My Tortured Decision  —  FOR seven years I have remained silent about the false claims magnifying the effectiveness of the so-called enhanced interrogation techniques like waterboarding.  I have spoken only in closed government hearings, as these matters were classified.

GOP Stymies Vote on Sebelius  —  President Obama will have to wait a bit longer to round out his Cabinet.  Senate Republicans refused today to allow a confirmation vote on his health secretary nominee Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D-Kan.).  She is the last Cabinet member awaiting Senate approval.

Sizing Up Obama's First 100 Days  —  The President almost seemed apologetic.  “This may be a slightly longer speech than I usually give,” he told his audience at Georgetown University on April 14.  “This is going to be prose and not poetry.”  What followed, as promised, was not poetry.

Intelligence Officials Tipped Pelosi To Harman Wiretap  —  Intelligence officials, angry that former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales had blocked an FBI investigation into Democratic Rep. Jane Harman's interactions with a suspected Israeli agent, tipped off Nancy Pelosi, the House Democratic leader …

Lewis Testifies U.S. Urged Silence on Deal  —  Bank of America Chief Says Bernanke, Paulson Barred Disclosure of Merrill Woes Because of Fears for Financial System  —  Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and then-Treasury Department chief Henry Paulson pressured Bank of America Corp …

Obama at 100 Days: Strong Job Approval, Even Higher Personal Ratings  —  Better Ratings for Foreign Policy than Domestic Issues  —  As he approaches the 100-day mark of his presidency, Barack Obama's job approval ratings are higher than those of his most recent predecessors.

AP Poll: Americans high on Obama, direction of US  —  Featured Topics: - Barack Obama - Presidential Transition  —  WASHINGTON - For the first time in years, more Americans than not say the country is headed in the right direction, a sign that Barack Obama has used the first 100 days …

Presidential Poison  —  His invitation to indict Bush officials will haunt Obama's Presidency.  —  Mark down the date.  Tuesday, April 21, 2009, is the moment that any chance of a new era of bipartisan respect in Washington ended.  By inviting the prosecution of Bush officials …

OBSERVER DECKED  —  EDITOR WALKS AS SALMON WEEKLY'S SALE RUMORS FLY  —  Longtime New York Observer Editor Peter Kaplan is exiting on June 1 amid rumors the newspaper's owner, real estate scion Jared Kushner, is trying to unload the salmon-colored weekly.  —  Kaplan, who has served …

Shepard Smith Uncensored: “We Are America, We Do Not F**king Torture!”  (VIDEO)  —  Update: scroll down for Smith's uncensored comments  —  Fox News viewers witnessed a rather incredible scene on Wednesday as anchor Shepard Smith and Fox contributor Judith Miller (of CIA leak infamy) …

WaPo hires Prospect's Klein  —  The American Prospect's Ezra Klein, one of the top bloggers on politics and policy, is heading to the Washington Post.  —  Rumors about Klein's upcoming move spread on Wednesday night during a reception thrown by The Nation magazine in honor of D.C. bureau chief Chris Hayes.

Bill O'Reilly's response to waterboarding: ‘Torture, my ass.’  —  Last night on The Factor, Bill O'Reilly hosted Newsday columnist Ellis Henican, who criticized O'Reilly's tolerance of torture.  “You disappoint me, you disappoint me,” Henican said, pointing his finger at O'Reilly.

Obama's Budget Satire  —  Monday morning the government braced for austerity, as the government understands that.  Having sent Congress a $3.5 trillion budget, the president signaled in advance — perhaps so his Cabinet members could steel themselves for the new asceticism …

Rep. Joe Barton: I ‘Stumped’ Nobel Prize Winning Scientist  —  Oh the (rare, but occasionally exceptional) joys of Twitter.  Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX)—the ranking member on the House Energy & Commerce Committee—says (tweets?)  “I seemed [sic] to have baffled the Energy Sec with basic question - Where does oil come from?”

The Tea Party  —  Wallace, Perot demonstrated anger's impact on political process  —  The national tea party movement, exemplified by the protest on the World's Fair site last week, is, according to its critics, an incoherent and illogical phenomenon invented and promoted by bloggers, Fox News, and talk radio hosts.

The President's Apology Tour  —  Great leaders aren't defined by consensus.  —  President Barack Obama has finished the second leg of his international confession tour.  In less than 100 days, he has apologized on three continents for what he views as the sins of America and his predecessors.

The Case for a Federalism Amendment  —  How the Tea Partiers can make Washington pay attention.  —  In response to an unprecedented expansion of federal power, citizens have held hundreds of “tea party” rallies around the country, and various states are considering “sovereignty resolutions” …

Pakistan Sends Special Police to Taliban-Held Area  —  ISLAMABAD — Pakistani authorities on Thursday deployed special constabulary forces to a strategically important district only 70 miles from the capital, Islamabad, that has come under the effective control of the Taliban in the last several days, police and residents said.

Johnston 'didn't think it was going to get this rough'  —  (CNN) — A year ago, few outside of Wasilla, Alaska, had ever heard of Levi Johnston.  All that changed last summer when Gov. Sarah Palin accepted the Republican vice presidential nomination.  —  Soon after she entered the national spotlight …