G.O.P. Senator Is Top Choice to Run the Commerce Dept.  —  WASHINGTON — Senator Judd Gregg, Republican of New Hampshire, is the top contender to be President Obama's nominee for commerce secretary, the White House said Saturday, a move that could strengthen Democrats' control of Congress.

Daschle  —  What is it with these people and their taxes?  First Geithner, and now, as Steve mentioned, Daschle.  —  I don't understand why people in public life don't just recognize that they should report anything that might even conceivably count as income, and do things right the first time.

Mark Steyn: Stimulated right into being another Europe  —  Plan also could trigger protectionist backlash, just like during the Depression.  —  Recommend  —  Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, is on TV explaining the (at this point the congregation shall fall to its knees and prostrate itself) “stimulus.”

New Symbol of Elite Access: E-Mail to the Chief  —  WASHINGTON — Anthony Lake served as one of Barack Obama's principal counselors on foreign affairs during the campaign and exchanged e-mail messages with him regularly.  But now that Mr. Obama is president, Mr. Lake no longer has his e-mail address.

Pajamas Media matters  —  I wrote a letter to the Pajamas Media network bloggers yesterday, some of whom took it a bit more personally than intended.  We disbanded the ad network part of our business for a simple reason: it was losing money and we couldn't see how in the reasonable future that would change.

Steele to House GOP: Stimulus Bill ‘Goose Egg Was Just Beautiful’  —  The Republican National Committee invited reporters to listen via conference call to new Chairman Michael Steele's pep talk to House Republicans at their weekend retreat.  If there was a revelation, it's that Steele seems …

Geithner to Unveil Strategy to Revive Credit Flow  —  WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner will soon announce a new strategy for reviving the country's financial system while making sure that banking executives do not misuse federal money meant to assist their companies …

Iran says Obama's offer to talk shows US failure … US President Barack Obama's offer to talk to Iran shows that America's policy of “domination” has failed, the government spokesman said on Saturday.  —  “This request means Western ideology has become passive, that capitalist thought …

Obama's Kenyan relative arrested on drug charge  —  NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenyan police say the half brother of President Barack Obama has been arrested for possession of marijuana.  —  Area police chief Joshua Omokulongolo said George Obama was picked up Saturday and was being held at the Huruma police post in the capital.

GOP governors press Congress to pass stimulus bill  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Most Republican governors have broken with their GOP colleagues in Congress and are pushing for passage of President Barack Obama's economic aid plan that would send billions to states for education, public works and health care.

Google Flags Whole Internet As Malware  —  We're not quite sure what's going on, but a couple of minutes ago any search result from Google started being flagged as malware with a message stating “This site may harm your computer”.  Including Google's own websites as you can see above.

Iraqi PM hails vote as ‘victory’  —  Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has hailed a largely peaceful vote for new provincial councils across the country as a victory for all Iraqis.  —  Voting was extended by one hour due to a strong turnout, including among Sunni Muslims who boycotted the last polls.