Eat The Future  —  On Friday, House Republicans unveiled their proposal for immediate cuts in federal spending.  Uncharacteristically, they failed to accompany the release with a catchy slogan.  So I'd like to propose one: Eat the Future.  —  I'll explain in a minute.

Iran police fire tear gas at opposition rally in Tehran  —  Security services have kept a high profile in Tehran to try to prevent rallies  —  Iranian police have fired tear gas at opposition demonstrators gathering in central Tehran in support of the protests in Egypt.

Word and Lyric, Giffords Labors to Speak Again  —  PHOENIX — Representative Gabrielle Giffords, an eloquent speaker before she was shot in the head last month, is relearning the skill — progressing from mouthing words and lip syncing songs to talking briefly by telephone to her brother-in-law in space.

Flake to announce Senate run  —  Rep. Jeff Flake will announce on Monday that he is running for the Senate seat being vacated by Jon Kyl, who said last week that he is retiring and will not seek reelection in 2012.  —  Flake, who like Kyl is a Republican, is expected to make his announcement …

Birther debate alive across U.S.  —  The opening of 2011 state legislative sessions has been accompanied by a spate of birther-related bills, the clearest indication yet that the controversy surrounding President Barack Obama's place of birth will continue to simmer throughout his reelection campaign.

Journalists angry over the commission of journalism  —  (updated below)  —  Over the weekend, The Los Angeles' Times James Rainey mocked CNN's Anderson Cooper for repeatedly using the word “lie” to describe the factually false statements of Egyptian leaders.

Housing Crash Is Hitting Cities Once Thought to Be Stable  —  SEATTLE — Few believed the housing market here would ever collapse.  Now they wonder if it will ever stop slumping.  —  The rolling real estate crash that ravaged Florida and the Southwest is delivering a new wave of distress …

‘A weapon of mass destruction was found in the U.S.’: Shock confession of Customs officer  —  A port official has admitted that a ‘weapon of mass effect’ has been found by ‘partner agencies’ in the U.S., raising major questions over a possible government cover-up.

Democrats claim political victory from CPAC  —  Democrats and President Obama gathered the most momentum from this past weekend's gathering of conservative activists, the party claimed Monday.  —  The Democratic National Committee (DNC) sought to spin the now-concluded Conservative Political …

At Media Companies, a Nation of Serfs  —  Some of the fizz, if not a great big bubble, seems to have returned to media, depending on how you define “media.”  —  There have been reports in The New York Times and elsewhere that Facebook is now valued at $50 billion, and The Wall Street Journal reported …

Barbour going to Iowa  —  In another sign that he's moving toward a presidential bid, Haley Barbour will visit Iowa next month, POLITICO has learned.  —  The Mississippi governor will keynote a March 15 dinner in Scott County, the first of a year-long series of Iowa Republican Party fundraisers aimed at bolstering county parties.

Would Women Support Newt Gingrich for President? … It's November 2012 and voters have a choice between President Barack Obama and former Speaker Newt Gingrich.  Given the gulf between their personal lives, what's a social conservative to do?  More to the point, what would moderate and independent women do?

Boehner and the Birthers.  —  Sigh: … I guess there are a couple of ways to look at this.  One is that Boehner is so cynical that he won't repudiate ideas based on even the most blatant bigotry and hatred if he thinks they might provide the smallest political benefit to his party.

The U.S. Government: An insurance conglomerate protected by a large, standing army  —  American politics is one long argument about what government should or shouldn't be doing, and how it should or shouldn't be doing it.  It's rare that we step back, take in the larger picture and ask what it is doing.

Wall Street's Dead End  —  THE stock market has been big news in recent days.  Last week's report that Deutsche Börse, a giant German exchange, intends to buy the New York Stock Exchange, creating a company worth some $24 billion, arrived shortly after the Dow broke the 12,000-point barrier …