Chas Freeman and preemptive cringe  —  Charles “Chas” Freeman, the former U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia who is slated to become chair of the National Intelligence Council (NIC), is being praised by his supporters as a brilliantly “contrarian” analyst.  But has anyone gone back to examine the analyses?

Obama Aims to Shield Science From Politics  —  When President Obama lifts restrictions on funding for human embryonic stem cell research today, he will also issue a presidential memorandum aimed at insulating scientific decisions across the federal government from political influence, officials said yesterday.

Charlie Gasparino Talks to Fallen Wall Street Titan Jimmy Cayne  —  Blogs and Stories  —  As the pundit begins a series of national debates this week, Meghan McCain says that having her as the face of the Republican Party is a recipe for disaster.  —  It is no secret that being a Republican …

Republicans See Their Party As Leaderless  —  Who's in charge here?  —  Sixty-eight percent (68%) of Republican voters say their party has no clear leader, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.  Another 17% are undecided.  —  Just five percent (5%) …

Don't Rely on Bush's Signing Statements, Obama Orders  —  WASHINGTON — Calling into question the legitimacy of all the signing statements that former President George W. Bush used to challenge new laws, President Obama on Monday ordered executive officials to consult with Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr …

The 10 Major Newspapers That Will Either Fold or Go Digital Next  —  A San Francisco Chronicle newspaper vendor  —  Over the last few weeks, the newspaper industry has entered a new period of decline.  The parent of the papers in Philadelphia declared bankruptcy as did the Journal Register chain.

GOP Rep: “Our Goal Is To Bring Down Approval Numbers” For Dems  —  GOP Rep. Patrick McHenry, a key player in helping craft the Republican message, has offered an unusually blunt description of the Republican strategy right now.  —  McHenry's description is buried in this new article from National Journal (sub. only):

Cramer Takes on the White House, Frank Rich and Jon Stewart  —  Suddenly, bloggers, opinion people, columnists and, yes, pundits who haven't paid attention to anything I have been saying or writing for the past 18 months are all over me.  Suddenly, I find myself in the center of a firestorm …

Behind the Curve  —  President Obama's plan to stimulate the economy was “massive,” “giant,” “enormous.”  So the American people were told, especially by TV news, during the run-up to the stimulus vote.  Watching the news, you might have thought that the only question was whether the plan was too big, too ambitious.

How I learned to stop worrying and love the f-bomb  —  Let me begin by noting that this post is not about Rush Limbaugh.  —  You're welcome.  —  Now, just to be clear, Mr Limbaugh will appear in the post — and as a character he will be prominently featured — but this post is no more about Rush than …

WHAT'S BEHIND BARACK'S BRIT SNIT  —  PRESIDENT Obama's first hosting of a foreign leader, the UK's Gordon Brown, was a diplomatic disaster.  —  Obama failed to hold a joint Rose Garden press conference, the usual protocol when a US president and a British prime minister first meet …

Geithner, With Few Aides, Is Scrambling  —  WASHINGTON — Rarely have so few people had so little time to prop up so many pillars of the economy as those in the Treasury Department under Timothy F. Geithner.  —  In the six weeks since Mr. Geithner took over as Treasury secretary …

Some Myths About Banks  —  Nationalization would undermine confidence in the financial system.  —  The story of our economic crisis mirrors every great market bubble in history.  Clearly, banks were key participants, but they were not alone.  Mortgage lenders, borrowers, regulators …

Connecticut's Chris Dodd Faces a Backyard Rebellion  —  In many respects, Senator Chris Dodd is more powerful than ever on Capitol Hill these days.  After enduring eight years in the political wilderness, the Connecticut Democrat is one of his ascendant party's senior statesmen …

Dailykos, firedoglake on blogging in the Obama era  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Liberal bloggers were the cyber cheerleaders for Barack Obama in the 2008 race for the White House.  But now that he has won, these “netroots” activists face a major challenge: criticizing the new president and his administration.

Connecticut moving to regulate the Catholic Church?  —  According to the First Amendment and the Establishment Clause, the government has no business dictating to religious organizations how they should structure themselves.  In Connecticut, though, some lawmakers seem to have skipped over the Constitution.

PERV GROUP PUTS 10G ‘HIT’ ON ANDY  —  ALBANY - A $10,000 In ternet bounty was placed on Attorney General An drew Cuomo's head by a suspected agent of the North American Man/Boy Love Association, The Post has learned.  —  The shocking death threat by the infamous organization of pederasts …

Frum vs. Limbaugh  —  As a broadly “paleo-sympathetic” conservative, I have no problem with right-wing criticism of the conservative movement.  From that perspective, what the movement has actually conserved is more important than how many elections it has won.

Obama's Double Talk  —  To those who believe that Barack Obama is a different kind of politician — more honest, more courageous — please don't examine his administration's budget.  If you do, you may sadly conclude that he resembles presidents stretching back to John Kennedy in one crucial respect.

Dean Allies Suspicious Of Surgeon General Leaks, See Politics At Play  —  Allies of Howard Dean are saying that recent leaks from the White House, in which anonymous officials suggest that the former DNC Chair is being considered for the post of Surgeon General, seem suspiciously-timed and politically motivated.

Card check battle starts tomorrow  —  Tomorrow, Democrats in both houses of Congress plan to introduce a union-organizing bill that is labor's top priority for the year, Democratic officials said.  —  The result could be a high-decibel, high-stakes brawl between business and labor, which strongly supported President Barack Obama.

Recession Sends Lawyers Home  —  Firms Trade Brick-and-Mortar Prestige for a Better Business Model  —  Across the country, the recession is putting increasing pressure on law firms to slash spending and discount their services.  Client demand for lower prices is prompting firms to outsource …