CBO numbers  —  House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) just released the first set of Congressional Budget Office numbers to reporters this morning.  —  The bill would cost $940 billion, and reduce the deficit by $130 billion over the first 10 years and $1.2 trillion in the second 10 years.

President Barack Obama Talks to Bret Baier About Health Care Reform Bill  —  This is a rush transcript of “Special Report With Bret Baier” from March 17, 2010.  This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.  —  BRET BAIER, “SPECIAL REPORT” HOST: Welcome to Washington.

Stupak: Health fight has been ‘a living hell’  —  Leading a revolt against President Barack Obama's healthcare legislation over abortion has been a “living hell” for Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.).  —  The telephone lines in his Washington and district offices have been “jammed” …

Don't Be Morose!  Get Even!  —  David Brooks says he's out on the ledge, morose, and about to have a “Howard Beale” moment.  Just last week he was telling us that Obama was a misunderstood moderate.  Now he confesses that Obama is aiding and abetting unlawfulness of the worst kind.  He explains:

Steve Levy Plans Switch to G.O.P., Stirring Governor's Race  —  ALBANY — A governor's race that seemed all but settled is about to be upended again, by a popular Democrat from Long Island who is set to announce that he is switching parties.  The move is certain to excite Republican leaders pessimistic …

Obama's pitch: Fate of presidency on the line  —  President Barack Obama had exhausted most of his health care reform arguments with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus during a White House meeting last Thursday when he made a more personal pitch that resonated with many skeptics in the room.

I-Team: DOJ Serves Subpoenas in Senator Ensign Investigation  —  LAS VEGAS — Nevada Senator John Ensign is in the crosshairs of a Department of Justice criminal investigation.  —  The criminal probe stems from a romantic affair Ensign had with the wife of his key staffer and close friend …

Ailes to the DC Staff: No More Shooting Inside the Tent  —  Fox News founder and chairman Roger Ailes dropped in to the Washington Bureau this afternoon for an impromptu talk to the troops ahead of tonight's RTCA dinner.  —  Sources inside the packed newsroom tell TVNewser Ailes started …

Gloomy Americans Bash Congress, Are Divided on Obama  —  Health Care Reform - Can't Live With It, or Without It  —  As the day of reckoning for health care reform approaches, Americans have little to cheer about.  Nearly everyone (92%) gives the national economy a negative rating.

Code Red Moves Cardoza and Costa to “Yes” Votes on Gov't Healthcare Takeover After Water Deal  —  Is this Another Backroom Deal to Force Obama's Bill Down the American People's Throats?  —  As a vote approaches on Obama and Pelosi's government takeover of healthcare, Code Red is now considering …

Access, Access, Access  —  First, a question: When in American history did life expectancy improve the most?  —  Was it the late 1800s, when anesthesia made surgery easier and far more common?  Was it the 1930s, when antibacterial medicines became available?  Or recent decades, when CAT scans and heart bypasses proliferated?

The Return Of Betsy McCaughey?  (Updated)  —  Just when you thought things couldn't possibly get any weirder in NYS politics...  A reader who lives in Manhattan reports he received a poll call last night that appeared to be testing the viability of former LG Betsy McCaughey as a statewide candidate …

Field Poll: Campbell leads GOP Senate field; Boxer fades  —  WASHINGTON - Former Rep. Tom Campbell has a six-point lead over his closest challenger in the three-way Republican primary to face Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, whose popularity has significantly eroded in the past two months, according to a Field Poll released today.

Walgreens: no new Medicaid patients as of April 16  —  Effective April 16, Walgreens drugstores across the state won't take any new Medicaid patients, saying that filling their prescriptions is a money-losing proposition — the latest development in an ongoing dispute over Medicaid reimbursement.

Madoff Was Beaten in Prison  —  Ponzi Schemer Was Assaulted by Another Inmate in December; Officials Deny Incident  —  The Butner federal prison in July.  A man who served time with Bernard Madoff there says the financier gave him investment advice.  —  Bernard Madoff, who is serving …

WellPoint Failed To Deliver Tens Of Millions Of Dollars It Promised To Help Uninsured Americans  —  Health insurance companies have always claimed that they support “affordable, high-quality health care for every American” and are supportive of health care reform efforts and not simply concerned with their profits.