My Apologies to Publius  —  On reflection, I now realize that, completely apart from any debate over our respective rights and completely apart from our competing views on the merits of pseudonymous blogging, I have been uncharitable in my conduct towards the blogger who has used the pseudonym Publius.

Palin beginning to irritate some Senate GOPers  —  Sarah Palin has begun to get on the nerves of Republican senators who say the former GOP vice presidential nominee is taking her own White House aspirations entirely too seriously.  —  But those same senators may have their eye …

GAFFNEY: America's first Muslim president?  —  During his White House years, William Jefferson Clinton — someone Judge Sonia Sotomayor might call a “white male” — was dubbed “America's first black president” by a black admirer.  Applying the standard of identity politics and pandering …

Not All Abortions Are Equal  —  The case of Dr. George Tiller, murdered just over a week ago in the lobby of his church, helps explain why so many people believe that abortion should be available at any stage of pregnancy.  —  Tiller did abortions in third trimester, when almost no one else would do them …

Cautious at Heart  —  Sonia Sotomayor had bad timing.  If she'd entered college in the late-1950s or early-1960s, she would have been surrounded by an ethos that encouraged smart young ethnic kids to assimilate.  If she'd entered Princeton and Yale in the 1980s, her ethnicity and gender …

CIA Urges Judge To Keep Bush-Era Documents Sealed  —  Al-Qaeda Could Use Contents, Agency Says  —  The Obama administration objected yesterday to the release of certain Bush-era documents that detail the videotaped interrogations of CIA detainees at secret prisons, arguing to a federal judge …

10 Banks Allowed to Repay $68B in Bailout Money  —  WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department has approved 10 of the nation's largest banks to repay $68 billion in government bailout money.  —  The department on Tuesday said the banks, which were not named, will be allowed to repay the money …

Love or lust, Obama and the fawning press need to get a room  —  When Barack Obama decided that questions from the German press about his trip agenda in that country were too pesky, he told the reporters, “So, stop it all of you!”  He just wanted them to ask things he wanted to talk about.

The Media Fall for Phony ‘Jobs’ Claims  —  The Obama Numbers Are Pure Fiction.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Tony Fratto is envious.  —  Mr. Fratto was a colleague of mine in the Bush administration, and as a senior member of the White House communications shop, he knows just how difficult …

Health reform bill lacks details  —  The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee will release a much anticipated draft of health care reform this afternoon, but the most contentious issues, like the public insurance option and employer mandate, will be left out of the bill for now …

States say to feds: Get off our turf  —  The wave of government bailouts and the Obama administration's economic stimulus package are reviving interest in an issue that's largely been dormant since the mid-1990s: states' rights.  —  From Idaho to South Carolina and in dozens of other states …

The Top of the Class  —  The complete list of the 1,500 top U.S. high schools  —  Public schools are ranked according to a ratio devised by Jay Mathews: the number of Advanced Placement, Intl.  Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by all students at a school in 2008 divided by the number of graduating seniors.

Canada's ObamaCare Precedent  —  Governments always ration care by making you wait.  That can be deadly.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Congressional Democrats will soon put forward their legislative proposals for reforming health care.  Should they succeed, tens of millions of Americans …

For a 2012 Contender, Some Advantages in Leaving Office  —  WASHINGTON — When Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota announced last week that he would not seek re-election next year - a decision widely seen in political circles as clearing the way for a presidential run in 2012 …

O'Reilly defends torture: ‘Look, if it were illegal, Bush and Cheney would have been arrested.’  —  Fox News's Bill O'Reilly has always been one of the most outspoken defenders of torture, declaring there's “certainly no proof” that “mistreatment” ever happened at Guantanamo, and insisting it's …

Kabul's K Street Project  —  Help!  I'm being outgunned on K Street!  That's the message Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States is sending home, according to an internal government memo (PDF) obtained by Mother Jones.  His complaint signals that Kabul's man in Washington has learned …

North Korea would use nuclear weapons in a ‘merciless offensive’  —  North Korea today said it would use nuclear weapons in a “merciless offensive” if provoked — its latest bellicose rhetoric apparently aimed at deterring any international punishment for its recent atomic test blast.

Health Care Spending Disparities Stir a Fight  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama recently summoned aides to the Oval Office to discuss a magazine article investigating why the border town of McAllen, Tex., was the country's most expensive place for health care.

Obama Tells American Businesses to Drop Dead: Kevin Hassett  —  I've finally figured out the Obama economic strategy.  President Barack Obama and his team have been having so much fun wielding dictatorial power while rescuing “failed” firms, that they have developed a scheme to gain the same power over every business.

Democrat Sink Has Small Edge In Florida Gov Race, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Voters Back Tax Break For First-Time Homeowners  —  Democrat Alex Sink holds a 38 - 34 percent lead over Republican Bill McCollum in an early look at the 2010 Florida Governor's race, the first matchup since …

Carving up Jerusalem  —  Obama signals major policy shift on Israel  —  The Obama administration is creeping closer to a move to carve up Jerusalem.  White House ambiguity holds the holy city hostage to Palestinian ambition.  —  Late Friday, the White House released Presidential Determination 2009-19 …

Finance Reforms Pared Back  —  White House to Preserve Regulators but Seek Tougher Rules; Avoiding a Political Battle  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is backing away from seeking a major reduction in the number of agencies overseeing financial markets, people familiar with the matter say …