Obama up 5 on Romney nationally  —  PPP's first national poll of 2012 finds Barack Obama with his best standing against Mitt Romney since last May, right after the killing of Osama bin Laden.  Obama leads Romney 49-44.  —  It's not as if Obama's suddenly become popular.

Democrats file 1 million signatures for Walker recall  —  By Patrick Marley, Jason Stein and Don Walker of the Journal Sentinel  —  Madison - Democrats and organizers filed petitions Tuesday afternoon with more than a million signatures as they sought to force a recall election against Gov. Scott Walker …

‘Occupy’ protesters suspected of throwing smoke bomb over White House fence  —  WASHINGTON - The Secret Service was responding Tuesday night to an escalating protest that may have involved one or more smoke bombs being thrown over the White House fence.  —  An estimated 1,000 protesters have gathered.

Google will protest SOPA using popular home page  —  The tech sector is pulling out the big guns.  —  Google, the Web's top search company and one of technology's most influential powers in Washington, will post a link on its home page tomorrow to notify users of Google's opposition …

Romney Admits His Tax Rate Is About 15 Percent, Lower Than Many Middle Class Families  —  Citizens for Tax Justice a few months ago estimated that Mitt Romney, due to most of his income coming from investments, pays a tax rate of around 14 percent, a far cry from the 35 percent top income tax rate.

The Book On Mitt Romney: Here Is John McCain's Entire Opposition Research File … The Book On Mitt Romney: Here Is John McCain's Entire Opposition Research File  —  Politics Buzz A document found online by BuzzFeed appears to be John McCain's entire, 200-page opposition research file …

WH: Newt's Obama food stamp charge is ‘crazy’  —  President Obama's White House spokesman dismissed as “crazy” Newt Gingrich's claim that Obama has “put” people on food stamps, citing the ailing economy as the cause for the expanded use of welfare programs.  —  “Well, you know as well as I …

U.S. drone that crashed in Iran goes miniature  —  A photo released by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps purports to show the RQ-170 drone that was reported crash in December.  (Sepahnews via Associated Press) TEHRAN — For the American government, the crash of the RQ-170 drone in Iran was an embarrassment.

Protest Sapped of Cash  —  Occupy Wall Street Freezes Spending on New Projects as Donations Dry Up  —  Occupy Wall Street—the movement built on protesting corporate greed and income inequality—is running out of money.  —  After raising more than $700,000 last fall …

Rick Perry Camp Explains Suggestion That Turkey Is Led By ‘Islamic Terrorists’  —  MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - In response to a question about whether or not Turkey should still be a part of NATO, Rick Perry suggested some consider the country to be ruled by “Islamic terrorists.”

Pinkberry co-founder beat homeless man with tire iron, LAPD says  —  One of the founders of the popular Pinkberry yogurt chain is accused by police of chasing down a homeless man and beating him with a tire iron.  —  The incident took place in June 2011 on an off-ramp of the Hollywood Freeway …

Michelle Obama's Birthday Restaurant Has Occupy-Themed Burger Menu  —  Michelle Obama's Birthday Restaurant Has Occupy-Themed Burger Menu  —  Politics Buzz The Obamas are celebrating Michelle's birthday with friends at BLT Steak in Washington, DC this evening.