Justice Official Clears Bush Lawyers in Torture Memo Probe  —  By Michael Isikoff and Daniel Klaidman  —  Excerpt from the Aug. 1, 2002, ‘Torture Memo’:  —  For weeks, the right has heckled Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. for his plans to try the alleged 9/11 conspirators in New York City …

Fox Cuts Away From Obama-GOP Conversation In Order To Get A Head Start On Attacks: He Was ‘Lecturing’  —  President Obama held a candid, face-to-face conversation with House Republicans today at their annual retreat in Baltimore.  After Obama gave his remarks, he had to answer tough questions …

Deficit of Trust: Most Voters Don't Believe President's Assertions About Economy  —  During his State-of-the-Union address Wednesday night, President Obama spoke about a deficit of trust between the American people and political leaders.  New Rasmussen Reports polling on the president's speech shows …

SNOWE ACKNOWLEDGES HEALTH CARE TALKS.... There were reports this week that some Senate Democrats had once again decided to reach out to Maine's Republican senators, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, about health care reform.  Yesterday, Snowe acknowledged some talks had, in fact, already occurred.

World hunger and the locavores  —  Every so often at Davos you have a short, startling conversation which completely changes the way you think about a subject — and I just had one of those standing next to Dan Barber, the chef of Blue Hill Farm.  He's a very smart, very funny guy …

Climate chief was told of false glacier claims before Copenhagen  —  The chairman of the leading climate change watchdog was informed that claims about melting Himalayan glaciers were false before the Copenhagen summit, The Times has learnt.  —  Rajendra Pachauri was told that the Intergovernmental Panel …

Scott Brown: 'People Aren't Stupid'  —  'And leaders should figure out they're better informed now than ever.'  —  When I arrived at his cramped state senate offices, Scott Brown had just opened one of the many packages he's received since his stunning U.S. Senate victory 11 days ago.

Duncan: Katrina Was The “Best Thing” for New Orleans School System  —  ABC News' Mary Bruce Reports: Education Secretary Arne Duncan said today that Hurricane Katrina was “the best thing that happened to the education system in New Orleans” because it gave the city a chance to rebuild and improve its failing public schools.

Amazon Pulls Macmillan Books Over E-Book Price Disagreement  —  As Venture Beat and other blogs have noticed Friday evening, books from Macmillan, one of the largest publishers in the United States, have vanished from Amazon.com.  —  The question is why.  —  I've talked to a person …

Cossack Rahm Works For The Czar  —  Ezra Klein finds Rahm Emanuel's apparent willingness to let health reform slide into the indefinite future very depressing.  So do I. And it's not just health reform that will die under this approach — it's the road to a caretaker presidency.

RNC rejects ideological ‘purity test’ resolution to screen candidates  —  Top Republicans have tossed a plan that would have conditioned their funding for new candidates on a so-called ideological “purity test.”  —  Party leaders gathered in Honolulu for the Republican National Committee's winter meeting …

WILLING TO TAKE THE RISK.... Congressional Republicans decided quite a while ago to reject compromise at all costs and block the Democratic majority from governing.  Sam Stein reported yesterday that some in the GOP are starting to second guess the strategy. … Well, sort of.

‘Washington Times’ Hires Sam Dealey as New Editor  —  The Washington Times, recently hit with a 50 percent staff cut and elimination of its top editors, has settled on a young and prolific reporter as its new editor.  —  Sources say Sam Dealey, 36, will be announced on Monday as the replacement …

Obama v. the Supremes  —  Alito wins the oral, and factual, argument.  —  In the case of Barack Obama v. Supreme Court of the United States, that was some oral argument on Wednesday night.  With the Justices arrayed a few feet in front of him in the House chamber, President Obama blistered …

Letting You Know About Some “Better Solutions”  —  On Wednesday night, the president asked us to “let him know” if we had any better ideas, and today John Boehner handed him a compilation of the policy alternatives that have been advanced over the past year.