Steele to Rush: I'm sorry  —  Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele says he has reached out to Rush Limbaugh to tell him he meant no offense when he referred to the popular conservative radio host as an “entertainer” whose show can be “incendiary.”

Obama Offered Deal to Russia in Secret Letter  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama sent a secret letter to Russia's president last month suggesting that he would back off deploying a new missile defense system in Eastern Europe if Moscow would help stop Iran from developing long-range weapons, American officials said Monday.

Obama kicks up White House entertaining  —  WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House is the place to be on Wednesdays.  —  Since the presidency changed hands less than six weeks ago, a burst of entertaining has taken hold of the iconic, white-columned home of America's head of state.  Much of it comes on Wednesdays.

THE DOW-JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE since the passage of the stimulus bill.  Looks like a vote of “no confidence” to me.  —  UPDATE: Can you say “going John Galt?”  Upper-Income Taxpayers Look for Ways to Sidestep Obama Tax-Hike Plan.  “A 63-year-old attorney based in Lafayette, La. …

How low will the stock market go  —  According to Henry Blodget, probably a lot farther: … Incidentally, if you think that people still have a vestigial view of housing as an investment asset rather than a consumption good with residual value, this implies that housing will substantially undershoot as well.

Another Obama pick owes back taxes, but it's OK because, now caught, he'll pay up  —  Oh, Sergei, you mean you've lost another submarine?  —  Word today that yet another Barack Obama appointee has a little problem with taxes — a $10,000 problem.  —  Ron Kirk, the former mayor of Dallas …

Obama releases secret Bush anti-terror memos  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  WASHINGTON - The Obama administration threw open the curtain on years of Bush-era secrets Monday, revealing anti-terror memos that claimed exceptional search-and-seizure powers …

U.S. Likely to Keep the Reins on Fannie and Freddie  —  Despite assurances that the takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would be temporary, the giant mortgage companies will most likely never fully return to private hands, lawmakers and company executives are beginning to quietly acknowledge.

Facebook Reddit Digg Print this article  —  Here's the database you all have been waiting for - the FY 2009 Omnibus with 8,570 earmarks worth $7.7 billion.  Since the Senate started debate on the bill today, we tabulated the Senate recipients of earmarks - from top to bottom.

Malaysia Restores ‘Allah’ Ban for Christians  —  KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — The Malaysian government will issue a new decree restoring a ban on Christian publications using the word “Allah” to refer to God, officials said Sunday.  —  Home Affairs Minister Syed Hamid Albar said a previous Feb. 16 decree …

Irrational Exuberance?  We Are Now Below It . . .  On December 5, 1996, Alan Greenspan gave his famous Irrational Exuberance speech.  —  At the time, the S&P500 was at 744.38.  It blew through that number today, closing at 700.  We're still 350 points above the Dow's closing price of 6,437.10 …