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.

Barack Obama cancels press conference with Gordon Brown “because of snow”  —  Strange goings on surrounding the programme for the first day of Gordon Brown's visit to Washington.  —  No sooner had the Prime Minister's plane touched down at Andrews Air Force on Monday evening when word …

More on earmarks: Obama's chief of staff has some in bill  —  WASHINGTON — Even though President Barack Obama has repeatedly pledged to ban congressional earmarks, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has 16 such projects, worth about $8.5 million, in the bill the Senate is scheduled to begin debating Tuesday.

A Moderate Manifesto  —  You wouldn't know it some days, but there are moderates in this country — moderate conservatives, moderate liberals, just plain moderates.  We sympathize with a lot of the things that President Obama is trying to do.  We like his investments in education and energy innovation.

Red States Gobble Up Omnibus Earmarks  —  If it's budget time, it's good to be a red state.  And it's very good to be Mississippi.  —  According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Taxpayers for Common Sense, Mississippi has won the earmark contest in the omnibus budget package.

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. …

CIA Destroyed 92 Interrogation Tapes, Probe Says  —  The CIA got rid of 92 videotapes depicting the harsh interrogations and confinement of “high value” al-Qaeda suspects, government lawyers disclosed yesterday, as a long-running criminal probe of the tapes' destruction inched toward a conclusion …

How Low Can The Market Go?  —  On days like today, it helps to look at the silver lining.  Here it is: The farther stocks fall, the cheaper they get—and the higher the expected long-term return becomes.  Unfortunately, that doesn't mean we don't have a long way to go on the downside.

5TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES  —  Frank Annunzio's name—if not his record of public service—should be familiar to Chicago voters.  He is the great-nephew and namesake of the 13-term congressman from Illinois who died in 2001.

Blacks, whites hear Obama differently  —  On his pre-inaugural visit to Ben's Chili Bowl, a landmark for Washington's African-American community, President Barack Obama was asked by a cashier if he wanted his change back.  —  “Nah, we straight,” Obama replied.  —  The phrase was so subtle some listeners missed it.

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.

Taliban rivals unite to fight US surge  —  • Taliban rivals unite to fight US troop surge  —  • Move by Pakistani militants prompts fears of escalation in Afghan violence  —  Three rival Pakistani Taliban groups have agreed to form a united front against international forces …