GOP reality check: Obama looking tougher to beat in 2012  —  Just four months after posting historic election gains, Republicans are experiencing a reality check about 2012: President Barack Obama is going to be a lot tougher to defeat than he looked late last year.

Last U.S. World War I veteran Frank W. Buckles dies at 110  —  Frank W. Buckles died early Sunday, sadly yet not unexpectedly at age 110, having achieved a singular feat of longevity that left him proud and a bit bemused.  —  In 1917 and 1918, close to 5 million Americans served in World War I …

THE HILL POLL: On shutdown, more voters would blame Dems  —  Twenty-nine percent of likely voters would blame Democrats for a government shutdown, compared to 23 percent who would hold Republicans responsible, according to a new poll conducted for The Hill.  —  The results are surprising …

Andrew Sullivan Joins The Daily Beast!  —  In exciting news for the two-year-old Daily Beast, the blogging trailblazer is moving his influential Daily Dish to our site.  His blog will occupy a new channel starting in early April, and he will become a Newsweek contributor.

Speaker Boehner tells Brody File President Obama's DOMA Decision is “Raw Politics”  —  Speaker of the House John Boehner says President Obama's decision to no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court strikes him as “raw politics” and says Obama is “pandering to the other side on this issue.”

GOP spending plan would cost 700,000 jobs, new report says  —  A Republican plan to sharply cut federal spending this year would destroy 700,000 jobs through 2012, according to an independent economic analysis set for release Monday.  —  The report, by Moody's Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi …

Pelosi splits with Reid, dismisses GOP plan to avoid a shutdown  —  House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is showing no enthusiasm for the new proposal from Republicans to avoid a government shutdown, putting her at odds with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

Obama Supports Easing Health Law Mandates for States  —  WASHINGTON — Seeking to appease disgruntled governors, President Obama announced Monday that he supported amending the 2010 health care law to allow states to opt out of its most burdensome requirements three years earlier than currently permitted.

Farrakhan: Mideast uprisings will come to US  —  Nation of Islam leader Minister Louis Farrakhan predicted on Sunday that America faces imminent uprisings that mirror those in the Middle East.  —  “What you are looking at in Tunisia, in Egypt ... Libya, in Bahrain ... what you see happening there …

Politics at the Oscars — Union Support  —  ABC News' Chris Marderosian reports:  —  At the Academy Awards tonight, best cinematography winner Wally Pfister made a point during his acceptance speech of thanking his union crew on “Inception.”  —  Backstage he went further …

Limit Pay, Not Unions  —  IN Ohio, Wisconsin and other states facing budget deficits, some elected officials assert that closing those gaps requires achieving labor savings and weakening labor unions.  They are half-right.  —  Across the country, taxpayers are providing pensions …

The Madoff Tapes  —  One evening, my home phone rang.  “You have a collect call from Bernard Madoff, an inmate at a federal prison,” a recording announced.  And there he was.  —  Bernard L. Madoff is in therapy.  Each week, he waits for the signal that prisoners are allowed to leave their housing units …

Demonstrators Can Continue Overnight Stays in Wisconsin Capitol  —  MADISON, Wis. — In a victory — at least a symbolic one — for Wisconsin's public employee unions, the Capitol authorities announced on Sunday that demonstrators could continue their all-night sleepovers in the building and would not be forcibly ejected or arrested.

Al-Qaida's No. 2 Urges Tunisians, Egyptians to Create Islamic States  —  Cairo (AP) - Osama bin Laden's deputy sought to co-opt the uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia in a new message, urging the countries' peoples to create Islamic states and warning that the United States is trying to manipulate …

Unions vs. the Right to Work  —  Collective bargaining on a broad scale is more similar to an antitrust violation than to a civil liberty.  —  How ironic that Wisconsin has become ground zero for the battle between taxpayers and public- employee labor unions.

Ohio, Wisconsin shine spotlight on new union battle: Government workers vs. taxpayers  —  COLUMBUS, OHIO - Across Ohio last week, the legislative push to restrict the union rights of government workers was greeted again and again by noisy protests.  —  But in this state dotted …

Happy Birthday to the Tea Party Movement  —  Two years ago today, Americans from all across the nation and from all walks of life began a movement on a national scale.  —  That movement was similar to one that was started by patriots centuries ago; so much so that it became known as the Tea Party movement.

Goddangit, Baby, We're Making Good Time  —  With a new master plan for the GOP, Karl Rove is revving up for a comeback.  —  Karl Rove is driving through Central Texas with his girlfriend, on the way to a weekend quail hunt.  —  “I've been called up by my emergency Texas militia unit …

‘Anonymous’ takes down Americans for Prosperity website  —  The online activist group “anonymous,” which has used coordinated denial of service attacks — a crude but effective Internet weapon — to temporary disable sites belonging to foes ranging from Scientology to WikiLeaks foes …

Former GOP Sen. Bennett: Reagan Held Views That Were ‘Absolutely Anathema’ To The Tea Party  —  Former GOP Sen. Bob Bennett (UT), who lost his seat to a far-right primary challenger after holding it for over a decade, slammed the tea party in an interview with Fox News host Greta Van Susteren Friday.

Study says green sector costs more jobs than it creates  —  The study claimed 3.7 jobs were lost for every one created in the UK renewables sector  —  Government support for the renewable sector in Scotland is costing more jobs than it creates, a report has claimed.

Sen. Graham: Republicans waiting for 2016 should run in 2012  —  Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) urged Republicans who are reportedly waiting until 2016 to run for president to consider getting off the sidelines for 2012.  —  Graham said Monday that the time was ripe to take on President Obama …