Baucus and the Threshold  —  So Senator Max Baucus, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has released his “mark” on proposed legislation — which would normally be the basis for the bill that eventually emerges from his committee.  And serious supporters of health care reform will soon face their long-dreaded moment of truth.

Pelosi Chokes Up Warning Against Political “Violence”  —  Speaker Nancy Pelosi: “I have concerns about some of the language that is being used because I saw ... I saw this myself in the late '70s in San Francisco,” Pelosi said, choking up and with tears forming in her eyes.

AP NewsBreak: Nuke agency says Iran can make bomb  —  VIENNA (AP) - Experts at the world's top atomic watchdog are in agreement that Tehran has the ability to make a nuclear bomb and is on the way to developing a missile system able to carry an atomic warhead, according to a secret report seen by The Associated Press.

75 Percent of Oklahoma High School Students Can't Name the First President of the U.S.  —  OKLAHOMA CITY — Only one in four Oklahoma public high school students can name the first President of the United States, according to a survey released today.  —  The survey was commissioned …

How Time magazine enables Glenn Beck's lies  —  Four years ago, Time magazine devoted its cover story to a puff-piece profile of Ann Coulter, the right-wing ideologue best known for serial lies and wishing death upon those she disagrees with (journalists included).

Indefensible  —  President Obama knows how to put a smile on faces in Tehran and Moscow: This morning, he announced the abandonment of plans to develop a small missile-defense system in Eastern Europe.  —  This overturns one of the major diplomatic and national-security achievements of the Bush years.

Mass. House approves bill that would fill Kennedy seat  —  House lawmakers tonight approved legislation that gives Governor Deval Patrick the power to appoint a temporary successor to the late Edward M. Kennedy in the US Senate, putting Massachusetts on track to have a new senator in place by next week.

Polish PM wouldn't take U.S. calls  —  Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed today that he declined last night to take a call from the U.S. informing him of the decision to scrap planned missile-defense bases in his country.  —  Two U.S.-based sources close to the Polish government …

Analysis: ‘Racist’ claims defuse word's power  —  With the word being used so often, it's harder to define its meaning  —  Everybody's racist, it seems.  —  Republican Rep. Joe Wilson?  Racist, because he shouted “You lie!” at the first black president.  Health care protesters, affirmative action supporters?

Beck vs. Limbaugh  —  GOP media strategist Mark McKinnon thinks there are two people in the world who fear Glenn Beck — even if “neither will admit it.”  —  The first is Barack Obama.  —  The second is Rush Limbaugh.  —  Beck is on a huge roll.  Over the last month …

FOX News Poll: Americans Prefer Current System to Obama's Health Care Plan  —  Most Americans see no upside for their family in the health care reforms being considered in Washington and don't believe President Obama when he says his plan won't add “one dime” to the federal deficit.

ACORN=SEIU  —  Same Physical Address 1024 Elysian Fields, New Orleans  —  SEIU President on ACORN Advisory Board (Andrew Stern)  —  anys12799  —  Maybe we'll see some of the SEIU-ACORN ties in response to the Louisiana Subpoena that requests ACORN and ALL affiliates turn over books and records, and ties to the Rathke guys.

House votes to cut off funding, but 75 stand by ACORN  —  The House of Representatives just voted overwhelmingly to de-fund ACORN, 345-75.  The vote came on a Republican motion to recommit the educational loan bill.  As a result, the anti-ACORN provision made it into the House-passed bill.

Expand the House?  —  WASHINGTON — In America, democracy follows the simple principle of one person, one vote, right?  —  Unless, that is, you live in Montana, where your vote carries a little more than half as much weight in the House of Representatives as that of someone living in Rhode Island.

Obama as witch doctor: Racism or satire?  —  (CNN) — Posters portraying President Obama as a witch doctor may be racist, organizers of Tea Party protests say, but they reflect anger about where he is leading the country.  —  The posters, showing Obama wearing a feather headdress …

FBI quizzes Coloradan again in terror probe  —  DENVER, Colorado (CNN) — A Colorado resident at the center of a federal terrorism probe met with FBI agents for a second day Thursday as his lawyer disputed a report that bomb-making plans were found on the man's computer.

Procedure crafted for handling evolution-materials complaints  —  The state's top school board Wednesday approved procedures for residents who object to materials that challenge the teaching of evolution in public school science classes.  —  The rules, which were praised by evolution critics …

Quds day protests in Iran  —  Opposition activists are planning fresh protests today to coincide with the government-backed Quds day ceremony.  Can the opposition regain momentum since the violent suppression of the unrest over the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad?  Follow live updates

Indiana Court Strikes Down Voter ID Law  —  An Indiana appellate court on Thursday struck down a state law requiring voters to show identification — a law that the United States Supreme Court declared constitutional just last year.  —  The court said the law violated the Indiana constitution by not treating all voters impartially.