Obama picks Gregg for Commerce  —  Sen. Judd Gregg will be nominated as the new Commerce secretary Tuesday morning, giving President Obama a fresh independent voice in his Cabinet but at a huge cost to Republicans and the larger Senate.  —  The run-up to the nomination has focused on backroom deals …

The Travails of Tom Daschle  —  When President Obama nominated former Senator Tom Daschle to be his secretary of health and human services, it seemed to be a good choice.  Mr. Daschle, as the co-author of a book on health care reform, knew a lot about one of the president's signature issues.

Senate confirms Holder as first black AG  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  WASHINGTON - Eric Holder won Senate confirmation Monday as the nation's first African-American attorney general, after supporters from both parties touted his dream resume …

US-IRAQ: Generals Seek to Reverse Obama Withdrawal Decision  —  CENTCOM commander Gen. David Petraeus, supported by Defence Secretary Robert Gates, tried to convince President Barack Obama that he had to back down from his campaign pledge to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 months at an Oval Office meeting Jan. 21.

Sarah Palin endorses Texas Gov. Rick Perry for re-election  —  wslater@dallasnews.com  —  AUSTIN - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has endorsed Rick Perry for re-election, calling him the “true conservative” in a primary election showdown with fellow Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Americans Support Stimulus, but Many Want Major Changes  —  Most say plan will not have major impact this year  — USA - Business and Economy - Congress - Credit Crisis - Personal Finances - Taxes - Americas - Northern America  —  PRINCETON, NJ — A strong majority of Americans (75%) …

In Bolivia, Untapped Bounty Meets Nationalism  —  UYUNI, Bolivia — In the rush to build the next generation of hybrid or electric cars, a sobering fact confronts both automakers and governments seeking to lower their reliance on foreign oil: almost half of the world's lithium …

Stimulus Spin War: Obama To Go On Media Offensive  —  Barack Obama is slated to sit down with the five major television news networks tomorrow, a media play that is almost certain to be part of a broader effort to sell his stimulus package to the American public.

Ex-Journalists' New Jobs Fuel Debate on Favoritism  —  WASHINGTON — Republicans have long accused mainstream journalists of being on the payroll of President Obama and the Democratic Party, a common refrain of favoritism especially from those on the losing end of an election (see Bush vs. Gore, Clinton vs. Bush and Bush vs. Dukakis).

Cramer on Obama's Anti-Wall Street Comments: ‘We Heard Lenin’  —  ‘Mad Money’ host compares new president's attack on corporate profits to rhetoric from Russian communist.  —  Business & Media Institute  —  With all the populist sentiment generated from the economic slowdown by politicians …

Joe the Plumber advises GOP-ers  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  Fresh off his stint as a war correspondent in Gaza, Joe the Plumber is now doing political strategy with Republicans.  —  When GOP congressional aides gather Tuesday morning for a meeting …

STRAIGHT OUTTA HOOVERVILLE  —  It gets better.  The latest from RNC Chair Michael Steele: “Not in the history of mankind has the government ever created a job.”  —  This is such transparent nonsense it's hard to know where to start; but I guess it builds on the DeMint nonsense.

Daniel Pearl and the Normalization of Evil  —  When will our luminaries stop making excuses for terror?  —  This week marks the seventh anniversary of the murder of our son, former Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.  My wife Ruth and I wonder: Would Danny have believed that today's world emerged after his tragedy?

A free speech killer  —  UN warns: Don't defame religions, especially Islam  —  On Inauguration Day, after it got the United Nations to pass a gag rule on insulting religions, the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) told our new president in a New York Times ad that Muslims …

Obama's Pledge to Reform Ethics Faces an Early Test  —  WASHINGTON — During almost two years on the campaign trail, Barack Obama vowed to slay the demons of Washington, bar lobbyists from his administration and usher in what he would later call in his Inaugural Address a “new era of responsibility.”

India to launch credit crunch £7 laptop, world's cheapest computer  —  The credit crunch computer is set to arrive tomorrow in India when officials unveil the 500 rupee (£7.25) laptop.  In an attempt to bridge the “digital divide” in the country between rich and poor …

Behind the blow-out at Davos  —  From Michael Reynolds  —  Origins of a cooperation.  For the past two decades, cooperative relations between Turkey and Israel had been one of the constants of international relations in the Middle East.  While it would be incorrect to describe those ties …

How the stimulus might help Illinois  —  Pay, jobless benefits, food stamp aid would grow slightly  —  WASHINGTON — If the Obama administration's economic stimulus package is passed and signed into law, the first way most working people in Illinois would feel it would be a small increase …