Geithner, as Member and Overseer, Forged Ties to Finance Club  —  Last June, with a financial hurricane gathering force, Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. convened the nation's economic stewards for a brainstorming session.  What emergency powers might the government want at its disposal to confront the crisis? he asked.

GOP Know-Nothings Fought Pandemic Preparedness  —  When House Appropriations Committee chairman David Obey, the Wisconsin Democrat who has long championed investment in pandemic preparation, included roughly $900 million for that purpose in this year's emergency stimulus bill …

Thain Fires Back at Bank of America  —  John Thain figured seven months ago that he was just one rung down the corporate ladder from becoming chief executive of the largest consumer bank in the U.S. Now, he is trying to climb back from the professional disaster that followed.

Obama team reverses union transparency  —  Finance reporting rules deemed too onerous for labor leaders  —  The Obama administration, which has boasted about its efforts to make government more transparent, is rolling back rules requiring labor unions and their leaders to report information about their finances and compensation.

Pelosi playing defense on torture  —  Nancy Pelosi didn't cry foul when the Bush administration briefed her on “enhanced interrogation” of terror suspects in 2002, but her team was locked and loaded to counter hypocrisy charges when the “torture” memos were released last week.

So Far, So Good?  —  Only 1,361 days to go.  —  Strong job approval, higher personal ratings"—that's pollster Andrew Kohut's assessment of President Obama at roughly the 100-day point. “  A bravura performance,” wrote David Broder of the Washingon Post.  The president's flacks take the Muhammad Ali approach: Obama is The Greatest.

Say Yes.  What Are You Waiting For?  —  Spring is here, that glorious season when young men's fancies lightly turn to thoughts of love, as the poet Tennyson once suggested.  “Lightly” is right.  —  The average age of American men marrying for the first time is now 28.

Computer Program to Take On ‘Jeopardy!’  —  YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, N.Y. — This highly successful television quiz show is the latest challenge for artificial intelligence.  —  What is “Jeopardy”?  —  That is correct.  —  I.B.M. plans to announce Monday that it is in the final stages of completing …

Shortage of Doctors Proves Obstacle to Obama Goals  —  WASHINGTON — Obama administration officials, alarmed at doctor shortages, are looking for ways to increase the supply of physicians to meet the needs of an aging population and millions of uninsured people who would gain coverage under legislation championed by the president.

Exceptions to Iraq Deadline Are Proposed  —  BAGHDAD — The United States and Iraq will begin negotiating possible exceptions to the June 30 deadline for withdrawing American combat troops from Iraqi cities, focusing on the troubled northern city of Mosul, according to military officials.

In GOP base, a ‘rebellion brewing’  —  A quick tour through the week's headlines suggests the Republican Party is beginning to come to terms with the last election and that consensus is emerging among GOP elites that the party needs to move away from discordant social issues.