Walker: Border meeting with Dems ‘ridiculous’  —  (CNN) — Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker on Monday dismissed as “ridiculous” a letter from a Democratic state Senate leader who suggested a meeting “near the Wisconsin-Illinois border” to discuss the state's budget impasse.

Rep. Alcee Hastings Sued by Employee for Sexual Harassment: “Unwelcome Sexual Advances” and “Unwelcome Touching”  —  Hastings Allegedly Retaliated Against Victim for Complaining About Conduct  —  Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption …

Missing: Marizela Perez  —  I just got off the phone with my family.  —  This is my beautiful cousin, Marizela Perez:  —  She is a University of Washington undergrad and she has been missing since Saturday afternoon, when she left the Rainier Beach neighborhood headed to the UW Seattle campus.

Ensign to Announce Retirement  —  Sen. John Ensign is expected to announce at an afternoon news conference in Las Vegas that he will retire rather than face a brutal 2012 re-election campaign, according to knowledgeable sources.  —  The Nevada Republican, who has been embattled since revealing …

Will Sarah Palin run for president and can she win?  —  Ms Palin outlines factors that will influence whether she enters the running  —  Sarah Palin, one of the best known and most controversial figures in American politics, told BBC Newsnight she was weighing up whether the US was ready for an …

Clarence Thomas' dangerous conceit  —  The Supreme Court justice argues that criticism of him is an attack on the court itself.  But a single justice doesn't define the institution.  —  Louis XIV of France was infamous for his view that there was no distinction between himself and the state …

FIRED!  Charlie Sheen Axed From ‘Two And A Half Men’, He Vows To Sue  —  UPDATED: It's over for Charlie Sheen on the hit CBS comedy Two and a Half Men.  The series producer Warner Bros. TV just released the following statement: “After careful consideration, Warner Bros. Television …

The frontrunner-less Republican presidential field  —  For months now, it's been clear that the 2012 Republican presidential field lacks a strong frontrunner.  —  A case can be made for how either former Gov. Mitt Romney (Mass.) or Mike Huckabee (Ark.) — or even former Gov. Sarah Palin …

Obama's debt expert yells at kids  —  Alan Simpson referred to Snoop Dogg (left) and Eminem (right) in his tirade.  —  AP Photo  —  Alan Simpson might need to freshen up on his pop culture.  —  The co-chairman of President Obama's deficit commission tried to scold the elderly on Monday …

Sarah Palin ‘Not Afraid’ Of Jon Stewart, Says Aide … NEW YORK — Since last October, when President Barack Obama visited the set of “The Daily Show,” the majority of political guests on the show have been conservatives.  —  Though he leans left, host Jon Stewart has coaxed plenty of Republicans …

Obama restarts Guantanamo trials  —  WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama approved Monday the resumption of military trials for detainees at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, ending a two-year ban.  —  It was the latest acknowledgement that the detention facility Obama had vowed …

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Scott Brown Begs David Koch For Money  —  At the public dedication of MIT's David H. Koch Integrative Cancer Institute last Friday, Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) effusively thanked conservative billionaire David Koch for supporting his election in 2010 and made a plea for help in his re-election campaign next year.

Gov. Rick Scott's proposed education budget: $1.75 billion in cuts  —  TALLAHASSEE — Is a $2,335-a-year pay cut for the average teacher worth a $44.72 property tax savings for the average Florida homeowner with a homestead exemption?  —  That's a key question behind the math …

Bonds Show Why Boehner Saying We're Broke Is Figure of Speech  —  House Speaker John Boehner routinely offers this diagnosis of the U.S.'s fiscal condition: “We're broke; Broke going on bankrupt,” he said in a Feb. 28 speech in Nashville.  —  Boehner's assessment dominates a debate …

Obama's hard line on leaks  —  The Obama administration, which famously pledged to be the most transparent in American history, is pursuing an unexpectedly aggressive legal offensive against federal workers who leak secret information to expose wrongdoing, highlight national security threats or pursue a personal agenda.

Trump trip financing in question  —  A lawyer for Donald Trump, Michael Cohen, told reporters in Iowa today that his trip — on the Trump corporate jet — had been financed by a business supporter and booster of Trump's, Stewart Rahr.  —  The trip poses a serious campaign finance issue for Trump …

Government posts biggest monthly deficit ever  —  Glen Perkins delivers copies of the Fiscal Year 2012 Budget to the Senate Budget Committee hearing room in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, Feb. 14, 2011.  President Barack Obama will send Congress a $3.7 trillion budget that would reduce deficits …

Democrats attack Republican candidate's children  —  In an effort to do my part in rescuing our country from the out-of-control Obama administration, last year I ran for Congress in Oregon's 4th District against 12-term incumbent, far-left Democrat Peter DeFazio, co-founder of the House Progressive Caucus.

Hello  —  Tom Wolfe was once asked, What is the most important change of your lifetime?  He is purported to have answered, “Oh, that's easy.  Co-ed dorms.”  —  My own gloss on that answer is that we spend a lot of our time debating political events and the choices leaders make.

Trump fires back at skeptical GOP senator: You're not that important  —  Billionaire businessman Donald Trump on Monday fired back at a Republican senator who recently said the mogul has no chance of being president.  —  Trump took aim at Sen. Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), the chairman …