Bumps in the Road: Obama's HHS Secretary Nominee Faces Tax Questions Over Car and Driver  —  ABC News has learned that the nomination of former Senator Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., to be President Obama's secretary of health and human services has hit a traffic snarl on its way through the Senate Finance Committee.

GOP losing patience with Obama, Dem leaders  —  Republicans wrapped up their retreat Friday by signaling they are losing patience with President Obama and the Democratic leadership in Congress.  —  Former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.) criticized the new administration on Friday …

5 Facts About The New RNC Chairman  —  Former Maryland Lt. Governor Michael Steele was just elected chairman of the RNC.  Here are five facts about the new leader of the Republican party:  —  1. Steele compared stem cell research to Nazi experiments during the Holocaust.

What getting kicked to the curb in the age of new media looks like … What this means is that as of April 1, I am officially out of work.  So save going to a pay model, this site will likely have to shut down.  —  Small price to pay for helping PJM pick up an audience and credibility during its “formative years.”

It's Theirs and They're Not Apologizing  —  Getting between a broker and his bonus is like getting between a schnauzer and his lunch bowl.  He may not bite you, but you are going to smell his breath.  —  “People come here because they want to work hard and get paid a lot for working hard …

Under Tight Security, Voting Seems Calm in Iraq  —  BAGHDAD — Voters turned out early and calmly on Saturday for Iraq's provincial elections, the first in the country for four years.  By noon, halfway through the voting, no one had been reported injured or killed.  —  Early reporting showed a lighter turnout than expected.

Supreme Court Steps Closer to Repeal of Evidence Ruling  —  WASHINGTON — In 1983, a young lawyer in the Reagan White House was hard at work on what he called in a memorandum “the campaign to amend or abolish the exclusionary rule” — the principle that evidence obtained by police misconduct cannot be used against a defendant.

White House Lawyers Look to Limit Commercial Use of President  —  Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) — Barack Obama's popularity makes him a marketer's dream.  Now, the honeymoon may be over for those trying to profit from his appeal.  —  White House lawyers want to control the use of the president's image …

Feds allege plot to destroy Fannie Mae data  —  Fired Fannie Mae worker charged with planting virus to destroy mortgage giant's computer data  —  HAGERSTOWN, Md. (AP) — A fired Fannie Mae contract worker pleaded not guilty Friday to a federal charge he planted a virus designed to destroy …

Defense Official: Obama Calling for Defense Budget Cuts  —  Some overall budget figures are expected to be announced Monday.  —  FOXNews.com  —  The Obama administration has asked the military's Joint Chiefs of Staff to cut the Pentagon's budget request for the fiscal year 2010 by more than 10 percent …

Richest Americans' Income Doubled as Tax Rate Slashed  —  Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) — The average tax rate paid by the richest 400 Americans fell by a third to 17.2 percent through the first six years of the Bush administration and their average income doubled to $263.3 million, new IRS data show.