Scott Walker Asked to Leave Local Restaurant  —  Come looking for an article about Scott Walker being booted from a Madison restaurant?  Yes, you came to the right place, but at the request of the restaurant owner due to abusive phone calls, the article has been hidden for the time being.

The Real Political Math In Wisconsin … WASHINGTON — The real political math in Wisconsin isn't about the state budget or the collective-bargaining rights of public employees there.  It is about which party controls governorships and, with them, the balance of power on the ground in the 2012 elections.

Long Bread Lines and Barricades in Libya's Capital  —  TRIPOLI, Libya — A bold play by Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi to prove that he was firmly in control of Libya appeared to backfire Saturday as foreign journalists he invited to the capital discovered blocks of the city in open revolt.

First blow to Emanuel team  —  Transition aide quits after ethics violation revealed  —  A veteran politician Rahm Emanuel named to his mayoral transition team resigned her high-level state job last summer and paid a fine for conducting political business on state time, according to a newly filed ethics report.

Protesters at the Wisconsin Capitol disrespectfully have taped signs on and piled junk against the Veterans Memorial.  —  Meade and I confront them, and we're told we're the first people who've had a problem with it.  I try to explain how that attempted defense of the behavior is only going to make it look worse.

A PARTISAN WAR ON TWO FRONTS.... To pay even passing attention to American politics is to notice that contemporary congressional Republicans are as right-wing as they've ever been.  The GOP caucuses in both chambers have embraced a hysterical, borderline-nihilist worldview, which is often terrifying in its scope and severity.

STATES OF THE UNIONS  —  Steyn on America  —  The Democrat palace guard of America's dying monodailies are doing a grand job in reporting the current stand-off in Wisconsin.  A headline in The New York Times sums up the media's bizarre enthusiasm for sacrificing what remains of their reputations in order to protect the cause:

The “Ventriloquist Journalism” Beat  —  Kudos to John for staying after Eric Lipton's fast one, which is a classic in the genre of what I call “ventriloquist journalism”—the highly refined technique by which “news” reporters seek out a source to confirm their preconceived story line with a specific quote.

To Baldly Go Where Everyone Has Gone Before  —  Until a few days ago, RightNetwork, launched with much fanfare a few months ago by its spokesmodel Kelsey Grammer, appeared to be doing a dead man's float.  —  Nothing new being added by its original contributors, rumors that those blogger contributers …

How Budget Battles Go Without the Earmarks  —  WASHINGTON — The fact that Congress remains a spending disagreement or two away from shutting down the government no doubt strikes some as remarkable.  But there is another extraordinary aspect to the fiscal clash unfolding on Capitol Hill …

The G.O.P.'s Abandoned Babies  —  Republicans need to figure out where they stand on children's welfare.  They can't be “pro-life” when the “child” is in the womb but indifferent when it's in the world.  Allow me to illustrate just how schizophrenic their position has become through the prism of premature babies.

FLASHBACK: Ronald Reagan Called Union Membership ‘One Of The Most Elemental Human Rights’  —  As the Main Street Movement of students, workers, and other middle class Americans erupts across America, many conservatives have invoked the legacy of former president Ronald Reagan to demand …

Ireland's Ruling Party Headed for Crushing Defeat, Early Poll Shows  —  DUBLIN — If there were people walking around during the national election on Friday who were passionate supporters of the ruling party, Fianna Fail, they were doing an excellent job of keeping it secret.

Iran Reports a Major Setback at a Nuclear Power Plant  —  Iran told atomic inspectors this week that it had run into a serious problem at a newly completed nuclear reactor that was supposed to start feeding electricity into the national grid this month, raising questions about whether the trouble …

Labor secretary: GOP govs asking workers to give up their rights  —  Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) is trying to force workers in his state to give up their rights, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said Saturday.  —  Solis, speaking at the Democratic National Committee's (DNC) Winter Meeting …

Egyptian Military Cracks Down on New Protest  —  CAIRO — Tens of thousands of protesters returned Friday to Tahrir Square, the site of demonstrations that led to the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak two weeks ago, to keep up the pressure on Egypt's military-led transitional government.

Two-week budget measure expected to avert government shutdown  —  Threats of a government shutdown next week had all but disappeared by late Friday as Democrats reacted favorably to a Republican plan that would keep agencies operating past Mar. 4 while making a first down payment toward a larger budget deal.