GM CEO resigns at Obama's behest  —  The Obama administration asked Rick Wagoner, the chairman and CEO of General Motors, to step down and he agreed, a White House official said.  —  The White House confirmed Wagoner was leaving at the government's behest after The Associated Press reported …

Rules for conservative radicals  —  A digital war has broken out, and the conservative movement is losing.  Read the comment sections of right-leaning blogs, news sites and social forums, and the evidence is there in ugly abundance.  Internet hooligans are spewing their talking points to thwart the dissent of the newly-out-of-power.

America the Tarnished  —  Ten years ago the cover of Time magazine featured Robert Rubin, then Treasury secretary, Alan Greenspan, then chairman of the Federal Reserve, and Lawrence Summers, then deputy Treasury secretary.  Time dubbed the three “the committee to save the world,” …

EXCLUSIVE: AIG chiefs pressed to donate to Dodd  —  $160,000 streamed in as senator gained power on banking committee  —  As Democrats prepared to take control of Congress after the 2006 elections, a top boss at the insurance giant American International Group Inc. told colleagues …

Palestinian youth orchestra disbanded over concert for Holocaust survivors  —  Palestinian authorities disbanded a youth orchestra from a West Bank refugee camp after it played for a group of Holocaust survivors in Israel, a local official said on Sunday.  —  Adnan Hindi of the Jenin camp called …

Merkel Is Ready to Greet, and Then Resist, Obama  —  BERLIN — Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, an avowed friend of the United States and the leader of the European Union's biggest economy, is diplomatic about the coming visit by President Obama.  But she is clear that she is not about to give ground …

Fox News's Mad, Apocalyptic, Tearful Rising Star  —  “You are not alone,” Glenn Beck likes to say.  For the disaffected and aggrieved Americans of the Obama era, he could not have picked a better rallying cry.  —  Mr. Beck, an early-evening host on the Fox News Channel …

Clever boys dumb down to avoid bullying in school  —  Clever children are saving themselves from being branded swots at school by dumbing down and deliberately falling behind, a study has shown.  —  Schoolchildren regarded as boffins may be attacked and shunned by their peers …

In Minnesota, it's still November  —  Texas Sen. John Cornyn is threatening “World War III” if Democrats try to seat Al Franken in the Senate before Norm Coleman can pursue his case through the federal courts.  —  Cornyn, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee …

Cable News Stokes Political Fever  —  MSNBC ran a countdown clock in preparation for the big event last Tuesday night.  CNN's run-up thrummed with portent, while a skeptical Fox News joined in the fervent speculation.  —  So what had the cable news stations in overdrive?

Look to Lincoln  —  Not to FDR, when designing legislative agendas.  —  A lot of ink has been spilled on what might be called the Roosevelt and Reagan models of the presidency.  In the recent past, the conventional wisdom has been Reaganite: New presidents should focus on one or two clear objectives …

New Task Seen for Fannie, Freddie  —  The regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is considering giving the government-backed mortgage companies another role: helping to finance small mortgage banks.  —  A spokeswoman for the regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency …

G20 draft communiqué  —  Introduction  —  1. We, the Leaders of the Group of Twenty met, for a second time, in London on 2 April.  —  Over the last half century strong growth and increasing international trade has brought untold jobs and prosperity to our citizens.

Washington continues to play ostrich about Mexico … The quote is from Zenpundit Mark Safranski's A Mexican Standoff with Reality.  He has written a gravely important post on the Mexico situation, which dashes the notion that the country is in no danger of becoming a failed state.