By MICHAEL FALCONE ( @michaelpfalcone )

NOTABLES

• HERE'S A BRIEF REVIEW OF SCOTT WALKER'S WEEKEND: "Gov. Scott Walker: 'I don't know' whether Obama is a Christian" (Washington Post); "Scott Walker: 'I Don't Really Know' Whether Obama Loves America" (Huffington Post); "Walker feeling the heat" (Politico). The Wisconsin governor and potential presidential candidate was in Washington this weekend for the annual National Governors Association conference, and he didn't do himself any favors, as this sampling of national headlines attest.

• ANALYSIS - ABC's RICK KLEIN: This is what the pitching is like in the big leagues, Gov. Scott Walker. Walker is of course free to try to change the game, and even not take big swings in the meantime. But the idea that he wouldn't tell The Washington Post that he believes President Obama is a Christian - after no-commenting on whether Obama loves America, and taking a "punt" on a series of questions, including whether he believes in evolution - suggests a candidate not ready for the way the news cycle churns around presidential candidates. The past month has been one of arrival for Walker, who has established himself as a first-tier contender alongside much better-known names. The danger for him now, though, is that a reputation starts to gel around Walker's political hesitancy, if not expediency. Quibbling with the nature of campaign coverage gets you somewhere with the GOP base, no doubt. But so would deftly handling the kinds of questions that arise when you choose to put yourself in the arena.

• RUDY SPEAKS: Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani sought took to the Wall Street Journal Op-Ed page last night to do a little damage control: "My blunt language suggesting that the president doesn't love America notwithstanding, I didn't intend to question President Obama's motives or the content of his heart. My intended focus really was the effect his words and his actions have on the morale of the country, and how that effect may damage his performance. … Obviously, I cannot read President Obama's mind or heart, and to the extent that my words suggested otherwise, it was not my intention. When asked last week whether I thought the president was a patriot, I said I did, and would repeat that. I bear him no ill will, and in fact think that his personal journey is inspiring and a testament to much of what makes this country great."

HAPPENING TODAY: President Obama will appear at AARP's Washington, DC headquarters to direct the Department of Labor to issue a new proposed rule that would require private retirement-account advisers to act in the best interest of their clients. The president will appear alongside administration figures like Consumer Financial Protection Bureau chief Richard Cordray and Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, ABC's CHRIS GOOD notes. The new rule-the specifics of which have not yet been released-would expand current requirements that advisers steer customers toward plans "suitable" to them, into a new requirement of "fiduciary" responsibility.

THE BUZZ

with ABC's VERONICA STRACQUALURSI

'NO DOUBT' PRESIDENT OBAMA LOVES HIS COUNTRY, SAYS SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM. Potential Republican presidential candidate Sen. Lindsey Graham has "no doubt" that President Obama loves his country, refuting comments made by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. "Well, I love Rudy, but I don't want to go there. The nation's very divided. President Obama has divided us more than he's brought us together and I don't want to add to that division," Graham initially said on ABC's "This Week" Sunday, before adding, "I have no doubt that he loves his country. I have no doubt that he's a patriot. But his primary job as president of the United States is to defend this country and he's failing miserably." The South Carolina senator said that part of that failure stems from labeling the threat posed by ISIS and other terrorist groups as "violent extremism" instead of "radical" Islamists, ABC's LAURA WAGNER reports. http://abcn.ws/1BByVIv

ONE THING THAT MIGHT SURPRISE YOU ABOUT HILLARY CLINTON. ABC's BEN BELL asked Amy Chozick, national political reporter for the The New York Times, who covers Hillary Clinton, about when the former secretary of state might announce her 2016 intentions, her possible competition, who might run her campaign as well as one thing that surprised her about Clinton. http://abcn.ws/1Gfgo3v

MEET THE DEMOCRAT WHO'S NOT AFRAID TO CRITICIZE PRESIDENT OBAMA ON ISIS. President Obama has faced intense criticism from Republicans for his reluctance to label ISIS an "Islamic" group. But that's not particularly remarkable. More noteworthy is that a member of the president's own party - from his home state - has taken repeated shots at him: Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii. "The administration is misidentifying the enemy and their motivation," Gabbard said on CNN last week, calling the president's emphasis on economic aspects of terrorism a "diversion." Known as a rising political star, the Hawaii Democrat is one of the first two female combat veterans elected to Congress. She did tour tours in Iraq, and doesn't hesitate to make her opinions known when it comes to defense issues, according to ABC's ERIN DOOLEY. Perhaps because of her military background - and her political affiliation - Gabbard's comments on ISIS have reverberated. The Republican National Committee was quick to release a statement this week saying, "even Democrats … aren't buying what the President is selling." http://abcn.ws/1FGu5Lp

WHAT'S IN BERNIE SANDERS' GUT? Sen. Bernie Sanders, the longest-serving independent member of Congress in American history, plans on relying on his gut as to whether he will run for president in 2016. "Before I make that decision, I have to develop a sense in my own gut as to whether or not there is the grassroots support across this country," the Vermont senator told ABC News during an interview in Iowa. "My gut is telling me very clearly that there is a lot of responsiveness to the fact that there is something wrong in this country." Should he decide to make a White House bid, Sanders would not say if he would run as a Democrat or Independent, ABC's JESSICA PUCKETT notes. "You know the fact that I'm in Iowa, which is a caucus state, maybe speaks for itself, but I haven't made up my final decision," he said. "I've got to say - some of my strongest supporters say, 'Bernie, stay out of the damn Democratic Party. Run as an Independent.'" http://abcn.ws/1EjS4OQ

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

TOP 5 POLITICAL CAMEOS ON THE BIG SCREEN. In honor of last night's Academy Awards ABC's ALI DUKAKIS and JORDYN PHELPS took a look back at the top five political cameos on the big screen. WATCH: http://abcn.ws/1ExBc54

WHO'S TWEETING?

@rickklein: on tap this week - Journeys with Joe, and Rahmbo: First Round Part II. what to watch in politics: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/stories-care-politics-week/story?id=29115645 …

@nationaljournal: DGA leaders talk up Manchin and Heitkamp for governor in 2016 http://trib.al/OTtmezM

@markknoller: "Within this room, we're not going to agree on everything," Pres Obama conceded to governors last night, but is committed to work together.

@sbg1: President Obama's war push faces rift with the left: imp piece from @burgessev and @mkraju http://www.politico.com/story/2015/02/president-obamas-war-push-faces-rift-with-the-left-115329.html … via @POLITICO

@RealClearScott: Rubio in New Hampshire today and tomorrow. Will have a good opportunity to impress the GOP suit-and-tie set at Politics & Eggs in Manch.