The Stimulus Bills: House vs. Senate  —  If all goes as expected today, the Senate will pass an $838 billion economic stimulus plan that follows a compromise reached over the weekend.  But before the package can go to President Obama's desk, the Senate will have to resolve differences with the House and its $819 billion version.

At His First Prime-Time News Conference, Obama Is Serious and Expansive  —  In a prime-time debut for the new Oval Office occupant and a press corps often accused of being too enamored of him, President Obama faced journalistic skepticism from the opening question.

Details Scarce in Rescue Plan  —  WASHINGTON—The Obama administration Tuesday announced a wide-ranging financial sector rescue plan that could send $2 trillion coursing through the financial system.  —  The plan, which is designed to involve a mix of government and private capital …

Connecticut's Rell Is Queen Of The Hill At Midterm, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Dodd Has Worst Approval Ever  —  Halfway through her first elected term as Connecticut Governor and one week after a grim budget message, Jodi Rell has a 75 - 19 percent approval rating and tops …

Eight arrested in Michael Phelps case  —  Updated:  —  COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - New details have emerged about a party where Olympic champion Michael Phelps was spotted.  —  On Feb. 2, a British tabloid published a picture of the 14-time Olympic gold medalist using a water pipe to smoke marijuana.

How The World Almost Came To An End At 2PM On September 18  —  LiveLeak has caught a scary moment of previously undisclosed insight by Paul Kanjorski where he reveals some facts that have not been captured by the media previously.  At 2 minutes and 20 seconds in the video below …

Geithner vs Axelrod  —  According to The New York Times the debate inside the administration turned into a controversy between economic policymakers and political operatives: … To start with the good news, this is the right way for a president to make a decision.

Why Obama Wants Control of the Census  —  Counting citizens is a powerful political tool.  —  President Obama said in his inaugural address that he planned to “restore science to its rightful place” in government.  That's a worthy goal.  But statisticians at the Commerce Department …

Liveblog: Ft. Myers, FL townhall  —  1:12 p.m.: Wrapping up.  President is shaking some hands and greeting the crowd.  —  1:10 p.m.: Question from an enthusiastic young man named Julio who says he has worked for McDonald's for four years but hasn't seen his benefits improve.

The Chess Master  —  It was just a week ago that the bad-mouthing of Barack Obama seemed to be reaching a fever pitch.  —  The president was taking heat for the tax problems of Tom Daschle, Timothy Geithner and other appointees and nominees.  Liberal supporters of the president were upset …

Blue Dog nips Obama with a better stimulus idea  —  While President Barack Obama goes on the road to shore up slipping popular support for the $1 trillion stimulus porkfest that he ordered up from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Walt Minnick …

Schumer: “The American people really don't care” about pork; Obama: “The American people don't need to be convinced;” Final passage vote: 61-37  —  The Senate is about to pass the Turbaconducken stimulus package.  Sen. Schumer took to the floor about 20 minutes ago to fear-monger.

SPECIAL PREVIEW Stimulus: A History of Folly  —  Before he was sworn in as President, Barack Obama began to lay out his plans for reviving an American economy that, it would later be discovered, had declined 3.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, its worst performance in 26 years.

The 180-degree reversal of Obama's State Secrets position  —  (updated below - Update II)  —  From the Obama/Biden campaign website, mybarackobama.com, here was what the Obama campaign was saying — back then — about the State Secrets privilege:  —  Apparently, the operative word …

It's Not the Prison, It's the Prisoners  —  Among our illustrious allies in the War on Terror, Yemen ranks right up there with Pakistan, whose government just released nuke-peddler A. Q. Kahn from house arrest.  Yemen's government says it is preparing a major combat operation to drain one of the many swamps where jihad festers.

Fleischer And O'Reilly: Bush Didn't Call On ‘Dot Coms And Other Oddballs’ Like The Huffington Post  —  After President Obama's first prime time press conference last night, Bill O'Reilly asked former Bush press secretary Ari Fleischer for his reaction.  O'Reilly noted that Obama had a prepared list …

Obama's Charm Isn't Working Wonders Abroad  —  Policy does matter after all.  —  Barack Obama has now been president for 21 days, following an inauguration that was supposed to have pressed the reset button on America's relations with the wider world and ushered in a new period of global cooperation against common threats.

Roll Over the Republicans  —  Bipartisanship is safe and effective when used as directed.  In the present circumstance, however — dire economic crisis, hardheaded Republicans, time running out — bipartisanship is doing more harm than good.  President Obama and the Democratic majorities …

Obama Sternly Takes On His Critics  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama has made a show of reaching across the aisle since taking office, inviting three Republicans into his cabinet and wining and dining other opposition leaders.  But by Monday, he sounded like a candidate back on the trail …

What will Michael Steele do with the presidential primary calendar?  —  The power of the chairman to impact the future of the party is, to a degree, limited.  Michael Steele will be able to attract a range of people that other candidates may not have been able to.

U.S. Raids a Lobbying Firm With Ties to a Congressman  —  WASHINGTON — Federal investigators have raided the offices of the PMA Group, one of Washington's biggest lobbying firms, as part of an investigation into potentially improper campaign contributions, a person briefed on the investigators' questions said Monday night.

Arabs watching the Israeli elections  —  Netanyahu on Al-Jazeera (screen capture)  —  I spent a good part of yesterday afternoon watching al-Jazeera's coverage of the Israeli elections.  I've also been reading editorial commentary and news coverage from across the Arab world.