* Obama pressed by top military advisers to attack the Islamic State in Libya. * Sanders gets credit for last night's debate performance, but still is expected to lose massively if he's the nominee. * Jeb's request for applause is the latest sign he's giving
* UN panel says Julian Assange is being arbitrarily held by the UK under threat of arrest. * Trump says Cruz stole Iowa with voter fraud and wants his win disqualified. * Iowa doesn’t decide the nominee. But it does send a clear signal about the direction a party’s taking. * Elif
* Rand Paul joins O'Malley and Huckabee in dropping out of the presidential race. * Sanders viewed as goofy father figure, Clinton perceived as disciplinarian mom. * An all-caps reaction to the liberal backlash against Hillary Clinton. * Kool & the Gang backs out of GOP Convention gig. * Kanye walks back
* Cruz wins in Iowa, a result that will likely leave the GOP in an even more frustrated state than if he'd lost. * Clinton grabs very narrow victory in Iowa. * See also: Why a tie for Bernie is actually a win for Clinton. * Trump took 39% of Iowans who
* Polls point to Trump and Clinton winning Iowa's caucuses, though Iowa is notoriously difficult to poll. * Iowa parties and Microsoft to launch an app tonight to replace a keypad system for reporting caucus results. * FAQ for the Iowa caucuses—"a lot of debating and moving around."
* White House to require companies to report what they pay employees by race, gender and ethnicity. * In Norway, a barrel of oil now costs less than a single salmon. * Tennessee teenagers dead possibly from drinking "Dewshine," a mix of Mountain Dew and racing fuel. * GOP candidates pledge to
* Officials from the WHO say the Zika virus is “spreading explosively” in the Americas. * Iran's Hassan Rouhani makes his first official visit to France and gets straight to business, post-sanctions. * See also: Normalizing relations with Iran is far from naive—it's a proven tactic for
* French justice minister steps down, protesting plan to strip convicted terrorists of their citizenship. * Standoff in Oregon ends with both Bundys arrested after brief shootout. * Dead Oregon militaman told NBC he’d rather die than go to prison. * Trump to boycott Fox News' Republican debate, calling host Megyn Kelly
* In dramatic reversal, grand jury indicts creators of Planned Parenthood sting videos. * Why Republicans are backing Trump over Cruz. * The biggest problem with Cruz isn't his hypocrisy—it's his all-out attack on mainstream Republican voters. * Cruz at 18: "I’d like to take over
* Syria peace discussions begin today in Geneva, starting with "proximity talks," where groups meet separately. * Winter Storm Jonas—the second-biggest snowstorm in New York City history—shuts down government offices in Washington, D.C. * Despite the travel ban in New York, some used the blizzard as a
