Wisconsin Dems want border meeting  —  (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.

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 …

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.

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 …

FIRED!  Charlie Sheen Axed From ‘Two And A Half Men’, He Fires Back & Vows To Sue  —  UPDATED: It's over for Charlie Sheen on the hit CBS comedy Two and a Half Men.  But his ongoing war with the series producer Warner Bros. TV is far from over, with lawyers for both sides expected to take the lead in the coming weeks.

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 …

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 …

White House memo notes shortage of applicants for contest to have Obama to speak at high school graduation  —  The White House is ramping up an effort to promote a nationwide competition to decide which high school wins a commencement speech by President Obama.

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.

Senate Democrats ask for help with their 2012 slogan  —  The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the campaign arm of Senate Democrats, needs your help.  No, not a check, at least not this time.  —  The DSCC wants help coming up with a new slogan for bumper stickers and other paraphernalia that it gives out this cycle.

Rules of Misbehavior  —  Dan Savage, the brilliant and foul-mouthed sex columnist, has become one of the most important ethicists in America.  Are we screwed?  —  ive months after the death of Esther “Eppie” Lederer in 2002, the bulk of her estate—a sprawling Chicago apartment's worth of furniture …

Our Ross Cares About the Gurlz  —  That would be Ross Douthat in his latest column.  He truly, truly cares about the gurlz (well, straight gurlz) and wants them to be happy.  In order to do that, he recommends that they use an aspirin held between the knees as the contraceptive choice.

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 …

Report says too many whites, men leading military  —  WASHINGTON - The U.S. military is too white and too male at the top and needs to change recruiting and promotion policies and lift its ban on women in combat, an independent report for Congress said Monday.

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 …

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.

Newt Gingrich admits ‘unfortunate confusion’ in news about exploration plans  —  Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich acknowledged in a Des Moines Register interview Monday that his team bobbled the news last week before the announcement Thursday that he planned to begin raising money to explore seeking the 2012 GOP presidential nod.

Arab media says Gaddafi looking for exit deal  —  (Reuters) - Two Arab newspapers and al Jazeera television said on Monday Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was looking for an agreement allowing him to step down, but there was no official confirmation of the reports.

President Obama Will Nominate Commerce Secretary Locke as US Ambassador to China  —  ABC News has learned that President Obama intends to nominate Commerce Secretary Gary Locke as his next Ambassador to China.  —  Locke is the first Chinese-American to be Secretary of Commerce.

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 …

Discord Fills Washington on Possible Libya Intervention  —  WASHINGTON — Nearly three weeks after Libya erupted in what may now turn into a protracted civil war, the politics of military intervention to speed the ouster of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi grow more complicated by the day — for both the White House and Republicans.