Justice Official Clears Bush Lawyers in Torture Memo Probe  —  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 and his handling of the Christmas bombing plot suspect.  Now the left is going to be upset …

Harkin: Health deal was reached days before Brown's victory  —  Sen. Tom Harkin, the chairman of the Senate Health Committee, said negotiators from the White House, Senate and House reached a final deal on healthcare reform days before Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts.

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.

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 …

Un-frickin-believable: U.S. Military Serving as Chauffeurs, Babysitters for the Pelosi Kids: Receipts That Will Blow Your Mind  —  Meet the Pelosi family!  Using Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, Judicial Watch uncovered thousands of pages of travel documents related to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's use of military aircraft.

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 …

Justice Dept.: Obama administration may take action on BCS  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration is considering several steps that would review the legality of the controversial Bowl Championship Series, the Justice Department said in a letter Friday to a senator who had asked for an antitrust review.

Obama's Stunning Admission  —  There's been a remarkable amount of coverage of President Obama's appearance at the House Republican retreat today, but I haven't seen anyone focus on the President's rather stunning admission about the Democrats' health care legislation (Video):

President Obama's Tax Credit for Cutting Jobs  —  The country is currently suffering through the worst downturn since the Great Depression, with 15 million people unemployed.  That might seem a strange time to introduce a tax credit that would give companies an incentive to hire fewer workers …

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.

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 …

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.

LIMBAUGH LETS LOOSE  —  Rush Limbaugh is already creating buzz as a judge at the Miss America pageant: Seems the man knows how to bust a move.  —  On Thursday night, in between rounds of competition, the judges competed for their own crown: “Judge of the Night.”

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.