FLOTUS prop flop: Michelle Obama's use of military as props sparks disgust … No, it wasn't your imagination.  As Twitchy reported last night, the White House-Hollywood industrial complex jumped the shark when Michelle Obama appeared to announce the best picture winner at the Oscars.

Former surgeon general C. Everett Koop dead at age 96 … Koop was surgeon general from 1982 to 1989.  —  C. Everett Koop, the former surgeon general who brought frank talk about AIDS into U.S. homes, has died at his home in Hanover, N.H., officials at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth said Monday.

5 things to watch in crowded Illinois primary  —  Guns, racial politics and a billionaire out-of-town mayor: The special House election to succeed disgraced former Democratic Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. has featured all of those things in spades.  —  A National Rifle Association-friendly ex-congresswoman …

John Boehner's big bet  —  House Speaker John Boehner has dug in.  —  If the let-the-cuts-happen approach on the sequester seems risky — especially with President Barack Obama blaming Republicans for everything from kids not getting vaccines to long lines at the airport — the alternative for Boehner is worse.

Dov Hikind Parties Down for Purim in ‘Black Basketball Player’ Costume  —  Dov Hikind and his family in their Purim costumes.  (Photo: Facebook)  —  Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind hosted a massive Purim party at his home yesterday that featured over fourteen hours of food and drink and …

CPAC to feature potential presidential candidates, GOP internal battle, and no Christie  —  Just months after their losses in the 2012 election, Republicans and conservatives are setting a vibrant — and crowded — stage at next month's closely watched political cattle call.

Republicans Sign Brief in Support of Gay Marriage  —  WASHINGTON — Dozens of prominent Republicans — including top advisers to former President George W. Bush, four former governors and two members of Congress — have signed a legal brief arguing that gay people have a constitutional right to marry …

Walter Jones, GOP Congressman, Hits Dick Cheney Over Iraq War  —  Dick Cheney, Video, HuffPolitics Blog, Walter Jones, Dick Cheney Water Jones, Walter Jones Dick Cheney, Walter Jones Iraq, Walter Jones Iraq War, Politics News  —  Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), an outspoken critic of the war in Afghanistan …

Farrakhan Cheers Hagel's ‘Jewish Lobby’ Comment  —  Chuck Hagel may not be having much luck winning over Republican senators, but at least someone is aware of his moral fiber — Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam.  Yesterday he delivered his annual address at the Saviours …

Virginia's Governor Bob McDonnell Thinks You're an Idiot  —  at 8:00 a.m. Bob McDonnell will go to CPAC and address the Faith & Freedom Coalition Prayer Breakfast.  For those of you who attend this event, you will be sitting staring at a liar.  —  If you are a conservative, remember Bob McDonnell thinks you're an idiot.

Dems, GOP tee up rival sequester bills in Senate as deadline nears  —  Democratic and Republican leaders in the Senate are teeing up rival bills aimed at shielding their members from blame when an $85 billion cut to federal spending takes effect on Friday.  —  The Senate will vote this week …

Democrats Enjoy 2-1 Advantage Over GOP Among Hispanics  —  Democratic dominance consistent across all age groups  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Hispanic adults are more than twice as likely to identify as or lean Democratic than Republican, according to Gallup Daily tracking data collected throughout 2012.

GOP lawmaker: Obama using fake Twitter messages in fight over gun control  —  A Texas Republican on Monday said President Obama's gun control campaign is a fraud based on fake messages over Twitter.  —  Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Texas) accused Obama of trying to make support for his position look stronger …

DOJ to Federal Judge: We Can Force Your Wife to Violate Her Religion  —  (CNSNews.com) - While presenting an oral argument in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia last fall, a lawyer for the U.S. Justice Department told a federal judge that the Obama administration believed …

The Onion  · 2,266,505 like this  —  On behalf of The Onion, I offer my personal apology to Quvenzhané Wallis and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the tweet that was circulated last night during the Oscars.  It was crude and offensive—not to mention inconsistent …

Assault weapons ban could get committee vote Thursday  —  Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) stands next to a display of assault weapons during a news conference in January on Capitol Hill.  (Alex Wong/Getty Images)  —  A proposed ban on military-style assault weapons faces a key test vote …

Our Second Adolescence  —  In Friday's column, I wrote that the Obama administration has no plan to avoid the sequester save raising taxes on the rich.  That was unfair.  The White House approach is not what I would like, but it is more balanced than I described.  —  Humiliation is a good teacher.