Some Banks, Citing Strings, Want to Return Federal Aid  —  WASHINGTON — The list of demands keeps getting longer.  —  Financial institutions that are getting government bailout funds have been told to put off evictions and modify mortgages for distressed homeowners.

Rush Limbaugh Weighs Down Heavily on Republicans  —  Read the full memo:  —  Overview  —  With a national debate raging over the place of radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh in the Republican Party, a new national survey from Democracy Corps and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner finds that Limbaugh weighs …

The Fed Didn't Cause the Housing Bubble  —  Any new regulations should help direct savings toward productive investments.  —  We are in the midst of a global crisis that will unquestionably rank as the most virulent since the 1930s.  It will eventually subside and pass into history.

Heard on the Hill: Vitter Goes From Hookergate to Gate-Crashing  —  Among Members of Congress, there's a long-standing, proud tradition of the Airport Freakout.  Add to the list of those who've indulged in meltdowns and temper tantrums while traveling one Sen. David Vitter …

Flashback: Carville Wanted Bush to Fail  —  The press never reported that Democratic strategist James Carville said he wanted President Bush to fail before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.  But a feeding frenzy ensued when radio host Rush Limbaugh recently said he wanted President Obama to fail.

BRISTOL PALIN & LEVI JOHNSTON BREAK OFF ENGAGEMENT  —  Sarah Palin's 18-year-old daughter Bristol has reportedly broken off her engagement with Levi Johnston, the father of her 2-month-old son Tripp.  It's surprising because in an interview just last month with FOX's Gretta Van Susteren …

Edwards talks about poverty, stays silent on paternity  —  PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Former U.S. Sen. John Edwards took another tentative step into the public spotlight tonight, speaking at Brown University about extreme poverty around the world and urging Americans to get involved in what he called a “fundamental moral issue.”

Approval of Congress Hits Four-Year High, Fueled by Dems  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Americans' job approval rating of Congress is up an additional 8 points this month, after a 12-point increase last month, and now stands at 39% — the most positive assessment of Congress since February 2005.

No quit: the campaign to boost Bush  —  The defense never rests.  When President Barack Obama released his own policy this week on former President George W. Bush's practice of attaching controversial signing statements to legislation, a reporter quickly got a tip from a Bush loyalist …

Ron Paul defends earmarks, says anti-pork McCain is just grandstanding  —  Ron Paul, the Texas congressman who is the darling of the Libertarian Right, has more earmarks in the pork-laden $410-billion spending bill than any other Republican.  —  That's not according to the MSM, or the liberal blogosphere.

Heads should roll  —  Oh, the incestuous mediocrity of American politics and media — compared to the splendors of Brazil!  As a direct result of the two articles I wrote about superstar singer Daniela Mercury in Salon in June and August of last year, I was invited by the publisher Editora Abril …

GOP chair Steele appears to disparage Republicans on Hill as “scurrying mice”  —  The Republican civil war continues.  —  Very weird quote from chairman of the Republican National Committee Michael Steele. … Sounds like stage two of a two-stage process to get himself fired.

Seattle Police Chief to Be Named Drug Czar  —  Disclosure About Family Member's Substance-Abuse Struggles Had Posed Hurdles  —  President Obama will name Seattle Police Chief R. Gil Kerlikowske as the nation's drug czar today, ending a long search that was slowed as details of drug arrests involving Kerlikowske's son came to light.

Mr. President, Time to Rein In The Chaos  —  There is nothing more difficult . . . than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things.  —  Machiavelli's 500-year-old warning notwithstanding, we elected a president who is committed to “change.”

Coleman supporters' private info likely breached  —  Norm Coleman's Senate campaign said Wednesday that the private information of its supporters has probably been breached and is encouraging them to cancel their credit cards.  —  Coleman backers began receiving e-mails Tuesday night …

Top Ten Reasons For ObamaCare Are Based On False Information  —  George Bernard Shaw warned “Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”  The major overhaul of American health care pursued by President Obama and his supporters is based on many false premises and is excessive and likely to do more harm than good.

REVEALED: PELOSI'S ‘AIR RAGE’  —  WASHINGTON - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has gone from frequent flier to jet-aircraft connoisseur, with aides berating military officials to get the best planes, e-mails revealed yesterday.  —  Pelosi, who clashed with the military to get nonstop service …

Obama Wiki fiddler caught red-handed  —  US President Barack Obama and, inset, Aaron Klein.  —  Asher Moses  —  A right-wing pundit has been caught red-handed manufacturing controversy after claiming US President Barack Obama's Wikipedia page was being whitewashed, in a scandal that fooled big news outlets including Fox News.

Dem closing in key N.Y. House race  —  Democrat Scott Murphy has slashed into the huge lead once held by Republican Jim Tedisco in the New York special House election scheduled for March 31, according to a new Democratic-sponsored poll.  —  Tedisco, the state Assembly minority leader …

Time to Call It Quits  —  ATTORNEY GENERAL Eric H. Holder Jr. should put an end to a criminal case that should never have been brought.  —  The matter involves Steven J. Rosen and Keith Weissman, two former officials for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC.

David Rhodes Still Missing  —  11 March 2009  —  Few people realize that New York Times journalist David Rhodes was kidnapped in Afghanistan back in November.  There were a few scattered stories early on, but big reporting apparently has been squashed.  In December, during a trip with Secretary Gates …

The Union Cudgel  —  Big Labor gets nasty on ‘card check.’  —  Big Labor's drive to eliminate secret ballots for union elections has united American business in opposition, so labor chiefs are putting on the brass knuckles: The new strategy is to threaten companies with government retaliation …

The Looting of America's Coffers  —  Sixteen years ago, two economists published a research paper with a delightfully simple title: “Looting.”  —  The economists were George Akerlof, who would later win a Nobel Prize, and Paul Romer, the renowned expert on economic growth.

Stephanopoulos Tweets McCaskill  —  George Stephanopoulos is grilling Missouri Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill in a language she can understand — Tweet. … McCaskill has about 15,000 Twitter followers; Stephanopoulos about 133,000.  —  [Shameless plug: I Tweet at GlennThrush]

This Is Not a Test.  This Is Not a Test.  —  It's always great to see the stock market come back from the dead.  But I am deeply worried that our political system doesn't grasp how much our financial crisis can still undermine everything we want to be as a country.  Friends, this is not a test.

Times Editor Defends Lack Of Coverage Of Chas Freeman Mess  —  Interesting: The editor who oversees The New York Times's national security coverage is defending the paper's decision not to write about the Charles “Chas” Freeman saga before today.  —  In an email, the editor, Doug Jehl …