GM CEO resigns at Obama's behest  —  The Obama administration asked Rick Wagoner, the chairman and CEO of General Motors, to step down and he agreed, a White House official said.  —  The White House confirmed Wagoner was leaving at the government's behest after The Associated Press reported …

Rules for conservative radicals  —  A digital war has broken out, and the conservative movement is losing.  Read the comment sections of right-leaning blogs, news sites and social forums, and the evidence is there in ugly abundance.  Internet hooligans are spewing their talking points to thwart the dissent of the newly-out-of-power.

Palestinian youth orchestra disbanded over concert for Holocaust survivors  —  Palestinian authorities disbanded a youth orchestra from a West Bank refugee camp after it played for a group of Holocaust survivors in Israel, a local official said on Sunday.  —  Adnan Hindi of the Jenin camp called …

America the Tarnished  —  Ten years ago the cover of Time magazine featured Robert Rubin, then Treasury secretary, Alan Greenspan, then chairman of the Federal Reserve, and Lawrence Summers, then deputy Treasury secretary.  Time dubbed the three “the committee to save the world,” …

EXCLUSIVE: AIG chiefs pressed to donate to Dodd  —  $160,000 streamed in as senator gained power on banking committee  —  As Democrats prepared to take control of Congress after the 2006 elections, a top boss at the insurance giant American International Group Inc. told colleagues …

New Task Seen for Fannie, Freddie  —  The regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is considering giving the government-backed mortgage companies another role: helping to finance small mortgage banks.  —  A spokeswoman for the regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency …

In Minnesota, it's still November  —  Texas Sen. John Cornyn is threatening “World War III” if Democrats try to seat Al Franken in the Senate before Norm Coleman can pursue his case through the federal courts.  —  Cornyn, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee …

Look to Lincoln  —  Not to FDR, when designing legislative agendas.  —  A lot of ink has been spilled on what might be called the Roosevelt and Reagan models of the presidency.  In the recent past, the conventional wisdom has been Reaganite: New presidents should focus on one or two clear objectives …

G20 draft communiqué  —  Introduction  —  1. We, the Leaders of the Group of Twenty met, for a second time, in London on 2 April.  —  Over the last half century strong growth and increasing international trade has brought untold jobs and prosperity to our citizens.

Washington continues to play ostrich about Mexico … The quote is from Zenpundit Mark Safranski's A Mexican Standoff with Reality.  He has written a gravely important post on the Mexico situation, which dashes the notion that the country is in no danger of becoming a failed state.

Wide Cyber Attack Is Linked to China  —  Security researchers said they have discovered software capable of stealing information installed on computers in 103 countries from a network that targeted government agencies.  —  The software infected more than 1,200 computers …

Clever boys dumb down to avoid bullying in school  —  Clever children are saving themselves from being branded swots at school by dumbing down and deliberately falling behind, a study has shown.  —  Schoolchildren regarded as boffins may be attacked and shunned by their peers …

Spain may open torture probe of six Bush officials  —  NEW YORK (Reuters) - A top Spanish court has moved toward starting a probe of six former Bush administration officials including ex-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in connection with alleged torture of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, The New York Times said on Saturday.

Insurers shun those taking certain meds  —  How health insurers secretly blacklist those with certain ailments.  —  JDORSCHNER@MIAMIHERALD.COM  —  Trying to buy health insurance on your own and have gallstones?  You'll automatically be denied coverage.  Rheumatoid arthritis?  Automatic denial.

PARTIES & POT IN ASHLEY BIDEN'S PAST  —  A decade before a friend came forward trying to sell a video that he claimed showed her snorting cocaine, Vice President Joseph Biden's daughter was busted for pot possession.  —  Ashley Biden “was a hot freshman that every guy wanted to be with …

Obama gets personal  —  Barack Obama is a storyteller, and lately he has been telling lots of them: tales of sick children and a dying parent, of religious discovery and of a magical journey across the American West.  —  The stories have something in common: They all spring from Obama's own life.