Jindal's Katrina Story: A Tall Tale?  —  The evidence continues to grow that the story Bobby Jindal told Tuesday night — about how he backed a tough-talking sheriff's efforts to rescue Katrina victims, government red-tape be damed — was, how to put it ... made up.

Rocky Mountain News to close, publish final edition Friday  —  Executives from E.W. Scripps Co., announce their decision on the future of the Rocky Mountain News in the 150-year-old newspaper's newsroom on 2/26/09 in Denver.  In December 2008, the Rocky's parent company put the paper up for sale …

DON'T LOOK NOW, BUT ...  If you haven't been following Eric Kleefeld's bang-up coverage of the Minnesota Senate election saga at TPMDC (come to think of it, this fiasco pre-dates the launch of TPMDC and dates back to our TPM Election Central days — just another reminder that here it is almost March …

BURRIS' SON GOT STATE JOB FROM BLAGO  —  The son of embattled Sen. Roland Burris is a federal tax deadbeat who landed a $75,000-a-year state job under former Gov. Rod Blagojevich five months ago, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.  —  Blagojevich's administration hired Roland W. Burris II …

CPAC audience roars with applause when speaker suggests Obama wasn't born in U.S.  —  ThinkProgress is attending the right-wing Conservative Political Action Conference today.  Earlier this afternoon, Cliff Kincaid, head of a conservative group Accuracy in Media, introduced Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN).

Freeman's in  —  The Obama administration has notified Congress that Chas Freeman has been appointed chairman of the National Intelligence Council, demonstrating a willingness to rebuff pro-Israel activists and an embrace of a more realist foreign policy line.

Senate tunes out Fairness Doctrine, 87-11  —  The Senate voted Thursday in favor of an amendment to the District of Columbia voting-rights bill that would prohibit the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from reinstating the so-called Fairness Doctrine, which critics say would decimate conservative talk radio.

Obama Budget Sees $1.75 Trillion Deficit  —  President Obama's budget proposal for 2010 projects a stunning deficit of $1.75 trillion for the current fiscal year, which began five months ago, reflecting a shortfall of more than $1 trillion as the fiscal year began, plus the costs of bank bailouts …

Prosecutors Prepare Charges Against Final ‘Enemy Combatant’ in U.S.  —  Federal prosecutors are preparing to charge Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri with providing material support to al-Qaeda terrorists in a groundbreaking move that would put the alleged sleeper agent under the jurisdiction …

Gates: Media photos of war dead need families' OK  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  WASHINGTON - Families of America's war dead will decide whether the flag-draped caskets of their loved ones can be photographed by news organizations when the fallen return to U.S. soil …

Pelosi throws cold water on assault-weapon ban  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tossed cold water on the prospect of reinstating the assault weapons ban, highlighting Democrats' reluctance to take on gun issues.  —  Attorney General Eric Holder raised the prospect Wednesday that the administration would push to bring back the ban.

Joe the Author, Plumbing New Lows in Interest  —  Joe the Plumber (no longer a plumber; first name actually Samuel) popped into our town yesterday evening to sell his new book and to remind people that he's still a plain and simple guy.  Mission accomplished, on at least one of his missions.

Holder Vows To End Raids On Medical Marijuana Clubs  —  Attorney General Eric Holder said at a press conference Wednesday that the Justice Department will no longer raid medical marijuana clubs that are established legally under state law.  His declaration is a fulfillment of a campaign promise …

Obama's Budget: Almost $1 Trillion in New Taxes Over Next 10 yrs, Starting 2011  —  President Obama's budget proposes $989 billion in new taxes over the course of the next 10 years, starting fiscal year 2011, most of which are tax increases on individuals.  —  1) On people making more than $250,000.

Log Cabin under Democratic control?  —  Sources say Tim Gill, a prominent Dem donor, is dictating GOP group's direction  —  The amount of money that the Gill Action Fund has contributed to the Log Cabin Republicans — about one-third of its total budget in some years …

Right, and Left Out  —  Young Conservatives Can't Get With the Program  —  It's early February, and the happy hour at the Union Pub on Capitol Hill is jammed with an unlikely slice of young Washington strivers: conservatives, libertarians, free-market/small-government types, anyone right of center.

Feelings of despair  —  There's so much to like about where Obama is going — health care, transparency in government, ending the war in Iraq.  And the stimulus bill is OK, though not big enough.  —  But on the question of fixing the banks, many of us are feeling a growing sense of despair.

Bloggers and Unions Join Forces to Push Democrats to Left  —  WASHINGTON — A group of liberal bloggers said it was teaming up with organized labor and MoveOn.org to form a political action committee that would seek to push the Democratic Party further to the left.

Feigenholtz campaign sign in Rahm Emanuel's front yard  —  (A Sara Feigenholtz campaign sign appeared on the lawn outside Rahm Emanuel's home today.  Photo by John McCormick.)  —  White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has not publicly endorsed anyone in Tuesday's special primary to replace …

The 2% Illusion  —  Take everything they earn, and it still won't be enough.  —  President Obama has laid out the most ambitious and expensive domestic agenda since LBJ, and now all he has to do is figure out how to pay for it.  On Tuesday, he left the impression that we need merely end …

Christopher Hitchens and the Battle of Beirut  —  Last week Christopher Hitchens and I were attacked in Beirut.  Less than 24 hours after we landed at the international airport, a half dozen members of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party jumped us on Hamra Street when he defaced one of their signs.

President and His Inner Circle Have Earmarks in Omnibus  —  Funny how items show up in spending bills without any notice — like an earmark for a president who promised not to seek any.  —  President Obama, who took a no-earmark pledge on the campaign trail, is listed as one of dozens …

OMB boots lobbyist off press call  —  Maybe President Obama really is serious about making his White House inhospitable to lobbyists.  One of them even got scolded by name for trying to spy on an administration conference call with reporters Thursday.  —  The call was set up for the press but …

Reality check for Vice President Joe Biden  —  Updated:  —  SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) - Giving the republican response to President Obama's speech Tuesday night, Governor Bobby Jindal pointed out fundamental differences in how republicans and democrats see the economy.

In New Column, Will Sticks To His Guns On Global Warming  —  Just when we thought we were out, they pull us back in.  —  We thought we were done with the topic of George Will and climate change.  But now we've gotten an advanced look at Will's latest column, set to run tomorrow in the Washington Post and in syndication.

Joe The Plumberization of the Republican Party  —  Patrick Ruffini decries the “Joe-the-Plumberization of the GOP.” … Of course, they didn't appoint Wurzelbacher as VP as they did with Sarah Palin.  The two are of a piece: A faux populism that comes at the cost of alienating the intellectuals and serious leaders of the movement.

Budget Easter Egg: Not Halving The Deficit  —  President Obama's FY 2010 budget outline includes ten years' worth of deficit projections.  As Obama noted two nights ago, he intends to cut the federal budget deficit from $1.75 trillion in 2009 to $533 billion by the end of his first term.