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-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: Hussein Malla /Associated Press

Obama claimed "important progress" in the Libyan war early this morning.

In his taped weekly remarks, embargoed until one minute ago, the president claimed that Moammar Kadafi's troops have been pushed back from Benghazi and thousands of people have not been slaughtered as feared, thanks to the no-fly zone imposed over much of Libya by U.S. and allied planes for the past week. The full remarks and the Republicans' weekly response are available here.

Showing some sensitivity to considerable criticism that he has left many Americans confused by the ill-defined mission there and by abundant fears that the Democrat had appointed himself international marshal against brutal dictators worldwide, Obama waited only four sentences to note: "The United States should not — and cannot — intervene every time there’s a crisis somewhere in the world."

These remarks, the president's first in public on Libya since his long South American trip, could contradict what he said earlier this week when....

Before I begin today, I want to thank the brave men and women of our armed forces for their selfless service during recent operations in Libya, and their ongoing great work in Iraq and Afghanistan, and their relief efforts in Japan.

Virginia is home to many of our nation’s most important military installations, and we thank these courageous Americans for their defense of the freedom and liberty that we hold dear.

Like most governors, my top priority for our Commonwealth is ensuring fiscal responsibility and helping the private sector create the good jobs our citizens need.

Here in the states, we have to balance our budgets. We can’t print money, and we have....

With President Obama locked out of his own White House (see photo on right and video below), Jay Carney stepped up and issued the latest in a series of official denunciations Thursday of a Middle Eastern dictator doing deadly things to demonstrators.

Such warnings about dictators behaving badly have been the political precursor this winter to even more serious American pronouncements and foreign trips by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who's off again this weekend.

First Tunisia, then Egypt have been warned by this White House under what is becoming known as the Obama Doctrine.

The emerging Obama Doctrine can be roughly described as being caught off-guard by foreign events, issuing numerous rhetorical warnings that sound swell and waiting for somebody else to do something because the president's too busy calling on someone to do something about the quality of American education, which has polled better than foreign forays.

Coming days after Syrian government agents began killing demonstrators there, is Carney's....

Oh, my how awkward is this?

President Obama, his daughters, his wife and his mother-in-law had just debarked from five days of parties, toasts and sightseeing across South America.

Suddenly, he's hit with serious bipartisan constitutional questions about his launching of attacks on Libya with United Nations approval, instead of Congressional approval, during that foreign jaunt.

It's one thing to have a Republican Speaker of the House and some Democrats as well wondering out loud how come Congress was not consulted before Obama committed American military forces to combat operations to do something in the vicinity of Libya when there was no threat to Americans.

John Boehner raised that issue Wednesday in a formal letter to the president (Scroll down for full text).

He said in part:

I respect your authority as Commander-in-Chief and support our troops as they carry out their mission.

But I and many other members of the House of Representatives are troubled that U.S. military resources were committed to war without clearly defining for the American people, the Congress and our troops what the mission in Libya is and what America’s role is in achieving that mission. 

In fact, the limited, sometimes contradictory, case made to the....

With the Japan earthquake and the devastating tsunami and the radiation leaks going global and the United Nations suggesting interested members start a war in Libya and American troops in two other conflicts and the immense federal government now budgeting in 21-day chunks with a colossal deficit and President Obama with his family offering toasts all over South America urging Brazil to drill offshore while stifling domestic production back home and rising bilateral congressional unhappiness with Obama's commencing military action on Libya whatever that goal is, some Americans appear confused and anxious.

How silly is that? Obama has explained everything to the president of Turkey.

Thanks to Vice President Joe Biden, now back from Moldova with his wife and granddaughter, things have returned to normal in American politics. Biden has issued another of this administration's clarion calls for someone to do something to boost college graduation rates.

And with the pitch-perfect timing of this crowd, he's sent out a fresh appeal for political donations from Democrats.

Biden, who's off to Florida today for two events on behalf of threatened Sen. Bill Nelson, also wants true Americans to send a whole bunch of fresh money to....

Florida's new Republican governor, Rick Scott, is not your standard politician. Nor is he an experienced one who worked his way up from town council to county board and then the state Legislature.

The tall, gangly newcomer in Tallahassee worked his way up all right, but it was in business. The son of a JC Penney clerk and a truck driver, Scott was born in Illinois and raised in Kansas City.

After serving as a radarman in the Navy, he graduated from Southern Methodist University Law School and worked in a Dallas firm before entering the business world. His full biography is available here.

He then launched a long, successful and sometimes controversial career in the healthcare industry, driving innovation and cost-cutting, at one point even offering a ...

President Obama's toast at the official presidential dinner at La Moneda Palace, Santiago, as provided by the White House

THE PRESIDENT:  Buenas noches.  (Applause.)  President Pinera, First Lady, former Presidents Aylwin, Frei, Lagos; to all the distinguished guests here tonight, especially the Secretary General of the Organization of American States, Jose Miguel Insulza.  It is wonderful to be here.  I have to say that because I've already given one speech tonight, I've already made remarks at the press -- I'm going to keep my remarks tonight very brief, because otherwise you won't invite me back.  (Laughter.) 

But on our flight into Chile today, we were all struck by the incredible beauty of the Andes.  We looked out the window, Michelle and my daughters and my staff, and we marveled at the awesome ranges and the snow-capped peaks.  It was truly spectacular. 

And it called to mind something once said by a beloved daughter of both our countries, the novelist Isabel Allende. She said, “I come from a land of mountains, where friendship is a blood pact …hospitality is sacred, [and] bonds unbreakable.”

President Pinera, First Lady, to you and the people of Santiago and of Chile, thank you for....

Letter from the President regarding the commencement of operations in Libya

(as provided by the White House)

 March 21, 2011

Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)

At approximately 3:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, on March 19, 2011, at my direction, U.S. military forces commenced operations to assist an international effort authorized by the United Nations (U.N.) Security Council and undertaken with the support of European allies and Arab partners, to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe and address the threat posed to international peace and security by the crisis in Libya.

As part of the multilateral response authorized under U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973, U.S. military forces, under the command of Commander, U.S. Africa Command, began a series of strikes against air defense systems and military airfields for the purposes of preparing a no-fly zone.

These strikes will be limited in their nature, duration, and scope. Their purpose is....

As The Ticket's 61,000-plus Twitter followers here and 6,600 Facebook fans here know, we regularly share our daily picks of the late-night jokes of interest, usually before broadcast each night. Feel free to pass them on to friends using the Share buttons above.

Here's the usual Monday morning collection:

Fallon: A new study finds people diagnosed with depression should get a second opinion. Although ... what’s the point of anything really?

Letterman: A new smallest man in the world today. He’s 22 inches tall. But he says he’s so proud, he feels 2 feet tall.

Fallon: President Obama went on ESPN to announce his NCAA tournament picks. Or as Japan put it, 'Really?!? You’re kidding, right?'

Fallon: President Obama widely criticized for making his NCAA bracket picks on ESPN with important issues like Japan and Libya. Hearing this, Obama said ‘Was today my fantasy baseball draft too?’

Fallon: Obama tells students he was always getting into trouble in school. He talked so much the teacher took away his teleprompter.

Leno: Surprisingly, March Madness is not a big deal in the Mideast. That's because they also have February Madness, April Madness, June Madness, July Madness......

Fallon: March Madness office pools. You analyze brackets, research the....

A new national poll finds American voters give President Obama a record low approval for his handling of the U.S. economy.

With barely 19 months left until the next presidential election, fewer than 1 in 3 American voters approve of the Obama administration's economic job.

Strange too because, even during the president's relentless drive to pass his massive healthcare legislation, the Democrat said the economy and creating jobs was his top priority. So important is the economy that Obama appointed Vice President Joe Biden to drive the stimulating $787-billion spending plans that were to keep unemployment below 8%, instead of around 9% and 10%.

Fourteen months ago when angry Massachusetts voters elected their first ....

President Obama's comments on Nowruz and Iran's regime, as provided by the White House

(Editor's Note: Persian and Arabic text version links are below.)

Today, I want to extend my best wishes to all who are celebrating Nowruz in the United States and around the world.

Each year of my presidency, I have marked this holiday by speaking directly to the people of Iran. That is what I would like to do once more.

This is a holiday for the Iranian people to spend time with friends and family; to reflect on the extraordinary blessings that you enjoy; and to look forward to the promise of a new day. After all, this is a season of hope and renewal. And today, we know that this is also a season of promise across the Middle East and North Africa, even as there are also enormous challenges.

I believe that there are certain values that are universal -- the freedom of....