Full text of Obama's speech to Congress and the nation  —  Here is the text of President Obama's first address to a joint session of Congress, as released by the White House moments ago:  —  Madame Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, and the First Lady of the United States:

Fox Panel's Verdict On Jindal's Speech: ‘Childish,’ ‘Amateurish,’ ‘Not Exactly Terrific’  —  Lousiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's (R) response to President Obama's speech tonight received a universal thumbs down from the Fox News panelists, who are traditionally conservatives' most gentle critics:

Full text of Gov. Bobby Jindal's Republican response  —  Here is the full text of Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's Republican response to President Obama's address to Congress tonight:  —  Americans Can Do Anything  —  “Good evening.  I'm Bobby Jindal, Governor of Louisiana.

OBAMA'S HEALTH CARE PLAN EXPECTS AN INDIVIDUAL MANDATE.  —  I've now been able to confirm with multiple senior administration sources that the health care proposal in Obama's budget will have a mandate.  Sort of.  —  Here's how it will work, according to the officials I've spoken to.

Jindal accuses Obama of pessimism  —  The early excerpts of Bobby Jindal's response to Obama's State of the Union are largely standard fare, but the conclusion strikes an interesting note — one hinted at recently by Bill Clinton — accusing the president, basically, of pessimism.

Matthews Not Tingly for Jindal  —  Listen closely as Jindal approaches the mic and Matthews let's out an exasperated “oh God” before he even opens his mouth.

Officials: Most troops out of Iraq in 18 months  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama plans to remove all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by August 2010, administration officials said Tuesday, ending the war three months later …

Troubled San Francisco paper in danger of closing  —  San Francisco Chronicle to be sold or closed if owner can't lower expenses dramatically  —  SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The San Francisco Chronicle joined the lengthening list of imperiled newspapers Tuesday as its owner set out to purge …

A bitter-Tweet night for the GOP  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  As President Barack Obama delivered his unofficial State of the Union address Tuesday night, some Republicans at the Capitol and elsewhere provided harsh reviews by Twitter - at least until they did a 180 to adopt a more respectful tone.

Killing (or Maiming) a Sacred Cow: Home Mortgage Deductions  —  Edward L. Glaeser is an economics professor at Harvard.  —  The Great Depression provided an opportunity to rethink old policies in a major way.  In the current morass, everything should, once again, be open for debate.

Soldier doubts eligibility, defies president's orders  —  ‘As an officer, my sworn oath to support and defend our Constitution requires this’  —  A U.S. soldier on active duty in Iraq has called President Obama an “impostor” in a statement in which he affirmed plans to join as plaintiff …

A Starry-Eyed Look at the 2012 Republican Field  —  A long time ago in a galaxy not too far away, I introduced something called the “Planetary Model of Primary Politics”.  It is basically just a fancy way of noting that there are generally two dimensions by which candidates position themselves in Presidential primaries.

The Region: America, look behind you!  Turn around!  Turn around!  —  America: A freight train is heading your way and you're standing right on the tracks, looking in the wrong direction.  —  Or perhaps it is like a horror film in which the killer sneaks up behind the hapless victim while the movie audience yells: “Turn around!

Not a War President  —  What can we learn from the few sentences President Obama devoted to foreign policy in his speech to Congress tonight?  —  The main lesson is how very few the sentences were.  Yes, this was a speech focused on the economy.  But it was also Obama's first address to Congress …

Join Us Tuesday Night for O-BINGO!  —  On Tuesday at 9:00 PM Eastern, President Obama will address a joint session of Congress.  To help get you through the 50-minute speech, use our handy Bingo card to check off terms and phrases likely to be used.  As a bonus, print out the different versions …

Commerce Pick Carries Lengthy China Résumé  —  SEATTLE — Top slots in the Obama administration were filling up fast when Gary Locke was asked by a friend several weeks ago whether he expected to get a job offer from the new president.  —  “He mentioned that he hadn't gotten …

Northern Trust defends spending on PGA event, parties  —  Rep. Barney Frank said he's going to ask for the money back.  —  Phil Mickelson of USA plays his approach shot on the 10th hole during the final round of the Northern Trust Open at the Riviera Country Club February 22, 2009 in Pacific Palisades, California.

Likely Obama Appointee Had Ties to Bin Laden Family  —  Blogs and Stories  —  Charles Freeman, Obama's reported pick for chairman of the National Intelligence Council, talked business with the Bin Laden family even after September 11.  —  Amid the criticism that has already emerged …

Why Obama's Deficit-Spending Plan Will (Probably) Work  —  Will the Obama deficit-spending plan work?  Will throwing $800 billion—$500 billion in extra government spending, and $300 billion in tax cuts—at the economy produce a world in which production and employment are higher …

WBAL-TV fires reporter over prank  —  John Sanders inserted a graphic phrase in a faked video that ended up on YouTube  —  WBAL-TV has fired a reporter who inserted a graphic phrase in a video for a prank — only to have the doctored version surface on Web sites nationwide.

On So-Called “Irresponsible” Borrowers  —  Along with the absurd, Santelli-led revolt of the overclass against efforts to help middle class homeowners, there's been a larger sense that “reasonable” people can all agree that there's “plenty of blame to go around” and that on some level …