Democrats Seem Set to Go Alone on a Health Bill  —  WASHINGTON — Given hardening Republican opposition to Congressional health care proposals, Democrats now say they see little chance of the minority's cooperation in approving any overhaul, and are increasingly focused on drawing support for a final plan from within their own ranks.

Axelrod's ties targeted in health fight  —  Critics of President Obama's health-care overhaul are zeroing in on his senior adviser David Axelrod, whose former partners at a Chicago-based firm are the beneficiaries of huge ad buys—now at $24 million and counting—by White House allies in the reform fight.

Barney Frank goes toe to toe at health care town hall  —  (CNN) — Most Congress members conducting town hall meetings this month have chosen a noncombative posture to deal with angry participants who disrupt the proceedings.  Not Rep. Barney Frank.  —  At a lively two-hour meeting Tuesday night …

A Conservative's Road to Same-Sex Marriage Advocacy  —  Theodore B. Olson's office is a testament to his iconic status in the conservative legal movement.  A framed photograph of Ronald Reagan, the first of two Republican presidents Mr. Olson served, is warmly inscribed with “heartfelt thanks.”

It's Time to Give Up On the Public Option  —  Enough already with the public option!  —  It is not the be-all and end-all of health-care reform.  It is not the long-awaited safety net for the uninsured.  And if, as many liberals hope, it turns out to be nothing more than Medicare for All …

Baucus, and the Debate on Health Care, Go West  —  BOZEMAN, Mont. — Senator Max Baucus can be hard to decipher at times, and not just because he talks fast and is prone to mumbling.  He was trying to discuss health care in an interview, but kept having to compete with a loud TV set …

ObamaCare Is All About Rationing  —  Overspending is far preferable to artificially limiting the availability of new procedures and technologies.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Although administration officials are eager to deny it, rationing health care is central to President Barack Obama's health plan.

Massive Explosions Kill Dozens in Baghdad  —  BAGHDAD — At least 45 people were killed and 300 wounded in a series of truck-bomb and other attacks on Wednesday that rocked areas around official buildings in central Baghdad, the interior ministry said.  —  The explosions, at least …

In Appraisal Shift, Lenders Gain Power and Critics  —  Mike Kennedy, a real estate appraiser in Monroe, N.Y., was examining a suburban house a few years ago when he discovered five feet of water in the basement.  The mortgage broker arranging the owner's refinancing asked him to pretend it was not there.

Sweden newspaper: Israel kills Palestinians, harvests their organs  —  A leading Swedish newspaper reported this week that Israeli soldiers are abducting Palestinians in order to steal their organs, a claim that prompted furious condemnation and accusations of anti-Semitic blood libel from a rival publication.

Keep Off the Astroturf  —  WITH the “public option” part of President Obama's health care reform plan looking dead in the water, many of its supporters are taking issue with the legitimacy of its opposition.  “We call it ‘Astroturf,’ ” Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said of the protesters at town-hall meetings.

Woman yells ‘Heil Hitler’ to Jewish man praising Israel's national health care system.  —  Conservatives have strenuously denied that there is any anti-Semitism on display by anti-health reform protesters at town hall meetings nationwide — despite all the evidence to the contrary.

FIRST THOUGHTS: OBAMA'S GOOD, BAD NEWS  —  From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Ali Weinberg  —  *** Good news and bad news: The (relatively) good news for the Obama White House in the new NBC News poll is that the contours of the health-care debate haven't really changed …

Science proves zombies could annihilate humans  —  If zombies actually existed, an attack by them would lead to the collapse of civilisation unless dealt with quickly and aggressively.  —  That is the conclusion of a mathematical exercise carried out by researchers in Canada.

CNN Fails to Report Woman Comparing Obama to Hitler is a Lyndon LaRouche Democrat  —  CNN's Larry King showed the above video of Barney Frank laying the smack down on a woman at a townhall meeting who compared Obama to Hitler.  CNN left out the fact that this woman is a Lyndon LaRouche Democrat.

State AGs back Obama on financial oversight agency  —  State attorneys general are pushing Congress to set up a federal agency to oversee consumer financial products, backing one of the most controversial aspects of President Barack Obama's proposed financial regulatory overhaul.

Danish Conservatives Call for Burqa Ban  —  The immigration spokesman for Denmark's Conservative Party is calling for a ban on the wearing of burqas in public.  He says the garment was introduced by the Taliban and is “not Islamic at all.”  —  Denmark's Conservative Party said this week …

Kyl Says Concerns Over Illegal Immigration Are Valid  —  Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) on Tuesday defended critics of Democratic health care reform plans who claim the proposals would provide subsidized health care to illegal immigrants.  Kyl said Democrats have long sought …

Luxury Getaways for the President: Martha's Vineyard and Beyond  —  President Obama's Martha's Vineyard Getaway Is Expected to Cost Tens of Thousands; Where Else Could He Go for That Kind of Money?  —  ABC NEWS Business Unit  —  What can tens of thousands of dollars buy for a family vacation?

N.M. governor to meet with N. Korean envoys  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Two top North Korean diplomats were traveling to Santa Fe, New Mexico, to hold talks with Gov. Bill Richardson, the governor's spokesman said.  —  Kim Myong Gil and Taek Jong Ho, senior diplomats with the North Korean mission …