Alan Rickman, giant of British screen and stage, dies at 69  —  Much-loved star of stage, TV and films including Harry Potter and Die Hard - and owner of one of the most singular voices in acting ­- has died in London  —  Alan Rickman, one of the best-loved and most warmly admired British actors …

Iowa Poll: Clinton slides, leads Sanders by 2 points  —  Hillary Clinton has lost most of her lead over Bernie Sanders in the race to win Iowa's Democratic presidential caucuses, a new Iowa Poll shows.  —  Clinton, who has been the favorite all along, now leads Sanders by just 2 percentage points …

Ted Cruz Didn't Disclose Loan From Goldman Sachs for His First Senate Campaign  —  As Ted Cruz tells it, the story of how he financed his upstart campaign for the United States Senate four years ago is an endearing example of loyalty and shared sacrifice between a married couple.

South Carolina GOP chairman: Coulter's attack on Haley ‘despicable’  —  The chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party on Wednesday blasted conservative commentator Ann Coulter for suggesting his state's governor, Nikki Haley, be deported.  —  “First off, what Ann Coulter said is despicable …

Jakarta Attack Kills at Least 2, Indonesian Officials Say  —  JAKARTA, Indonesia — Explosions and gunfire rocked the center of the Indonesian capital on Thursday in what the police called a terrorist attack.  At least two civilians were killed, senior officials said, along with five assailants.

Paul Ryan: Obama's State of the Union ‘degrades the presidency’  —  WASHINGTON — In a scathing response to President Obama's State of the Union Address, House Speaker Paul Ryan told USA TODAY on Wednesday that the speech's political tone toward Donald Trump and the Republican presidential field “degrades the presidency.”

5 things to watch in tonight's GOP debate  —  CHARLESTON, S.C. - Establishment Republicans are bracing themselves for a circular firing squad as the 2016 GOP candidates gather here for Thursday's debate.  —  A cluster of contenders in a fierce competition to command the mainstream GOP lane …

How Badly Has the U.S. Been Humiliated?  Let's Count the Ways [Updated]  —  Paul has offered thoughts on the release of the U.S. sailors, all of which I agree with.  I want to add a few further observations.  —  The day began with Joe Biden touting the president's State of the Union speech on CBS.

Jeb: ‘Donald Trump is a jerk’ to disabled  —  Former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-Fla.) says that Donald Trump is “a jerk” for his past remarks toward the disabled in a new online ad released Thursday.  —  “I've got to get this off my chest — Donald Trump is a jerk,” the GOP presidential candidate said in the spot titled “Enough.”

Obama's final State of the Union address draws record-low TV audience  —  President Barack Obama's final State of the Union address drew 31.3 million viewers across 12 networks, marking a new record low in viewership, according to Nielsen.  —  More than 21 million people watched on the “big four” broadcast networks.

Police clear Opera House, ferries cancelled  —  Sydney Opera House evacuated  —  RAW VISION: A police operation at the Sydney Opera House forced staff and tourists to be evacuated from the area.  —  The Sydney Opera House precinct was cordoned off by police and a second operation was conducted in Manly on Thursday.

This is what makes Republicans and Democrats so different  —  MSNBC asked Benjy Sarlin, its reporter on the Republican race, and Alex Seitz-Wald, its reporter on the Democratic race, to flip jobs for a week and write up what they learned.  Their conversation is worth reading in full, but something Sarlin wrote caught my eye: