Mubarak Steps Down, Ceding Power to Military  —  CAIRO — President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt turned over all power to the military and left the Egyptian capital for his resort home in Sharm el-Sheik, Vice President Omar Suleiman announced on state television on Friday.

Utah Sen. Mike Lee says he won't back Orrin Hatch in GOP Senate primary  —  Sen. Mike Lee (R) said Friday that he wouldn't endorse fellow Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch (R) for reelection in the 2012 GOP Senate primary.  —  Lee, a freshman senator allied with the conservative Tea Party movement …

Paul Ryan's Limited Imagination  —  Everyone knows that Ron Paul has some crank notions about monetary economics, but Paul Ryan's own crankitude on this score is badly underrated.  Will Wilkinson, for example, flags this alarming quote from Ryan's participation in a recent committee hearing with Ben Bernanke:

Paul Supporters Hijack Cheney-Rumsfeld Reunion (Video)  —  ***LIVE UPDATES FROM CPAC ON TPM's CPAC 2011 WIRE***  —  Dick Cheney just popped up here at CPAC to introduce his old pal and Bush administration colleague Donald Rumsfeld.  Fans of Ron Paul turned what should have been a friendly moment …

Oprah wants ‘respect’ for Obama  —  Oprah Winfrey (left) and Barack Obama attend a campaign event in Dec. 2007.  AP Photo  —  Oprah called on President Obama's critics on Friday to “show some level of respect.”  —  “I feel that everybody has a learning curve, and I feel that the reason …

John Cornyn jumps into heated GOP whip race  —  Texas Sen. John Cornyn, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, is running for the No. 2 position in the GOP Conference, an aide told POLITICO Friday.  —  “Let there be no mistake about it: Sen. Cornyn is running for whip,” a senior aide to Cornyn said.

Relaxed, Rested, Ready  —  Strong Romney appearance at CPAC.  —  Includes glib gibes at Obama, focus on the economy, and polished/relaxed stump-speech feel.  —  Current odds that Romney leaves CPAC as the '12 frontrunner (still): 7-5.  —  Tweet  — FAN - FOLLOW - FEED … Politics

Republicans turn Congress into ‘clogged toilet,’ says Democratic lawmaker  —  One of the Democrats' fieriest voices on Capitol Hill accused the Republicans of turning Congress into a “clogged toilet.”  —  Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) said Friday that House Republicans were blocking …

Multiculturalism has failed, says French president  —  PARIS (AFP) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy declared Thursday that multiculturalism had failed, joining a growing number of world leaders or ex-leaders who have condemned it.  —  “My answer is clearly yes, it is a failure,” …

New mobile food rules ensnare man who pushed for changes  —  Snappy Snacks trucks struggle to pass fire department inspections.  —  In 2009 Tom Ramsey pressed the City of Austin to add teeth to the city's mobile food vending ordinance.  —  Ramsey might have seemed an unlikely advocate …

From freedom agenda to freedom doctrine  —  Today, everyone and his cousin supports the “freedom agenda.”  Of course, yesterday it was just George W. Bush, Tony Blair and a band of neocons with unusual hypnotic powers who dared challenge the received wisdom of Arab exceptionalism …

Emanuel at 49%, Chico at 19% in Tribune/WGN poll  —  Moseley Braun drops to 10%; del Valle at 8%  —  Rahm Emanuel is in striking distance of being elected Chicago's next mayor on Feb. 22, with Gery Chico emerging as the rival with the best chance of forcing him into a runoff, a new Tribune/WGN poll shows.

Hospitals Shift Smoking Bans to Smoker Ban  —  Smokers now face another risk from their habit: it could cost them a shot at a job.  —  More hospitals and medical businesses in many states are adopting strict policies that make smoking a reason to turn away job applicants …

The Freedom Alliance  —  Over the past few weeks, I've had a chance to interview some amazing people.  I sat down with Bill Gates, who was in Washington to try to keep the looming budget cuts from decimating the foreign aid programs.  —  I sat down with scientists and university presidents …