Sarah Palin losing more ground among Republicans, Post-ABC poll finds  —  Virginia Postic/ AP - According to a new poll, fewer than six in 10 Republicans and GOP-leaning independents see former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, shown here in December, in a favorable light.

Last Defense at Troubled Reactors: 50 Japanese Workers  —  A small crew of technicians, braving radiation and fire, became the only people remaining at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station on Tuesday — and perhaps Japan's last chance of preventing a broader nuclear catastrophe.

World events test ‘No Drama Obama’  —  A dizzying succession of major world events is bombarding a president who insists on controlling his own time, emotions and political message.  —  With Japan's nuclear crisis teetering on the verge of catastrophe, with Libya and Bahrain in violent turmoil …

Anxiety Over Radiation Drives a Sales Surge for a Drug Against Thyroid Cancer  —  As Japan races to avoid a nuclear disaster, some Americans and companies in the United States are scrambling to obtain potassium iodide, a drug that can protect people from radiation-induced thyroid cancer.

Every Single GOPer On House Energy Cmte Won't Say Climate Change Is Real  —  Thirty-one Republicans on the House Energy And Commerce Committee — the entire Republican contingent on the panel — declined on Tuesday to vote in support of the very idea that climate change exists.

Japanese nuclear workers ordered away from posts amid radiation fears  —  / GETTY IMAGES - The Japanese government is telling people living within 20 miles to stay indoors with the windows closed because of the possibility of high levels of radiation being released from the Fukushima Diiachi plant.

Obama Administration Pushing For Banks To Modify Millions Of Mortgages To Settle Foreclosure Claims  —  NEW YORK — The Obama administration is seeking to force the nation's five largest mortgage firms to reduce monthly payments for as many as three million distressed homeowners in as little …

Wholesale prices up 1.6 pct. on steep rise in food  —  Wholesale prices rise 1.6 pct. due to biggest jump in food costs in more than 36 years  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Wholesale prices jumped last month by the most in nearly two years due to higher energy costs and the steepest rise in food prices in 36 years.

NPR Boardmembers and Fundraisers Give Overwhelmingly to Democrats  —  Of nearly $2.2 million in political contributions, most goes to the left  —  The ongoing budget crisis and accusations of liberal bias have fueled renewed calls by conservative politicians for an end to NPR's public funding.

Court frees CIA contractor accused of murder: Rana Sanaullah  —  ISLAMABAD: A Pakistan court on Wednesday freed CIA contractor Raymond Davis, who was accused of murdering two men in Lahore, after blood money was paid in accordance with sharia law, the Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said.

The $4-Per-Gallon President  —  Is it really any surprise that oil and gas prices are surging toward the record highs we saw in 2008 just prior to the economic collapse?  Despite the President's strange assertions in his press conference last week, his Administration is not a passive observer …

Japanese emperor ‘deeply worried’  —  Emperor Akihito thanked those involved in disaster relief and urged an all-out rescue effort  —  Japanese Emperor Akihito has said he is “deeply worried” about the crisis his country is facing following last Friday's earthquake and tsunami.

Cut Pentagon's budget, reduce Afghan forces  —  DAVENPORT, Iowa — America should slash defense spending — and consider shrinking its presence in Afghanistan, Haley Barbour said Monday night.  —  Barbour, a likely candidate for president in 2012, told Iowa county leaders and activists …

Learning to Love the (Shallow, Divisive, Unreliable) New Media  —  Everyone from President Obama to Ted Koppel is bemoaning a decline in journalistic substance, seriousness, and sense of proportion.  But the author, a longtime advocate of these values, takes a journey through the digital-media world …

Marco Rubio starts building national brand  —  Sen. Marco Rubio is done with the quiet freshman act.  —  With a landmark spending debate engulfing Washington, the Florida Republican has, virtually overnight, launched the national profile the conservative movement has been clamoring for.

Democrats look at Ted Strickland for DNC job  —  Top Democrats are eyeing former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland to replace DNC Chairman Tim Kaine atop the party should the former Virginia governor step down to run for the Senate, POLITICO has learned.  —  Two well-placed Democrats said that Strickland …

White House to Push Privacy Bill  —  The Obama administration plans to ask Congress Wednesday to pass a “privacy bill of rights” to protect Americans from intrusive data gathering, amid growing concern about the tracking and targeting of Internet users.  —  Lawrence E. Strickling …

Netflix To Enter Original Programming With Mega Deal For David Fincher-Kevin Spacey Series ‘House Of Cards’  —  EXCLUSIVE: Video streaming juggernaut Netflix is becoming an original series player.  In what is probably the biggest gamble in its 14-year history, I hear Netflix …