Rand Paul edges Rubio to win CPAC straw poll  —  Rand Paul edged out Marco Rubio in the presidential straw poll at the Conservative Political Action Conference Saturday, reinforcing their standing as the preeminent favorites of the Republican base heading into 2016.

Cyprus' savers bear brunt of unprecedented bailout  —  (Reuters) - The euro zone agreed on Saturday to hand Cyprus a bailout worth 10 billion euros ($13 billion), but demanded depositors in its banks forfeit some money to stave off bankruptcy despite the risk of a wider run on savings.

When The GOP Told Whitey I Aint Gonna Take It No More  —  Yesterday, a CPAC breakout session on reaching out to black voters broke down in shouting and acrimony as a handful of ‘disenfranchised whites’ attacked the premise of the session (along with black complaints about slaveholders) …

Pamela Geller: CPAC's Muslim Board Member Is ‘Worse Than Al-Awlaki’  —  Another year, another attack on Suhail Khan  —  NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — A prominent conservative activist Saturday accused of Muslim conservative of waging a “stealth Jihad” against the movement, warning his position …

Utah: Love Hires Top Hatch Strategist for Matheson Rematch  —  Love prepares for a rematch with Matheson (Chris Maddaloni/CQ Roll Call File Photo)  —  NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — After a 1-point loss in Utah last year, Saratoga Springs Mayor Mia Love is actively laying the groundwork …

American public incrreasingly sympathetic towards Israel  —  The extent to which Americans sympathize more with Israelis than with Palestinians has reached its all-time high, according to a new Gallup poll.  The survey found that the sympathies of 64 percent of Americans reside with Israelis …

Scientists excited by discovery of ‘Underground Galapagos’  —  Diverse underground ecosystems buried deep beneath the Earth's crust may offer clues to the origins of life on Earth, several recent studies have revealed.  —  Whether it is tiny worms found wriggling in the depths of a South African mine …

The Lyndon Johnson tapes: Richard Nixon's ‘treason’  —  Declassified tapes of President Lyndon Johnson's telephone calls provide a fresh insight into his world.  Among the revelations - he planned to fly into the 1968 Democratic Convention and win the presidential nomination.

Sarah Palin fires up conservative grassroots in speech at CPAC  —  Sarah Palin called for the conservative grassroots to avoid consultants in a fiercely anti-establishment speech that received the strongest response yet from a packed auditorium at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday.

The Dread That Is Ted  —  It is possible that the high point of this week in Washington came when Senator Dianne Feinstein told Senator Ted Cruz to stop treating her as if she were in middle school.  —  Let me set the stage.  First, pretend you're Feinstein.  You started your political career in San Francisco.

US asks Turkey for help with ME peace process  —  Kerry calls Turkish counterpart, asks for Ankara's help in restarting Israeli-Palestinian peace process; Ankara turns down request.  —  US Secretary of State John Kerry called his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu this week …

Bachmann Accuses Obama Of Living A Life Of Excess  —  In one of her first major addresses since winning a close re-election bid in November, the Tea Party favorite conceded during her address at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday that Obama and his family …