Hotheaded Emanuel may be White House voice of reason  —  Rahm Emanuel is officially a Washington caricature.  He's the town's resident leviathan, a bullying, bruising White House chief of staff who is a prime target for the failings of the Obama administration.

Collins Tries to Stop Bunning Filibuster  —  Senate Republicans sought Tuesday to insulate themselves from the damage caused by Sen. Jim Bunning's (R-Ky.) filibuster of a bill that would extend unemployment and health benefits and highway programs.  —  Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) …

Feel the Kausmentum  —  With the valuable Glenn Reynolds and Jonah Goldberg endorsements in hand, Mickey Kaus' bid for a Democratic Party primary win is looking more solid than ever.  —  That said, I'm going to go counter-counterintuitive here and say that if some weird process put Mickey Kaus …

Why I'm Not Running for the Senate  —  WHEN it was reported two months ago that I was thinking seriously about running for the United States Senate from New York, Democratic Party insiders started their own campaign to bully me out of the race — just as they had done with Representatives Carolyn Maloney, Steve Israel and others.

Coffee Party Parasites  —  The New York Times and Washington Post are promoting a group called the “Coffee Party” organized by filmmaker Annabel Park.  —  The Coffee Party is a political parasite which presents itself as something it is not.  As reported in the NY Times [see update below] …

The Best DA Money Can Buy?  ACORN DA Lets ACORN Off The Hook (UPDATED)  —  Today it was announced that ACORN will not face prosecution in Brooklyn. … Should anyone be surprised?  The Brooklyn DA is a member of the ACORN/Working Families Party.  That means he signed their pledge, and worked for their endorsement.

Roger Ebert takes to Twitter to give tea party followers a thumb's down  —  The film reviewer is aiming barbs at Sarah Palin and other conservatives.  —  Who's the biggest scourge of the tea party movement these days?  It might be film critic Roger Ebert, who lately has been tossing brickbats …

D.C. journalist provided 'writer's advice'  —  A prominent Washington journalist and former Globe reporter is among the many advisers and political experts who helped Mitt Romney write “No Apology,” according to the book's acknowledgments.  —  “Nina Easton, the noted journalist and commentator …

Postal Service expected to announce ‘significant changes’  —  The U.S. Postal Service will release projections Tuesday that confirm for the first time the suspicion that mail volume will never return to pre-recession levels.  In response, the agency is pushing anew for a dramatic reshaping …

Same-sex marriage leads Catholic Charities to adjust benefits  —  Employees at Catholic Charities were told Monday that the social services organization is changing its health coverage to avoid offering benefits to same-sex partners of its workers — the latest fallout from a bitter debate …

President Obama Follows Up on Thursday's Bipartisan Meeting on Health Reform  —  Last Thursday the President hosted a unique, open conversation with leaders from both parties in Congress to hear everyone's ideas about how to finally put American families and small businesses in control of their health care.

Paterson Said to Direct Aides to Influence Abuse Case  —  ALBANY — Gov. David A. Paterson personally directed two state officials to contact the woman who had accused his close aide of assaulting her, according to two people with direct knowledge of the governor's actions.