Pravda: Thousands of people rallied in Moscow today to protest the public murder of prominent Russian political dissident Boris Nemtsov. They carried portraits of Nemtsov and banners saying, “I am not afraid”.

Despite the street bravado, the killing of the 55-year-old Nemtsov has sent a chill through opponents of President Vladimir Putin. Now Putin’s opponents fear that political assassination is once again one of the cards in the Russian political game. And may be exactly as it was intended.

But publicly, investigators and politicians are speculating on other reasons, among them that Nemtsov was killed by his own people to provoke a political crisis. They pointed out it may have been a domestic or jealousy killing. When he was gunned down Nemtsov was accompanied by his 23-year-old model girlfriend.

Officials have suggested everything but the most obvious reason you could think of; that Vladimir Putin ordered the hit.

On the Right: Sen. Rand Paul won the straw poll yesterday for the third year in a row at the Conservative Political Action Conference meeting in Maryland. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who’s doubling down against unions and public employees, rose from fifth place last year to second.

But traditionally the CPAC poll is a reverse measure of who will not become the Republican nominee for president.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, derided as a closet “moderate” at CPAC, finished fifth in the poll. Some people walked out on Bush’s speech Friday and a few who stayed booed and jeered. He’s not conservative enough for the CPAC crowd, particularly those who want to seal the southern border and throw out all illegal immigrants. “There is no plan to deport 11 million people,” Bush said, explaining that he thinks the only way to deal with the immigration problem is to give some kind of legal status to those who arrive outside the system.

Exit: Immigration officials digging into Bosnian war records are preparing to eject about 150 Bosnian immigrants suspected of taking part in the massacres known as “ethnic cleansing” in the former Yugoslavia. Officials say they have names of about 300 suspects and the list could grow to 600. War criminals came to the US amid the flood of immigrants fleeing the regional meltdown. New information is helping to weed them out, but Immigration is hampered by lack of money for investigations.

Lion: Yet another winter storm is bringing cold, snow and freezing rain all the way from Illinois to Maine. It’s going to be tough going on the I-95 corridor from Washington to Bangor. Chicago, 19; Buffalo, 21; Philadelphia, 27; Pilot Knob, NY, 12; Whitefield, NH, 8; Boston, 22; Bangor, 13.

So far today, 938 flights are cancelled and 935 delayed.

Diplomatic News:Israeli Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on his way to the US today in advance of a scheduled speech to Congress Tuesday. He’s described his efforts to derail President Obama’s nuclear negotiations with Iran as “an historic mission.”

Netanyahu was invited by House Speaker John Boehner in an end-run around diplomatic protocol. Obama is trying to talk Iran out of their nuclear program but Netanyahu wants a harder line and says Iran’s nuclear ambitions are an “existential threat” to Israel. He will receive a chilly reception by the White House.

Don’t Mess: Ultimate Fighting bantamweight Ronda Rousey successfully defended her title last night in just 14 seconds against Cat Zingano, whose name we liked so much we thought this story was worth reporting. Rousey has won the title five times, her last three title bouts lasting 66 seconds, 16 seconds, and last night’s record 14 seconds. You have to wonder though. How much fun can it be to beat someone up for only 14 seconds?

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