The “Americans want bipartisanship” myth  —  (updated below - Update II - Update III)  —  As part of that New York Times online discussion in which I participated yesterday regarding whether Obama should continue to pursue “bipartisanship,” I wrote:

STATEMENT FROM RUPERT MURDOCH  —  As the Chairman of the New York Post, I am ultimately responsible for what is printed in its pages.  The buck stops with me.  —  Last week, we made a mistake.  We ran a cartoon that offended many people.  Today I want to personally apologize to any reader who felt offended, and even insulted.

Michael Steele Threatens To Withhold RNC Funds From GOP Senators Who Backed Stimulus  —  This one passed unnoticed last night, but it's definitely noteworthy — yet another measure of the degree to which the Republican Party has bet all its chips on opposing the stimulus package.

Gibbs hints at ‘Reaganesque’ speech  —  President Barack Obama won't speak until prime-time, but his aides fanned out to the morning shows Tuesday morning to talk up his first speech before a joint session of Congress.  And the word they used to preview it: “Reaganesque.”

Newsom sneaking around and sipping out of a bottle?  —  Is the Green Mayor holding out on us?  —  This week, the City Insider spotted an almost empty case of bottled water in the back of Mayor Gavin Newsom's hybrid sport utility vehicle as it was parked in front of City Hall.

Obama Job Approval Dips Below 60% for First Time  —  Fifty-nine percent now approve as more express no opinion on his performance  — USA - Government - Government and Politics - Leadership - The Presidency - Americas - Northern America  —  PRINCETON, NJ — For the first time since …

McCain Confronts Obama On Marine One (VIDEO)  —  At the closing session of the president's fiscal responsibility summit on Monday, high-ranking members of Congress were asked to put on their reportorial hats, quizzing Barack Obama on various aspects of his economic priorities.

Plus, J. Edgar Hoover on how to spot a homosexual.  —  When Bill Moyers left his show Now With Bill Moyers at the end of 2004, he told the Associated Press that his immediate project would be a book about the year he worked for Lyndon B. Johnson.  Upon returning to PBS in the spring of 2007 …

Rogue Financier Stanford Linked to Fund Run by Bidens  —  A fund of hedge funds run by two members of Vice President Joe Biden's family was marketed exclusively by companies controlled by Texas financier R. Allen Stanford, who is facing Securities and Exchange Commission accusations of engaging in an $8 billion fraud.

The Painfully Ridiculous End to the NYU Revolution  —  The final, farcical moments of the failed Revolutionary NYU Food Court Occupation were caught on film by one of the protesters.  And then shown to the world, despite being—by any standard—incredibly embarrassing.  —  “You may not come in here.

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY ‘NATIONALIZATION’?  —  I had conversations with a few friends yesterday.  And what came out of those discussions was that even among pretty knowledgeable people there's still very basic confusion about what bank ‘nationalization’ even means.

Bailout Bank Blows Millions Partying in L.A.  —  A bank that received $1.6 billion in bailout money just spent a fortune last week in L.A. hosting a series of lavish parties and concerts with famous singers ... and TMZ cameras caught it all.  —  Northern Trust, a Chicago-based bank …

Yap trap: Pols talk, markets dive  —  It was a perfectly reasonable question, and on the surface it seemed like a perfectly reasonable answer.  But when Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd went on Bloomberg TV Friday and mused about the possibility of bank nationalization …

Politician defies law, speaks Kurdish in Turkey  —  ANKARA, Turkey - A Kurdish politician defied Turkish law on Tuesday by giving a speech to Parliament in the Kurdish language.  State-run television immediately cut off the live broadcast.  —  “Kurds have long been oppressed …

The 92 Percent Solution  —  Feel the anger - here is a website dedicated to the 92 percent of Americans who are making their mortgage payments.  The mission statement reads more like the Declaration of Independence; the intro:  —  The 92% Group Charter  —  1. The sole purpose …

Burris and Durbin to meet Tuesday afternoon.  Scoop: Burris not resigning but signaling won't run in 2010  —  WASHINGTON—Embattled Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) meets with Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) on Tuesday afternoon.  Burris understands that he needs to try to mollify Durbin and he will attempt to do that.

Crunching credit  —  Via Tyler Cowen, I learn that American Express continues to aggressively deleverage.  This time, they're using the carrot instead of the stick: … I am willing to bet that the names of the people who got this offer were selected the same way that Amex controversially …

Gay Bloggers' Voices Rise in Chorus of Growing Political Influence  —  Only the blogosphere, perhaps, has room for Pam Spaulding — a black lesbian who lives in North Carolina, the only state in the South that has not banned same-sex marriage.  —  “California, Arizona and Florida …

‘Liberal bias?’  IU professors find network TV election coverage favors Republicans  —  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  —  Broadcast media: To arrange a live on-camera, studio interview with the professors via Indiana University's broadcast facilities, please contact George Vlahakis at 812-855-0846 or gvlahaki@indiana.edu.

Schumer on governors rejecting recovery funds: The package is not ‘multiple choice.’  —  In response to several Republican governors declaring their intention to reject portions of the recently signed economic recovery package, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) sent a letter to OMB Director Peter Orszag …

How politics works: Senator Christopher Dodd and his cosy Irish cottage  —  An intriguing item here from the dogged Kevin Rennie of the Hartford Courant that highlights a classic example of why ordinary citizens become cynical about politicians and the way business in Washington is conducted.