Democrats Stung by Dissenters  —  Democratic leaders in Congress did not expect much Republican support as they pressed President Obama's ambitious legislative agenda.  But the pushback they are receiving from some of their own has come as an unwelcome surprise.

Obama Buffetted  —  First Time The MSM Has Ever Ignored Warren Buffett: The press accounts I've read have wildly underplayed Obama supporter Warren Buffet's criticism of the President on CNBC today.  It's fairly pointed, and Buffett comes back to it, suggesting he has a message he's trying to deliver.

They Tried to Outsmart Wall Street  —  Emanuel Derman expected to feel a letdown when he left particle physics for a job on Wall Street in 1985.  —  After all, for almost 20 years, as a graduate student at Columbia and a postdoctoral fellow at institutions like Oxford and the University of Colorado …

Bomber kills 33 at Iraq peace conference  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — At least 33 people were killed and 20 wounded in a suicide car bombing targeting a national reconciliation conference in Baghdad, an Interior Ministry official told CNN.  —  The attack — which occurred outside …

How Long?  —  Jake Tapper appears to be one of the few (only?) mainstream reporters keeping current on the Chas Freeman story.  You would think it would be hard to ignore the growing tidal wave of protest and controversy.  The latest is a letter signed by the Republican members …

Tim Geithner's Black Hole  —  Pity Barack Obama's economic advisers.  The blogs are now demanding their scalps, and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and his colleagues face a nasty dilemma: There are no solutions to the banking crisis without extraordinary political and financial risks.

Detainees Say They Planned Sept. 11  —  The five detainees at Guantánamo Bay charged with planning the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks have filed a document with the military commission at the United States naval base there expressing pride at their accomplishment and accepting full responsibility …

Stem cell decision ignites right's ire  —  He called for reducing abortions and seeking common ground on one of the nation's most divisive issues — promises that led some on the right to think maybe, just maybe, Barack Obama was a different kind of Democrat.  —  But no more.

RNCdispute over $4 million  —  Republican infighting escalated Monday with allegations and denials over $4 million once destined for the party's congressional campaign committees.  —  Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Steele sought to placate critics by giving $1 million …

Possible conflict of interest surfaces for President Obama's new urban czar Adolfo Carrion  —  President Obama's new urban czar renovated his Bronx home with help from the architect on a major development that needed his approval, a Daily News investigation has found.

Heroic Name Given to Photo of President Obama  —  Soon after President Barack Obama signed an executive order lifting the ban on the use federal funding of embryonic stem cells in medical research, the wizards behind the White House web site posted the photo above.

Taking a Depression Seriously  —  The Democratic response to the economic crisis has its problems, but let's face it, the current Republican response is totally misguided.  The House minority leader, John Boehner, has called for a federal spending freeze for the rest of the year.

U.S. to Toughen Its Stance On Trade  —  New Policy Reflects Growing Dissatisfaction With Global Markets  —  The Obama administration is aggressively reworking U.S. trade policy to more strongly emphasize domestic and social issues, from the displacement of American workers to climate change.

Science Over All?  —  The Temptation in Obama's Stem Cell Policy  —  In announcing his policy on federal funding of stem cell research, President Obama inadvertently cast a bright light on a dangerous temptation in science policy that ought to give Americans pause.

McCain: 'I don't want him to fail'  —  After a losing presidential campaign in 2000, John McCain came back to the Senate and established himself as a force no White House could ignore.  Eight years later, he's home from defeat again, facing a very different landscape dominated by President Barack Obama …

Saudi court sentences 75-year-old woman to 40 lashes, 4 months in jail for mingling with men  —  CAIRO (AP) — A 75-year-old widow in Saudi Arabia has been sentenced to 40 lashes and four months in jail for mingling with two young men who are not close relatives, drawing new criticism …

Group Finds Intelligence Gap Persists  —  WASHINGTON — The U.S. government still can't link critical pieces of information that could warn of an impending terrorist plot, despite more than seven years of effort since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a new report from a bipartisan national-security group warns.

Rush whacks Newt  —  Rush Limbaugh responded to Newt Gingrich's shot at him with a broadside at the former speaker on today's show.  —  “I'm frankly getting tired of talking about Newt.  I mean, it's a pointless exercise,” Limbaugh said of Gingrich's dismissal of him on “Meet the Press.”

Obama to unveil education plan  —  President Barack Obama will begin to outline his education reform plan today, announcing plans to expand pay incentives for good teachers and offering grants to schools that raise their standards for students.  —  The president will announce his intent …

Japan reconsidered  —  For a decade or so Japan's lost decade has been the great bugaboo of modern macroeconomics.  Economists constantly warned that you mustn't do X or you must do Y, because otherwise we'll turn into Japan.  And policymakers congratulated themselves in advance …

GOP Chairman Criticizes Dodd Real Estate Deal  —  A Washington, D.C., condominium deal between Sen. Christopher J. Dodd and a Wall Street executive whom Dodd later recommended for a presidential pardon has the state Republican Party chairman comparing the embattled senator to former Gov. John G. Rowland.