On a Senate Call, a Glimpse of Marching Orders  —  Um, Senators, ever heard of the mute button?  —  Moments before a conference call with reporters was scheduled to get underway on Tuesday morning, apparently unaware that many of the reporters were already on the line, Charles Schumer of New York …

CRUISE SHIP CONFESSION: Top Fox News Executive Admits Lying On-Air About Obama  —  In newly uncovered audio, a Fox News executive boasts that he lied repeatedly during the closing days of the 2008 presidential campaign when he speculated on-air “about whether Barack Obama really advocated socialism.”

Sarah Palin Exaggerates Cost of Libya Intervention By 700%  —  Last night on Fox News, Greta van Susteren hosted former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) to discuss what Palin termed the “squirmish” in Libya.  True to form, the former governor was reckless with basic facts and casually septupled the cost of U.S. intervention.

Bill Maher at the Winspear on Sunday night: 'Your new theater isn't gonna be clean for long'  —  I've seen Kathy Griffin perform live, and Joan Rivers and Lisa Lampanelli and Chris Rock — and they are all hilarious and edgy and daring comics who say outrageous things and go places that scare …

Calling BULLS**T on Rolling Stone  —  Seldom do I waste time with rebutting articles, and especially not from publications like Rolling Stone.  Today, numerous people sent links to the latest Rolling Stone tripe.  The story is titled “THE KILL TEAM, THE FULL STORY.”  It should be titled: “BULLS**T, from Rolling Stone.”

Scott incredibly unpopular  —  You could say Rick Scott's honeymoon is over...but that would suggest he had one in the first place.  A December PPP poll shortly before Scott took office found that only 33% of Florida voters had a favorable opinion of their new Governor to 43% who viewed him negatively.

The hypocrisy of the American left  —  Self-righteousness is a dangerous vice.  It breeds arrogance and moral blind spots for those who come to believe they are superior to those who share different worldviews.  —  Televangelists have fallen prey to this feeling of superiority …

Huckabee Continues to Lead in GOP Positive Intensity Tracking  —  Little-known Herman Cain generates strong enthusiasm among those who recognize him  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Mike Huckabee continues to generate the strongest favorable reactions from Republicans who recognize him, with a Positive Intensity Score of 26.

Howard Dean: Democrats Should Be ‘Quietly Rooting’ for Shutdown  —  Speaking at the National Journal Insiders Conference on March 29, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean said that a government shutdown would be bad for the country but good for Democrats.

Take Two: Donald Trump Releases Official Birth Certificate  —  ABC News Michael Falcone reports:  —  Donald Trump learned the hard way this week that if you're going to call on the president to release his official birth certificate, you'd better do the same.

McCain pushes Qaddafi ouster by “any means”  —  Arizona senator seeks more forceful U.S. commitment to Libyan rebel movement, saying simple no-fly zone would be a repeat of post-Gulf War Iraq strategy  —  Sen. John McCain continued to press President Barack Obama for a more forceful strategy …

3-Month Nightmare Emerges in Rape Inquiry  —  CLEVELAND, Tex. — A year ago, the 11-year-old girl who the police say was the victim of repeated gang rapes in this East Texas town was an outgoing honor roll student, brimming with enthusiasm, who went on hikes and planted trees with a youth group here.

Cash for Clunkers 2: The Return of Government Motors  —  Ready for another cash for clunkers program?  It looks like General Motors is attempting to replace it's own consumer incentives with tax payer money.  The car company, bailed out of bankruptcy in 2009 by the American tax payer …

FACT CHECK: How Obama's Libya claims fit the facts  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — There may be less than meets the eye to President Barack Obama's statements Monday night that NATO is taking over from the U.S. in Libya and that U.S. action is limited to defending people under attack there by Moammar Gadhafi's forces.

NATO Chief Opens The Door to Libya Ground Troops  —  The mantra, from President Obama on down, is that ground forces are totally ruled out for Libya.  After all, the United Nations Security Council Resolution authorizing the war explicitly rules out any “occupation” forces.

You've Come a Long Way, Baby  —  President Obama's unapologetic, freedom-agenda-embracing, not-shrinking-from-the-use-of- force speech.  —  I knew pretty early on during tonight's speech that President Obama had rejoined—or joined—the historical American foreign policy mainstream.

Japan ‘has lost race’ to halt meltdown  —  Fukushima meltdown fears rise after radioactive core melts through vessel - but ‘no danger of Chernobyl-style catastrophe’  —  • In pictures: Fukushima nuclear emergency - week three  —  • Interactive: Japan earthquake: Ian Sample on efforts to contain the nuclear accident

Conservative Think Tank Seeks Michigan Profs' Emails About Wisconsin Union Battle ... And Maddow  —  A free enterprise think tank in Michigan — backed by some of the biggest names in national conservative donor circles — has made a broad public records request to at least three in-state universities …

State stops collecting union dues, starts charging more for health care  —  By Jason Stein and Patrick Marley of the Journal Sentinel  —  Madison - Gov. Scott Walker's administration is no longer collecting dues on behalf of state unions and as of Sunday began charging employees …

Why I called Bradley Manning's treatment ‘stupid’  —  The US should uphold the highest standards towards its citizens, including the WikiLeaks accused.  I stand by what I said  —  Earlier this month, I was asked by an MIT graduate student why the United States government was “torturing” …

Clinton paves way for US to arm Libyan rebels  —  Clinton tells London conference that UN security council resolution 1973 over-rode absolute prohibition of arms to Libya  —  Hillary Clinton has paved the way for the United States to arm the Libyan rebels by declaring that the recent UN …

Gingrich fears ‘atheist country ... dominated by radical Islamists’  —  Newt Gingrich at Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas.  —  Hours after declaring Sunday that he expects to be running for president within a month, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said he's worried the United States could be …

Levin takes on Ron Paul supporters: ‘I promise you his followers are the biggest a-holes of them all’  —  There's no doubt that 2008 Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul of Texas has some dedicated followers, and they're especially ambitious in using the Internet to spread their message.

The Continuing Story of Romney's Mormon Problem  —  Even with rabid conservative opposition to health care reform, and his role in crafting Massachusetts' system of universal health care, Mitt Romney remains the prohibitive favor for the Republican presidential nomination.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Asks Field Offices to Put Bi-National Immigration Cases on Hold  —  [IMPORTANT TUESDAY, MARCH 29, UPDATE: “DHS Official: Bi-National Immigration Case Abeyances Could End Within A Week."]  —  Following up on reports from this weekend …

Left, Right And Time  —  I suffer, it seems, from an affliction that bedevils many.  I now find myself largely opposed to most Republicans and in favor of a Democratic president as an even tempered pragmatist.  But I have not reimagined myself as a leftist.  Others have, of course, but I wince a little every time.