Darrell Issa reveals list of investigations  —  Rep. Darrell Issa is aiming to launch investigations on everything from WikiLeaks to Fannie Mae to corruption in Afghanistan in the first few months of what promises to be a high profile chairmanship of the top oversight committee in Congress.

Austerity is first order for Boehner's installation as House speaker  —  Nancy Pelosi brought camera crews and dignitaries into her childhood Baltimore neighborhood where a street was being renamed in her honor, while John Boehner is bringing his 11 siblings from working-class Ohio to Washington for a private reunion.

Majority of RNC against Michael Steele  —  Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele faces an all-but-impossible path to reelection this month, as a majority of the RNC's 168 members indicate that they will not support the controversial chairman for another term.

Deep Hole Economics  —  If there's one piece of economic wisdom I hope people will grasp this year, it's this: Even though we may finally have stopped digging, we're still near the bottom of a very deep hole.  —  Why do I need to point this out?  Because I've noticed many people overreacting to recent good economic news.

He Entered Congress Swinging, and Exits That Way  —  ORLANDO, Fla. — He has zero faith in the incoming speaker of the House, John A. Boehner, whom he calls a “tool of special interest.”  —  He derides the Tea Party's successes as “bought and paid for by the enormously rich and the selfish.”

Reform and the Filibuster  —  The new Senate will face one of its most momentous decisions in its opening hours on Wednesday: a vote on whether to change its rules to prohibit the widespread abuse of the filibuster.  Americans are fed up with Washington gridlock.  The Senate should seize the opportunity.

European nations begin seizing private pensions  —  Hungary, Poland, and three other nations take over citizens' pension money to make up government budget shortfalls.  —  People's retirement savings are a convenient source of revenue for governments that don't want to reduce spending or make privatizations.

The Febraury 2011 60 Minutes/Vanity Fair Poll  —  Americans are numerically at a loss after a trillion.  To balance the budget, most of them would choose to tax the rich.  And as far as memories go, they'd prefer to keep them.  (All of them.)  —  Numbers games this month: What comes after a trillion?

Is Charlie Crist a potential VP Pick...for Obama?  —  In spite of assertions made to the contrary by Vice President Joe Biden, speculation continues to swirl around the possibility that President Obama will replace Biden on the 2012 Presidential ticket for someone with less of a propensity …

Gov's future a hot topic of conversation  —  INDIANAPOLIS — Over the course of a few short days last week, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels was described by national political writers as wonkish, boring and short.  —  He was also called an “economic conservative who can appeal to the middle ground” …

The Unborn Paradox  —  The American entertainment industry has never been comfortable with the act of abortion.  Film or television characters might consider the procedure, but even on the most libertine programs (a “Mad Men,” a “Sex and the City"), they're more likely to have a change of heart than actually go through with it.

Garbage pile saves Vangelis (Angelo) Kapatos, 26, who tried to commit suicide in midtown  —  A suicidal man plummeted nine stories and survived in midtown Sunday when he landed on a mountain of trash that had piled up since last week's blizzard, officials said.

Mossad behind Egypt church blast  —  The explosion at a church in the Egyptian city of Alexandria, which left 21 people killed and another 80 Muslims and Christians wounded, raises one question: Who was behind the blast?  —  Although, at first glance, the finger is pointed at extremist Wahabi …

Medvedev signs decree to cut number of federal officials  —  Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed on Monday a decree reducing the number of federal officials by 20% until 2013, the Kremlin press service said.  —  According to the decree, the number of federal officials is to be reduced …

Female Navy Flier: Videos Taken Out of Context  —  Raunchy Videos Made Aboard the USS Enterprise Could Cost Commander His Job  —  A series of raunchy videos created and distributed aboard an aircraft carrier have been taken out of context, a former female Navy pilot said today.

Inclusionary Zoning  —  On the requests thread, Erik M wrote: … I'd like to say this as clearly and unequivocally as possible: I strongly support the idea of mixed-income neighborhoods.  I live in a mixed-income neighborhood now, I lived in a mixed-income neighborhood before I moved to this one …

Schwarzenegger commutes prison sentence of Fabian Nuñez's son [Updated]  —  In his final night before leaving office, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger commuted the prison sentence of the son of former Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez who had pleaded guilty to taking part in the slaying of a college student.

Russian Duma to link missile defense to START limitations  —  The Russian Duma delivered two embarrassing blows to the Obama administration over the holidays on the START treaty, one of which may end up scotching the deal altogether.  First, the Russian legislature refused to do what Barack Obama insisted …

Moving Beyond Fannie and Freddie  —  The experiences of other countries show there's no need for a government role in housing finance.  —  The new Congress, with a Republican House and a much narrower Democratic majority in the Senate, offers an opportunity for real reform of the housing-finance system.