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.

651,000 Jobs Reported Lost in February  —  Another 651,000 jobs were lost in February, adding to the millions of people who have been thrown out of work as the economic downturn deepens.  —  In a stark measure of the recession's toll, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday …

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 …

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 …

In Ashland, Gingrich talks of possible presidential run in 2012  —  Newt for president?  —  Newt Gingrich, the Republican former Speaker of the House, didn't rule it out last night in Ashland, before he was to address a packed house of 650-plus at Randolph-Macon College.

Nominee for Solicitor General Revises Her Opinion on Opinions  —  Perhaps every nominee committed a dark, regrettable act in the past that he or she hopes will never see the light, but unfortunately for Elena Kagan, hers was discovered pretty quickly after she was nominated to be solicitor general:

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 …

A Heated Exchange: Al Gore Confronts His Critic(s)  —  The Goreacle has spoken-again.  —  Former Vice President Al Gore repeated his message that climate change is a planetary emergency at the WSJ's Eco:nomics conference in California.  The Nobel-prize winner declined to take any questions from reporters …

WEINER'S ‘NAUGHTY’ HOTTIE$  —  FOREIGN BABES GAVE ILLEGALLY  —  Talk about the wrong kind of foreign aid!  —  After he proposed to expand the visas available to foreign models so they can work in New York, Rep. Anthony Weiner's mayoral campaign took contributions from some cat walkers from abroad.

Obama's Radicalism Is Killing the Dow  —  A financial crisis is the worst time to change the foundations of American capitalism.  —  It's hard not to see the continued sell-off on Wall Street and the growing fear on Main Street as a product, at least in part, of the realization …

Fox News' Glenn Beck strikes ratings gold by challenging Barack Obama  —  His success comes as Fox News embraces the role of voice of opposition to the new administration.  —  Reporting from New York — Before Glenn Beck started his new show on Fox News in January, he sat down with Roger Ailes …

The Great Non Sequitur  —  The Sleight of Hand Behind Obama's Agenda  —  Forget the pork.  Forget the waste.  Forget the 8,570 earmarks in a bill supported by a president who poses as the scourge of earmarks.  Forget the “2 trillion dollars in savings” that “we have already identified …

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.

Recession Job Losses Top Four Million  —  WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy continues to hemorrhage jobs at monthly rates not seen in six decades, a government report showed, signaling that there's still no end in sight to the severe recession that has already cost the U.S. over four million jobs.

Is Obama responsible for Wall Street's meltdown?  —  “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer.  —  Is Obama responsible for the meltdown of the Dow?  The consistently wrongheaded Wall Street Journal's editorial page says so, as does Republican Fox News, CNN's reliably demagogic Lou Dobbs, and now CNBC …

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.

FEW RANDOM THOUGHTS ON THE ECONOMIC CRISIS  —  Looking over the consolidation of the financial services industry you see a distressing pattern.  Find one company that brings together a lot of decently run and profitable companies under one roof.  Then set up one subsidiary which sells …

New quid pro quo questions between Burris, Blagojevich.  Sun-Times exclusive.  —  BY DAVE MCKINNEY AND CHRIS FUSCO  —  On the same December day then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich named Roland Burris to fill President Obama's U.S. Senate vacancy, Burris' right-hand political man, Fred Lebed …

Rev. Wright Cautions: Obama 'Ain't Jesus'  —  President's longtime minister, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, says his former congregant is just like any other president and that he “ain't gonna improve your child's reading score.”  —  SELMA, Ala. — President Barack Obama's longtime minister …