difficult choice: Is he willing to abandon a campaign promise or risk a rupture with the military?  Or can he finesse the difference?

Illinois senators begin deliberations on Blagojevich  —  SPRINGFIELD, Illinois (CNN) — Illinois state senators began final deliberations in Gov. Rod Blagojevich's impeachment trial Thursday afternoon ahead of voting on whether to remove the governor from office.

My Bipartisan Stimulus  —  Let's cut taxes, as I want, and spend more, as Obama would like.  —  Fouad Ajami: Obama Tells Arabia's Despots They're Safe  —  America's diplomacy of freedom is officially over.  —  Postpartisan Era Gets Early Test  —  The economic-stimulus bill will be a test …

Bad  —  As the Obama administration apparently prepares to launch Hankie Pankie II — buying troubled assets from banks at prices higher than they will fetch on the open market — it occurred to me that an updated version of an old Communist-era joke may be appropriate: under Bush …

Obama slams Wall Street on bonuses  —  President calls the $18.4 billion in bonuses paid last year ‘shameful’  —  President Barack Obama issued a withering critique Thursday of Wall Street corporate behavior, calling it “the height of irresponsibility” for Wall Street employees to be paid …

Public Support for Economic Recovery Plan Slips to 42%  —  Public support for the economic recovery plan crafted by President Obama and congressional Democrats has slipped a bit over the past week.  At the same time, expectations that the plan will quickly become law have increased.

Palin, Obama to share stage  —  In what could be a preview of the 2012 presidential race, Sarah Palin and Barack Obama will share a stage together this Saturday night in Washington, D.C., Politico has learned.  —  The Alaska governor and former GOP vice presidential nominee …

Blago: Fire Rahm  —  This blog can't really capture the long-form style of Blagojevich's swan song, but he's going down swinging, with a call to fire Rahm Emanuel for being as guilty as he — according to a theory under which he is being impeached for fighting for citizens right to cheap prescription drugs.

FBI Cuts Off CAIR Over Hamas Questions  —  The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has cut off contacts with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) amid mounting concern about the Muslim advocacy group's roots in a Hamas-support network, the Investigative Project on Terrorism has learned.

Sen. McConnell Calls on GOP to Redefine Itself  —  John D. McKinnon reports on politics.  —  In a major political-strategy statement, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky - one of the country's highest-ranking Republicans - will warn his party leadership later this afternoon …

Obama Signs Lilly Ledbetter Pay Equity Bill Into Law  —  WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- U.S. President Barack Obama signed legislation into law Thursday making it easier for employees to sue for wage discrimination, a measure he said is an important step toward “fundamental fairness” for U.S. workers.

Sali, who lost to Minnick, plans to challenge him in 2010; other Republicans consider the race  —  Republican former congressman Bill Sali is preparing for a rematch against Democratic Rep. Walt Minnick in 2010.  —  Sali filed a statement of candidacy Monday with the Federal Election Commission …

Hill Republican: Stimulus aids illegal immigrants … WASHINGTON (AP) - The $800 billion-plus economic stimulus measure making its way through Congress could steer government checks to illegal immigrants, a top Republican congressional official asserted Thursday.

Saddam's hometown unveils shoe thrower statue  —  Many Iraqis considered it poetic justice when a journalist tossed his shoes at President George W. Bush last month.  —  Now the bizarre attack has spawned a real life work of art.  —  A sofa-sized statue of the shoe was unveiled Thursday in Tikrit …

You've got hate mail!  —  There has been an interesting uptick in the usual volume of hate mail.  —  I sense a disturbance in the Obama Force.  The nutroots aren't happy with how the Generational Theft Act debate is playing out.  They're impatient with the pace of Revolutionary Change.

The Great Gay Hope  —  PORTLAND, Ore. — The politician was in his 40s, a rising star, a man with the pilot light of ambition burning bright.  The intern was just 17, sorting through emotions about his sexuality, a boy who said he needed someone to mentor him in the political world.

With Al Due Respect, We're Doomed  —  The lawmakers gazed in awe at the figure before them.  The Goracle had seen the future, and he had come to tell them about it.  —  What the Goracle saw in the future was not good: temperature changes that “would bring a screeching halt to human civilization …