Tax Day Becomes Protest Day  —  How the tea parties could change American politics.  —  Today American taxpayers in more than 300 locations in all 50 states will hold rallies — dubbed “tea parties” — to protest higher taxes and out-of-control government spending.

The ultimate reaping of what one sows: right-wing edition  —  (updated below - Update II)  —  Right-wing polemicists today are shrieking in self-pitying protest over a new report from the Department of Homeland Security sent to local police forces which warns of growing “right-wing extremist activity.”

U.S. Planning to Reveal Data on Health of Top Banks  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is drawing up plans to disclose the conditions of the 19 biggest banks in the country, according to senior administration officials, as it tries to restore confidence in the financial system without unnerving investors.

Pirates attack U.S. cargo ship but fail to board  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — The Liberty Sun, a U.S.-flagged cargo ship bound for Mombasa, Kenya, was attacked Tuesday by Somali pirates, according to a NATO source with direct knowledge of the matter.  —  The pirates never made it onto the ship.

Let My Vote and Every Vote Be Counted  —  Today the Republicans stooped to a new low by challenging my ballot.  The Republicans' challenge is frivolous and without merit.  —  Having spent so much time campaigning alongside Scott Murphy these past several weeks, I know Scott is the kind …

A Portrait of Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States  —  Unauthorized immigrants living in the United States are more geographically dispersed than in the past and are more likely than either U.S. born residents or legal immigrants to live in a household with a spouse and children.

In Minnesota, a Battle Without End for a Senate Seat  —  ST. PAUL — Norm Coleman spends his days in the quiet living room of his small house here, thumbing through stacks of legal papers.  His United States Senate staff and offices vanished at the start of the year, as did his salary …

Obama Team Tells Jewish Leaders: UN Durban Text Crosses “Red Line”  —  In a private conference call with Jewish leaders on Tuesday, the Obama White House reaffirmed that it does not plan to send an official delegation to the United Nations' World Conference on Racism, citing lingering disputes over the language of the draft charter.

At the White House, Joking about a Torture Investigation?  —  I was asked to go on Hardball on Tuesday night to discuss the news that Spanish prosecutors are likely to recommend a full investigation be conducted to determine if six former Bush administration officials—including ex-Attorney …

The Obama Administration Is Criminalizing Dissent?  Intimidating Its Ideological Opponents?  You Must Be Joking  —  The DHS screed that Jonah and some of our Marked Men (Steyn, Hemingway and Krikorian) have weighed in on is entirely predictable.  The only conceivable surprise is that it is so blatant and has happened so soon.

Shuster: If you plan on 'tea bagging all around the country, you're going to need a Dick Armey.'  —  On MSNBC's Countdown yesterday, David Shuster — filling in for Keith Olbermann — took Fox News to task for so aggressively promoting the right wing's anti-Obama tea parties.

Met suspends officer over vigil attack  —  Scotland Yard last night suspended a second officer over brutality allegations after fresh video surfaced showing him striking a woman who was attending a vigil in honour of Ian Tomlinson, the man who died after being attacked by police at the G20 protests.

Appeals Court: Marine can't sue Murtha  —  WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that Rep. John Murtha cannot be sued for accusing U.S. Marines of murdering Iraqi civilians “in cold blood,” remarks that sparked outrage among conservative commentators.

Chalabi charges Bush with conspiring with Iran  —  Ahmed Chalabi, the Iraqi politician and onetime neo-con heartthrob, has always struck me as smooth as silk but also kind of nutty, especially in his glib assertions of the improbable.  His latest ploy may play better in the Arab world than here in the U.S. …

Taxing Matters  —  Tax Day.  Fox News is flogging Astroturf “tea parties” underwritten by corporate lobbyists, while its pundits warn that raising the top income tax rate to the level it was under Bill Clinton constitutes “socialism.”  The Wall Street Journal editorializes about the evils of the estate tax.

Bo-bama: First dog has ‘star quality’  —  “He's a star,” President Barack Obama said today of the first family's new dog, Bo.  “He's got star qualities.”  —  The Portuguese water dog officially registered as Amigo's New Hope but known to the Obama family as “Bo” certainly drew a sizeable pack …

Obama Meets Privately With the Dead  —  Musicians Phil Lesh and Bob Weir of the band The Dead perform in NYC, March 30, 2009.  (Bryan Bedder/Getty Images )  —  The surviving (and formerly feuding) members of the Grateful Dead had a secret impromptu meeting Monday evening with the man they credit with reuniting them: President Obama.

Begging Hands and Bleeding Hearts Will Only Cry Out for More  —  If you haven't yet read the Congressional Budget Office's scoring of the Obama budget plan, I highly recommend it.  CBO analysts shows several things to be true: 1) for all the talk of transparency and reform …

ELIOT SPITZER'S WANDERING EYE ON AG  —  BEHIND Eliot Spitzer's flaccid attempt at re-erecting his public persona is a plan to run for state attorney general in 2010, sources told Page Six.  —  After launching a column on Slate.com, and giving interviews to National Public Radio and the …

Vatican vetoes Obama ambassador  —  Caroline Kennedy deemed unacceptable because of abortion views  —  The Vatican has vetoed three of Barack Obama's potential nominees as US ambassador amid a growing dispute between the White House and the Roman Catholic church over the new administration's support …