Philip Seymour Hoffman, Actor of Depth, Dies at 46  —  Philip Seymour Hoffman, perhaps the most ambitious and widely admired American actor of his generation, who gave three-dimensional nuance to a wide range of sidekicks, villains and leading men on screen and embraced some of the theater's …

Delusions of Failure  —  The Republican response to the State of the Union was delivered by Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Republican representative from Washington — and it was remarkable for its lack of content.  A bit of uplifting personal biography, a check list of good things her party wants …

Subpoenaed Christie staffer Christina Renna resigns  —  A Chris Christie aide who was subpoenaed in a growing New Jersey traffic scandal resigned Friday, the aide's lawyer confirmed to POLITICO.  —  Christina Renna becomes the second person to leave the Republican governor's office since the scandal escalated in January.

House Republicans pivot in search of a positive message  —  CAMBRIDGE, Md. - House Republicans are at a turning point.  —  A majority of them, having spent five years in opposition to President Obama — inviting Democrats to tag them as obstructive — are now intent on shaping a positive identity as the …

Benghazi a 2016 proxy battle  —  It is hard to count all the investigations into the Benghazi, Libya, attack — the exhaustive hearings and extensive testimony, the State Department review, the Senate report, the House report, the piles of newspaper and television stories.

Scholar and Columnist Professor Barry Rubin Passed Away at 64  —  Barry Rubin's was a rare voices of clarity in the Israeli academia and in Jewish media.  He was one of the good guys.  —  Baruch Dayan Ha'Emet: Professor Barry Rubin, one of the great intellectual defenders of Israel, passed away Monday morning.

Coca Cola ad on Super Bowl — American's brand?  Hm.  —  I'm watching the Super Bowl, looks like good defense (Seattle) is trouncing good offense (Denver) when a Coca Cola commercial came on and it started rather patriotically with the words of “America the Beautiful.”

ON THE TRAIL  —  Last month, Colorado opened its first retail marijuana shops.  At the Colorado Springs airport, there are now bins to help departing travellers remember to drop their pot before flying off to less liberated states.  The law legalizing marijuana in Colorado was the result …

Building a Better Battery  —  SAN FRANCISCO — The next breakthrough smartphone, or maybe the one after that, might not have a traditional battery as its sole source of power.  Instead, it could pull energy from the air or power itself through television, cellular or Wi-Fi signals.

Hillary Clinton, Richard Branson, and the 25-Year-Old Wunderkind Dems Fell For  —  When Rory McCarron started Invest Again, people joined him in droves.  Then everything fell apart.  —  There's no better way to travel to Davos than on somebody else's Gulfstream.

TRANSCRIPT: Bill O'Reilly interviews President Obama  —  BILL O'REILLY, HOST: Mr. President, thank you for doing this.  —  BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Great to be with you.  —  O'REILLY: Really appreciate it.  —  I want to get some things on the record.