When Obamatons Respond  —  On Tuesday, I wrote that the Obama budget is a liberal, big government document that should make moderates nervous.  The column generated a large positive response from moderate Obama supporters who are anxious about where the administration is headed.

Gupta Steps Aside  —  Updated 7: 24 p.m.  —  Sanjay Gupta, CNN's chief medical correspondent, has told network officials will not leave his television career to become the U.S. Surgeon General, according to sources familiar with his decision.  —  Gupta, who had been described …

The Big Dither  —  Last month, in his big speech to Congress, President Obama argued for bold steps to fix America's dysfunctional banks.  “While the cost of action will be great,” he declared, “I can assure you that the cost of inaction will be far greater, for it could result in an economy …

GOP Fights Back Over Criticism of Limbaugh  —  White House Is Accused Of Cynicism, Hypocrisy  —  By one measure, Rush Limbaugh is a clear winner this week: His ratings have nearly doubled since his feud with the White House burst into the media limelight.  —  But the Obama administration's strategy …

Bill Seeks $500 Billion for FDIC Fund  —  WASHINGTON — Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd is moving to allow the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to temporarily borrow as much as $500 billion from the Treasury Department.  —  The Connecticut Democrat's effort …

Never waste a good crisis, Clinton says on climate  —  BRUSSELS (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told an audience on Friday “never waste a good crisis,” as she highlighted the opportunity of rebuilding economies in a greener, less energy intensive model.

Bank Charges May Surge as Mortgages Marked to Market  —  Patricia Greenberg's townhouse in Irvine, California, was losing about $10,000 a month in value when she received a letter in February 2008 that looked too good to be true: An investor was offering to cut her $472,000 mortgage by 26 percent and her monthly payment by a third.

Omnibus still one vote short  —  Short by one vote, Senate Democrats abruptly pulled back Thursday night from completing action on a giant omnibus spending bill—forcing leaders to scramble to pass a stopgap measure to keep the government funded through next Tuesday.

Undisclosed Losses at Merrill Lynch Lead to a Trading Inquiry  —  CHARLOTTE, N.C. — One Merrill Lynch trader apparently gambled away more than $120 million in the currency markets.  Others seemingly lost hundreds of millions on tricky credit derivatives.  —  But somehow all this red ink …

Republicans Look for a Reliever in Kentucky  —  WASHINGTON — One of the entrenched narratives in American politics is the case of the guy who refuses to quit, even though a lot of people on his own team want him gone.  —  While the Democrats are preoccupied with Senator Roland W. Burris …

Toomey to challenge Specter again  —  Former Rep. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) will challenge Sen. Arlen Specter in a primary for the second straight cycle, according to Pennsylvania GOP sources.  —  The Allentown Morning Call reported Thursday that two friends of Toomey's have said the Club for Growth chief has decided to enter the race.

PLEASE GROW UP  —  There's often a lot of game-playing in getting appointees approved by the senate.  But this requires more attention.  The senate Republicans are refusing to give a vote to two of President Obama's key (hopefully soon to be) economic advisors — Austan Goolsbee and Cecilia Rouse.

Report condemns Afghan coalition  —  • Leaked analysis condemns US for lack of co-operation  —  • Senior officers' criticisms also cover Iraq campaign  —  A highly critical analysis of the US-led coalition's counterinsurgency in Iraq and Afghanistan has raised serious questions …

Christie has the poll position in governor's race  —  tgraber@sjnewsco.com  —  TRENTON - Gov. Jon S. Corzine could face a tough re-election bid, according to the results of a new poll showing his approval ratings slipping and the Democrat trailing his likely Republican challenger.

Obama steadfast on healthcare  —  Calls reform broad imperative  —  WASHINGTON - President Obama yesterday presented his goal of fixing the healthcare system as a political imperative, as well as a moral and economic one: Americans, he said, will no longer stand for soaring costs …

Corporate America's Icons Crumbling Under Global Recession  —  The truisms have been familiar to generations of Americans: As General Motors goes, so goes the nation; Citigroup is too big to fail; General Electric, one of the 12 original companies in the Dow Jones industrial average in 1896, brings good things to life.

Rape row sparks excommunications  —  A Brazilian archbishop says all those who helped a child rape victim secure an abortion are to be excommunicated from the Catholic Church.  —  The girl, aged nine, who lives in the north-eastern state of Pernambuco, became pregnant with twins.

Makers Are Pushing Back on Toxic-Toy Law  —  Makers of children's products and charities that run second-hand shops are stuck with more than $1 billion of inventory they can't sell because of a new federal product-safety law, according to surveys by trade groups and the charities.

Judge: Will Obama defend Yoo?  —  A federal judge is asking the Obama administration if it's sure it wants to proceed with the Bush administration's defense of John Yoo, a former Justice Department attorney who authored some of the government's most controversial legal opinions in the war on terror.