To Our Readers  —  This is only the second time in its nearly ten-year history that the Dish has gone silent.  The reason now is the same as the reason then.  When dealing with a delusional fantasist like Sarah Palin, it takes time to absorb and make sense of the various competing narratives that she tells about her life.

Obama: 'We've restored America's standing'  —  Beijing, China (CNN) — A little more than a year after his election, President Obama said his administration has laid the groundwork for success on global and domestic matters.  —  “I think that we've restored America's standing in the world …

Holder's Testimony — By: Andy McCarthy  —  They are in recess after opening statements and initial rounds of questions.  Here are some of the Attorney General's whoppers so far:  —  1. The “tragic shooting” at Ft. Hood.  What happened at Ft. Hood was a jihadist massacre — a terrorist act, not a tragedy.

Budget office: Health care bill costs $849 billion  —  Washington (CNN) — The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the Senate health care bill would cost $849 billion over 10 years, according to a senior Democratic source and an administration official.

Obama Approval Dips Below 50% For First Time, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Support For U.S. Troops In Afghanistan Drops Below 50%  —  President Barack Obama's job approval rating is 48 - 42 percent, the first time he has slipped below the 50 percent threshold nationally …

In Senate vote, signs of shift on Guantanamo Bay detainees  —  The Senate on Tuesday rejected an attempt to bar using funds from a defense spending bill to build or modify prisons in the United States to hold detainees from Guantanamo Bay, a move that suggested congressional Democrats …

$500 Million and Apology From Goldman  —  How much good will can an apology — and half a billion dollars — buy?  A lot, Goldman Sachs is hoping.  —  After first staunchly defending its outsize profits and pay, and then bristling at calls for restraint in these tough economic times …

Palin: ‘Death Panels’ Are Like Reagan's ‘Evil Empire’  —  ABC News' Rick Klein reports:  —  Sarah Palin is acknowledging that “death panels” aren't part of Democrats' health care bills.  —  But, she says, she's been talking about them to make a point — and she's comparing her use of the term …

Union blocks teacher bonuses  —  Grinchlike union bosses are blocking at least 200 of Boston's best teachers from pocketing bonuses for their classroom heroics in a puzzling move that gets a failing grade from education experts.  —  The Boston Teachers Union staunchly opposes a performance bonus plan …

Conservative cowards  —  American liberals are tough on terrorists and secure in their knowledge that the Sept. 11 conspirators are guilty of mass murder.  American conservatives are timid cowards who fear that the U.S. government can't actually prove that the Sept. 11 killers committed their heinous crimes.

Tight in Missouri  —  When PPP polled the Missouri Senate race in January Robin Carnahan led by one point.  Fast forward ten months and nothing has changed.  Carnahan leads Roy Blunt 43-42.  —  It's a good sign for Carnahan that her status hasn't worsened as things have gone sour in general …

Somali woman stoned for adultery  —  A 20-year-old woman accused of committing adultery in Somalia has been stoned to death by Islamists in front of a crowd of about 200 people.  —  A judge working for the militant group al-Shabab said she had had an affair with an unmarried 29-year-old man.

Washington Sketch: Republican senators do an about-face on judicial filibusters  —  In their quest to thwart President Obama, Republicans do not fear the hobgoblin of consistency.  —  For much of this decade, Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, now the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee …