What I Saw at the Tea Party Convention  —  The attendees want politicians who will deliver on Obama's promise of clean and open government.  —  There were promises of transparency and of a new kind of collaborative politics where establishment figures listened to ordinary Americans.

Obama Making Plans to Use Executive Power  —  WASHINGTON — With much of his legislative agenda stalled in Congress, President Obama and his team are preparing an array of actions using his executive power to advance energy, environmental, fiscal and other domestic policy priorities.

Professor Said to Be Charged After 3 Are Killed in Alabama  —  Three faculty members at the University of Alabama in Huntsville were shot to death, and three other people were seriously wounded at a biology faculty meeting on Friday afternoon, university officials said.

Watching China Run  —  It was primarily a symbolic gesture.  Way back in 1979, in the midst of an energy crisis, Jimmy Carter had solar panels installed on the roof of the White House.  They were used to heat water for some White House staffers.  —  “A generation from now,” said Mr. Carter …

'We're Socialists, We're Not Marxists' — Lawrence O'Donnell Goes Nuclear on ‘Morning Joe’  —  Is there something in the water at MSNBC that makes everybody there crazy?  Morning Joe, which ought to be the premier political talk show on morning television — but won't be until it expands …

Troops Take Positions in Taliban Haven  —  KABUL, Afghanistan — American, Afghan and British troops occupied crucial positions across the Taliban stronghold of Marja on Saturday, encountering only sporadic fighting as they began the long and possibly bloody ordeal of house-to-house searches.

Obama signs Pay-Go law but also raises federal debt ceiling  —  President Barack Obama on Saturday congratulated Congress for restoring a requirement that the federal government spend only what it can afford — a day after authorizing $1.9 trillion more federal debt.

Obama names Islamic envoy  —  Reaching out to Muslims around the world, President Barack Obama used a taped video address on Saturday to make the surprise announcement that Rashad Hussein, deputy associate White House counsel, will serve as a special U.S. envoy to the 57-nation Organisation of the Islamic Conference.

The Endless Disappointment  —  TPM Reader JO keeps it real ...

Quayle: 51 Votes ‘Not What Our Founding Fathers Had In Mind’ (VIDEO)  —  Former Vice President Dan Quayle appeared on Fox News this afternoon to chip in his two cents on the health care debate.  Namely, he warned that using the reconciliation process would set a “very bad precedent” because a simple majority is just unconstitutional.

Utah condemns ‘climate alarmists’  —  The US's most Republican state passes bill disputing science of climate change, claiming emissions are ‘essentially harmless’  —  Carbon dioxide is “essentially harmless” to human beings and good for plants.  So now will you stop worrying about global warming?

House Republican Leaders Demand Halt to Talks on Compromise Bill  —  House Republican leaders on Friday demanded that House and Senate Democrats halt their ongoing efforts to resolve differences between the versions of major health care legislation adopted by each chamber late last year.