Obama Backs Off a Reversal on Secrets  —  SAN FRANCISCO — In a closely watched case involving rendition and torture, a lawyer for the Obama administration seemed to surprise a panel of federal appeals judges on Monday by pressing ahead with an argument for preserving state secrets originally developed by the Bush administration.

Geithner Said to Have Prevailed on the Bailout  —  WASHINGTON— The Obama administration's new plan to bail out the nation's banks was fashioned after a spirited internal debate that pitted the Treasury secretary, Timothy F. Geithner, against some of the president's top political hands.

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.

Transcript: Obama takes questions on economy  —  (CNN) — President Obama held the first evening press conference of his presidency Monday, with the financial crisis as the main topic.  Before taking questions, he gave a brief speech.  Here is a transcript of the speech and news conference:

Harvard Dean, Chosen as Solicitor General, Goes Before Senators  —  When Harvard Law School hosted a huge dinner a few years ago for the conservative Federalist Society, the school's dean, Elena Kagan, received such long and enthusiastic applause that she felt compelled to hold up her arms in mock protest.

Obama warns GOP he's no pushover  —  Yes, there will be time to change the politics of Washington and to give people wondrous examples of bipartisanship.  —  But, no, not now, President Barack Obama made clear at his first White House news conference—not if it gets in the way of passing …

Obama Says Failing to Act Could Lead to a ‘Catastrophe’  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama took his case for his $800 billion economic recovery package to the American people on Monday, as the Senate cleared the way for passage of the bill and the White House prepared for its next major hurdle …

Obama, Crist team up in Florida  —  President Barack Obama and Gov. Charlie Crist sharing a stage in battleground Florida to stump for the same economic stimulus plan might seem like an unusual alliance.  —  But the Democratic president and the Republican governor are more similar …

Bush Faithful Rewarded With Jobs  —  On the Way Out, He Placed Aides and Big-Money GOP Donors  —  Fred F. Fielding, Emmet T. Flood, William A. Burck and Daniel M. Price worked together at the White House under George W. Bush.  Less than two weeks before leaving office …

Shuler: Pelosi, Reid have ‘failed’  —  Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C) has further ingratiated himself with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — not — by declaring that Pelosi and Harry Reid “failed” the bipartisanship test on stimulus.  —  “In order for us to get the confidence of America …

There's No Stimulus Free Lunch  —  It's hard to spend wise and spend fast.  —  How much will the stimulus package moving in Congress really stimulate the economy?  —  The evaluations to date have been incomplete, so we looked at the likely stimulative effect from the spending parts …

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 …

FACT CHECK: Obama has it both ways on pork  —  WASHINGTON (AP) - At least Route 31 is a road to somewhere.  —  President Barack Obama had it both ways Monday when he promoted his stimulus plan in Indiana.  He bragged about getting Congress to produce a package with no pork …

Left silent on Social Security, Medicare  —  President Barack Obama plans a busy February.  The new administration hopes to have a stimulus package passed by Congress, a new plan in place to shore up ailing banks and, by month's end, to hold a “fiscal responsibility” summit.

Savior holds first fear-mongering press conference  —  The wealth-redistributor-in-chief, his High Holiness, is set to begin his first official prime-time press conference at 8pm Eastern.  —  Will he go all Howard Dean?  —  Will he get snippy?  —  Drinking game buzzwords: “Bipartisan …

Schultz gets front row seat  —  What if Sean Hannity or Rush Limbaugh were up front at Bush's press conferences in the East Room?  —  Well, as network correspondents sat in the second row, liberal radio host Ed Schultz managed to snag a seat up front, right next to Helen Thomas.

Voters turn out en masse despite forecast of apathy  —  As of 14:00 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, some 34 percent of the 5.2 million people eligible to vote had cast their ballots at the 9,263 polling stations available nationwide, the Central Elections Committee said.

Obama: Scaring us straight  —  Barack Obama has a tough act to pull off.  He must simultaneously petrify people and also restore their confidence.  He must scare us to death and calm our fears.  —  He must convince the nation that the times are so dire we must carry out his bold plans immediately …