Obama Is Against a Compromise on Bush Tax Cuts  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama on Wednesday will make clear that he opposes any compromise that would extend the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy beyond this year, officials said, adding a populist twist to an election-season economic package …

Mitch Daniels has a plan  —  I'm impressed by Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels's op-ed laying out his proposal for “a time-limited, emergency growth program.”  It's a real plan, with concrete policy ideas that might actually make a difference.  It's mercifully free from vague hand-waving about business uncertainty and government spending.

Right Wing Leaders Plan To Use September 11th Anniversary To Make Money  —  Last year, Glenn Beck and a variety of right-wing organizations and corporate front groups exploited the anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks to stage a protest of President Obama.

Health Insurers Plan Hikes  —  Rate Increases Are Blamed on Health-Care Overhaul; White House Questions Logic  —  Health insurers say they plan to raise premiums for some Americans as a direct result of the health overhaul in coming weeks, complicating Democrats' efforts to trumpet …

Obama may look inside for Rahm job  —  Amid mounting signs that Rahm Emanuel will leave the White House to run for mayor in Chicago, Democratic insiders say President Barack Obama is likely to choose a new chief of staff who's already in his orbit but has experience with previous administrations.

Andy Griffith throws away 50 years of good faith in 30 seconds  —  Recently, HHS recruited none other than Andy Griffith to shill for Obamacare:  —  That's right, folks, just forget everything you know and trust ol' Sheriff Andy.  Would Opie's pa lie to ya?  'Course he wouldn't.

Long Island Man Arrested For Defending Home With AK-47  —  Says Many Gang Members Were Coming After His Family  —  UNIONDALE, N.Y. (CBS 2) — He was arrested for protecting his property and family.  —  But it's how the Long Island man did it that police say crossed the line.

Light bulb factory closes; End of era for U.S. means more jobs overseas  —  WINCHESTER, VA. - The last major GE factory making ordinary incandescent light bulbs in the United States is closing this month, marking a small, sad exit for a product and company that can trace their roots to Thomas Alva Edison's innovations in the 1870s.

Terry Jones Accused of ‘Spiritual Abuse’ at Cologne Church  —  US fundamentalist pastor Terry Jones, who wants to burn copies of the Koran on Sept. 11, ran a church in the western German city of Cologne until last year when members of the congregation expelled him.

GOP House Candidate On Civil Rights: ‘We Need To Get Our Federal Government Out Of The Way’  —  Fireworks occurred during a town hall in Canton, OH, last night when Rep. John Boccieri (D-OH) unexpectedly showed up at his Republican opponent's public event.  Challenger Jim Renacci …

CNN/Time Poll: All Tied up in California races  —  It's neck and neck in California's Senate and gubernatorial battles, according to a new poll.  —  (CNN) - It's too close to call in California's Senate and gubernatorial battles, according to a new poll.  —  A CNN/Time/Opinion Research …

Building on Faith  —  AS my flight approached America last weekend, my mind circled back to the furor that has broken out over plans to build Cordoba House, a community center in Lower Manhattan.I have been away from home for two months, speaking abroad about cooperation among people from different religions.

Tri-C students recruited to fill the seats for Obama's appearance  —  PARMA, Ohio - With less than an hour before President Obama's scheduled speech, 75 seats remained empty in the recreation center at Cuyahoga Community College's Western Campus.  —  So organizers went around campus and recruited more students to fill the seats.

Paul campaign: Online impersonator was impersonated  —  I posted yesterday that DailyKos appeared to have caught a Rand Paul staffer pretending, in the comments, to be a progressive with doubts about Jack Conway.  Paul aide Gary Howard, however, tells me — and has evidence to back it up …

Politics on Film, but This Time Leaning Right  —  LOS ANGELES — After Michael Moore screened his anti-Bush documentary “Fahrenheit 9/11” for Hollywood's assembled royalty at the headquarters of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences six years ago, the crowd broke out in a noisy ovation that it did not want to stop.

Mitt Romney: ‘Burning the Quran is wrong’  —  Presumed GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney came out Wednesday against the planned burning of the Quran by a Florida pastor, saying that doing so would endanger American troops.  —  “Burning the Quran is wrong on every level,” …

Obama For Mayor!  —  He knows Chicago's neighborhoods.  He built a diverse coalition in a city sorely in need of new leadership.  Maybe Barack Obama is in the wrong job.  —  Richard Daley's decision to retire as mayor of Chicago at the end of his term has thrown the city into a minor panic.

Boehner: Roll back spending to 2008 levels, extend all tax cuts  —  With everyone focused on Barack Obama's hard pivot to the economy — which has taken him nine months to accomplish — John Boehner appeared on ABC's Good Morning America and stole a march on the President.

Fidel: 'Cuban Model Doesn't Even Work For Us Anymore'  —  There were many odd things about my recent Havana stopover (apart from the dolphin show, which I'll get to shortly), but one of the most unusual was Fidel Castro's level of self-reflection.  I only have limited experience with Communist autocrats …

Voters hate Republicans but are planning to vote for them anyway: The non-paradox  —  Matthew Yglesias writes: … This reminds me of one of my favorite pieces of philosophical writing, What the Tortoise Said to Achilles, by Lewis Carroll.  In this story, Achilles gives the Tortoise the following three propositions:

SO MUCH FOR THE GREAT GALLUP FREAK-OUT.... Last week, Gallup's generic-ballot tracking poll showed Republicans leading Democrats by 10, 51% to 41%.  It was billed as the GOP's biggest Gallup lead in the history of humanity, and the results generated massive media attention, including a stand-alone Washington Post piece on page A2.

In November, It's Democrats vs. Obamacare  —  There are 31 anti-Obamacare Democrats, but none with the guts to cross Pelosi.  —  When Obamacare finally passed the House, 34 Democrats voted no. Thirty-one of those Democrats are now running for reelection, and, not surprisingly …