International:
Bush Warns of Iran Influence Over Iraq
President Bush warned on Tuesday that Iran is plotting to extend its "murderous" influence over Iraq and is threatening to destabilize the Middle East under a "shadow of a nuclear holocaust."

Iran, Bush said, "is the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism. Iran backs Hezbollah, who are trying to undermine the democratic government of Lebanon. Iran funds terrorist groups like Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which murder the innocent and target Israel and destabilize the Palestinian territories." Details

We Are Going To Get Hit Again
Newsweek is reporting that the head of the National Counter Terrorism Center thinks al-Qaeda has an active plot to strike the West, but we don’t have enough information to issue a warning. Aren’t those warnings just for use around election time anyway?

Democrats slam Bush's 'rosy picture' of Iraq
Democrats on Tuesday accused President George W. Bush of painting a "rosy picture" of Iraq and of confusing Americans by linking the war there to the September 11 attacks in 2001.

The claims came hours after Bush said in a speech that victory in Iraq was the only way to beat Al-Qaeda, and to safeguard US security.

Political rhetoric mounted as members of Congress prepared to return to Washington next week for a showdown over the president's troop surge strategy.

Senator Joseph Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations committee told reporters that Bush's logic on the Iraq war was flawed, but a key House of Representatives Republican leader backed the president.

"It's been (Bush's) misguided policy and his mismanaged war that have actually fueled extremism and extremists in Iraq, Afghanistan and beyond," Biden said. Read on…

As British leave Basra, militias dig in The last contingent of British soldiers based in the center of this southern city will leave by Friday, says a senior Iraqi security official, adding that a deal has been struck with leaders of Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army to ensure their safe departure.

As they pull back to a base outside Basra, the British will leave a vital provincial capital in the throes of a turf battle between Shiite factions – one that Mr. Sadr's militia appears to be winning.

National:
Fed Minutes Send Dow, Nasdaq Freefalling
Volatility returned to Wall Street Tuesday, sending stocks plunging as investors grew more uneasy about the economy and whether the Federal Reserve will take the steps needed to prevent credit market problems from spreading further. Read more here

Brokeback Bathroom: Senator Busted In Airport Sex Sting...
U.S. Sen. Larry Craig, an Idaho Republican, pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in Minnesota this month after being arrested by a plainclothes police officer investigating complaints of lewd conduct in a men's restroom at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.

Craig denied the police account of what occurred and said he erred in pleading guilty.

"At the time of this incident, I complained to the police that they were misconstruing my actions," he said in a statement Monday afternoon. "I was not involved in any inappropriate conduct."

"I should have had the advice of counsel in resolving this matter. In hindsight, I should not have pled guilty. I was trying to handle this matter myself quickly and expeditiously." Interested in more?

In Other News…
Gonzoles is the 11th person in the Bush administration to resign over the US attorney firings.

In what officials call “the largest ring of fraud and kickbacks uncovered in” Iraq yet, federal agents are investigating “the purchase and delivery of billions of dollars of weapons, supplies and other matériel to Iraqi and American forces.” One investigation involves a senior American officer who worked closely with Gen. David Petraeus in training and equipping Iraqi forces in 2004 and 2005.

Karl Rove was one of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’s few defenders at the White House, notes the New York Times. “He was being protected, in large measure by Karl,” said a Republican close to the White House. When Rove left, it “further exposed that the only thing that was standing with him was the president of the United States.”

In an editorial, The Idaho Statesman writes that “Sen. Craig owes Idahoans an explanation.” “This is a painful time made worse by the fact that Craig so far has been less than forthcoming. … [V]oters now deserve the full story from their senior senator.” The paper has a longer profile of Craig here.

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) suggested CIA leak investigator Patrick Fitzgerald and former Deputy Attorney General James Comey as possible replacements for Alberto Gonzales. Durbin acknowledged Fitzgerald would be a ”long shot” for the job.

From The Right: Dennis Prager: Liberals' Desire To Be Loved Is Their Achilles' Heel
I have spent a good part of my life trying to understand people I disagree with, whether on the right or the left, whether members of my own religion or of other religions or of no religion.

From The Left: Andrew O. Selsky: Top General Fears War Strain on National Guard "The Pentagon is asking National Guard troops and their families to make sacrifices like never before in Iraq and other hot spots, the Army's chief of staff told a conference bringing together citizen-soldiers from across the country."

Quote Of The Day: "The challenging part may come in the aftermath, once the military segment is over and we move to trying to stand up a new government" -Dick Cheney 3/16/03

(Sources:AP,Reuters,DrudgeReport,CNN,FOXNews,ThinkProgress,NYT,ownHall,McClatchy,PoliticalCartoooons.com, MinneapolisStarTribune, MSNBC, Breitbart, ChicagoSunTimes, Idaho Statesman)