Webb won't seek reelection  —  Virginia Democratic Senator Jim Webb plans to announce today that he won't seek reelection, the Senator confirmed Wednesday.  —  Webb appeared likely to face a rematch with former Senator George Allen, whom he beat in a bruising 2006 contest.

Patriot Act extension fails in the House by seven votes  —  House Republicans suffered an embarrassing setback Tuesday when they fell seven votes short of extending provisions of the Patriot Act, a vote that served as the first small uprising of the party's tea-party bloc.

Obama's Approval Rating on Deficit Sinks to New Low  —  Egypt ranks among issues on which Obama is best rated  —  PRINCETON, NJ — President Barack Obama's approval rating for handling the federal budget deficit has gone from bad to worse in recent months, even as his ratings …

Arianna Huffington's ideological transformation  —  Did Arianna Huffington just sell out her fellow progressives?  —  In the literal sense, she undoubtedly has: The sale of Huffington Post to AOL for $315 million (including a large pile of cash going to Huffington herself) …

Democrats: Justice Thomas should recuse himself in healthcare reform case  —  A group of 73 House Democrats on Wednesday demanded U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas recuse himself from any case examining the constitutionality of healthcare reform.  —  Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) …

Labor  —  Surveying the GOP's latest efforts to usher forth a particular species of fiscal responsibility, I was recalled to a bit of personal history, which I try to not to think about.  Like a lot of couples, the notice that our family would increase by a half was greeted with great joy.

Monetary Policy Hearing Today, or: Ron Paul Versus the Kochtopus.  —  Ron Paul is holding one of his first monetary policy hearings today, and he hasn't sold out.  Ron Paul is from the school of libertarians that hates D.C. libertarians, which is weird since Ron Paul is one of the most well-known libertarians …

Who's Policing Amtrak Joe Biden's Rail Boondoggles?  —  At Philadelphia's 30th Street Station on Tuesday, lifelong government rail promoter Vice President Joe Biden unveiled a $53 billion high-speed train initiative and half-joked: “I'm like the ombudsman for Amtrak.”

ABC7 poll: Emanuel leading mayor's race  —  ABC7's exclusive poll on the Chicago mayor's race provides a snapshot of how the candidates are doing as we head into the final two weeks of the campaign.  —  Rahm Emanuel's 54 percent share in the survey suggests an overwhelming lead …

At CPAC, the race for second place as Paul goes all out  —  The Conservative Political Action Conference's annual straw poll typically indicates three things: Whom CPAC's segment of the conservative base prefers for president; who bought tickets for their supporters; and whether Ron Paul is really trying.

Insurance reality hits House GOP  —  Ask any House Republican about repealing President Barack Obama's health care law, and you'll get the same fiery, self-assured talking points about tearing down what Speaker John Boehner has called a “monstrosity.”  —  But talk to some of the 16 freshman lawmakers …

RNC's former Tampa convention team spent $1 million  —  TAMPA - They rented an exclusive waterfront mansion, wined and dined at five-star restaurants and hired family members and friends, all on the taxpayers' dime.  —  Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele's 2012 convention team based …

Breaking the Sarah Palin Trademark Story: A Lesson in Journalism Ethics … Sometimes a light bulb goes off.  —  One night at 2 a.m. I was reading a story by Matt Lewis about Herman Cain, a possible 2012 presidential candidate from Georgia.  Pursuing the Cain story further …

Is ‘Eat Real Food’ Unthinkable?  —  In recent weeks we've seen a big, powerful government agency, a big, powerful person and a big, powerful corporation telling us what to eat.  Even with all this big, powerful input, we know nothing that we didn't know last year.

Saudi oil reserves ‘overstated by 40%’  —  US diplomat convinced by Saudi expert that reserves of world's biggest oil exporter have been overstated by nearly 40%  —  • Peak oil alarm revealed by secret official talks  —  • Datablog: Are we running out of oil?