Justice Alito mouths ‘not true’  —  POLITICO's Kasie Hunt, who's in the House chamber, reports that Justice Samuel Alito mouthed the words “not true” when President Barack Obama criticized the Supreme Court's campaign finance decision.  —  “Last week, the Supreme Court reversed a century …

Hackers Hit House Websites  —  Hackers struck at least 10 House websites overnight, substituting expletives aimed at Pres. Obama just hours after his State of the Union address.  —  The hackers targeted many House Dem freshmen, including Reps. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Harry Teague (D-NM) …

J. D. Salinger, Enigmatic Author, Dies at 91  —  J. D. Salinger, who was thought at one time to be the most important American writer to emerge since World War II but who then turned his back on success and adulation, becoming the Garbo of letters, famous for not wanting to be famous …

Landrieu: Bill on “life support”  —  If President Barack Obama hoped his State of the Union speech would revive the health care debate on Capitol Hill, signs of movement were not immediately apparent Thursday.  —  Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) said health care reform “is on life support …

I Just Remembered Chris Matthews Was White  —  Here's Matthews on Obama: … I think it's worth noting that Chris Matthews wasn't trying to take a shot at anybody.  I also think it's worth noting that he was attempting to compliment Obama and say something positive about what he's done for race relations.

Scientists in stolen e-mail scandal hid climate data  —  Ben Webster, Environment Editor, and Jonathan Leake  —  The university at the centre of the climate change row over stolen e-mails broke the law by refusing to hand over its raw data for public scrutiny.

Blackburn Will Not Attend Opryland Tea Party Convention  —  From Blackburn spokesman Claude Chafin: … From Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn herself: … The Tea Party Convention and its sponsor organization, Tea Party Nation, have been under fire as of late by former members of the group.

Election 2010: Wisconsin Senate  —  Wisconsin Senate: Thompson 47%, Feingold 43%  —  One more Democratic senator who has long been regarded as a safe prospect for reelection may be facing a challenging year in 2010.  —  A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely voters …

Photo Of The Day -Joint Chiefs Of Staff React To Obama's DADT Message  —  UPDATE: For those of you saying that protocol demands that the Joint Chiefs remain passive and non-reactive during presidential speeches, here's how they lept to their feet to applaud the president's threat to stick it to Iran over their nuclear program.

Pelosi: Obama's Health Care Appeal “Very Powerful” And “Helpful To Us”  —  There've been some rumblings among House Dems that Obama's speech last night, despite its urgent appeal for passage of health reform, didn't chart out a specific enough road map for Congress to break its logjam on the issue.

Giannoulias leads Kirk in poll  —  In a reminder that contested primaries can be a good thing Alexi Giannoulias has jumped out to a 42-34 lead over Mark Kirk in the race to be Illinois' next Senator.  When PPP last looked at such a match up in April the two were tied at 35.

United We Rant  —  My fellow Americans, the state of the union is angry.  Also strong.  Presidents usually say the state of the union is strong.  But this year you would have to go with strongly angry.  —  In his speech on Wednesday night, President Obama actually dropped that traditional state …

SEC to require disclosure of climate change risks  —  A politically divided Securities and Exchange Commission voted on Wednesday to make clear when companies must provide information to investors about the business risks associated with climate change.  —  The commission, in a 3 to 2 vote …

Populism: Just Like Racism! … Normally one would have to be in the grip of a narcissistic psychosis to think that a columnist for the New York Times has written an article for your personal benefit.  But after his latest article in the Times, in which he compares the “populism” of people who …

Economic Letter—Insights from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas  —  Vol. 5, No. 1  —  Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas  —  A Historical Look at the Labor Market During Recessions  —  Turmoil in housing, credit and financial markets plunged the U.S. economy into a recession that has taken a heavy toll on the labor market.

Backlash on W.H.'s backroom deals  —  A top House committee responded to the mounting voter backlash against backroom deals on health reform by seeking more information Wednesday about White House negotiations with industry groups.  —  Hours before President Barack Obama delivered his State …

Pentagon To Announce Some “Don't Ask” Details Next Week  —  Before President Obama announced last night that he would work with Congress and the Pentagon to end the military's ban on service by gays and lesbians, the White House consulted Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen …

Obama's Dull, Cheap, Successful Speech  —  President Obama's speeches have always been notable for both their exquisite prose and their unusually high intellectual level.  Tonight's speech, while probably as effective as such speeches can be, was neither.  —  The dropoff between rhetoric penned …