Obama to Offer Health Bill to Ease Impasse as Bipartisan Meeting Approaches  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama will put forward comprehensive health care legislation intended to bridge differences between Senate and House Democrats ahead of a summit meeting with Republicans next week …

Pawlenty compares administration to Tiger Woods, voters to scorned wife  —  Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) on Friday told voters to follow the lead of Tiger Woods' wife Elin Nordegren and “take a nine-iron and smash the window out of big government.”  —  Pawlenty, who is considered …

U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg is diagnosed with cancer … U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, New Jersey's 86-year-old senior senator, was diagnosed with treatable stomach cancer in the last 24 hours and will begin chemotherapy today.  —  The Democrat still plans to finish out his current term …

A Sensible Response to Terrorism  —  As you probably know, a white guy entranced by an extremely version of Tea Party-style right-populist paranoia deliberately crashed an airplane into an IRS building in Texas yesterday.  I'm not especially interested in debating semantics …

Sestak says federal job was offered to quit race  —  Not so, says White House  —  Rep. Joe Sestak (D., Pa.) said yesterday that the White House offered him a federal job in an effort to dissuade him from challenging Sen. Arlen Specter in the state's Democratic primary.

Ellsworth to run for Indiana Senate  —  Indiana Rep. Brad Ellsworth announced today that he will seek the seat being vacated by Sen. Evan Bayh.  —  “After many conversations with Hoosiers this week, and with the love and support of my family, I have decided to run for the U.S. Senate,” Ellsworth said in a statement.

Is the next GOP presidential candidate a CPAC speaker?  —  There's no question that the next GOP presidential nominee will have spoken at this year's CPAC conference, a top Republican lawmaker said Friday.  —  Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), the ranking member of the House Oversight …

In U.S., Canada Places First in Image Contest; Iran Last  —  Favorable views of Russia, Palestinian Authority up slightly; views of Iraq down  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Americans' perceptions of 20 nations that figure prominently in the news or U.S. foreign policy held quite steady in the first year of the Obama administration.

Poll: Majority Backs Mirandizing Of Xmas Plotter And Other Terror Suspects  —  CNN has released a new poll with toplines showing a big majority thinks Iran has nukes.  —  But forget that finding.  The internals are even more interesting, because they show that the public is overwhelmingly rejecting …

Gays, gay marriage foes spar at CPAC  —  The young crowd at CPAC doesn't seem terribly interested in the issue of same-sex marriage, but there's been a bit of shadow boxing between the gay Republican group GOProud, which got a booth over objections from social conservatives …

Bachmann: Obama ‘intending to fail’  —  Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) urged conservatives on Friday to fight to prevent an American “decline” created by the policies of President Barack Obama.  —  In a long and meandering speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference evoking …

‘Family Guy’ Voice Actor Says Palin ‘Does Not Have a Sense of Humor’  —  Since it was shown on Sunday, an episode of the Fox animated comedy “Family Guy” has drawn the repeated condemnation of Sarah Palin, the former Republican governor of Alaska and 2008 vice-presidential nominee.

California Death Spiral  —  Health insurance premiums are surging — and conservatives fear that the spectacle will reinvigorate the push for reform.  On the Fox Business Network, a host chided a vice president of WellPoint, which has told California customers to expect huge rate increases …

Profit-Seeking Palin Reportedly Rips CPAC As A Profiteering Convention  —  One leading Republican who is conspicuously absent from this year's CPAC is Fox News pundit Sarah Palin.  A source told Politico that Palin declined the invitation because she “does not want to be affiliated” …

Mitt Romney's Alleged Attacker — Major Rap Star  —  The mystery man who was tossed off an airplane for allegedly attacking Mitt Romney has finally been revealed — it was one of the guys from LMFAO ... and he claims Romney is the one who got physical first!

Frustrated Owner Bulldozes Home Ahead Of Foreclosure  —  Man Says Actions Intended To Send Message To Banks  —  MOSCOW, Ohio — Like many people, Terry Hoskins has had troubles with his bank.  But his solution to foreclosure might be unique.  —  Hoskins said he's been in a struggle …