Supreme Court Justice Souter To Retire  —  · NPR has learned that Supreme Court Justice David Souter is planning to retire at the end of the court's current term.  —  The court has completed hearing oral arguments for the year and will be issuing rulings and opinions until the end of June.

Case against ex-AIPAC staffers dropped  —  WASHINGTON (JTA) — A source with intimate knowledge of the case against two ex-AIPAC staffers accused of passing along classified information says the case has been dropped.  —  Keith Weissman, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's former Iran analyst …

First Lady Michelle Obama steps out in Lanvin sneakers and they're only $540!  —  Michelle Obama has taken casual to a haute new level.  —  While volunteering Wednesday at a D.C. food bank, the First Lady sported her usual J.Crew cardigan, a pair of utilitarian capri pants and, on her feet, a sneaky splurge: trainers that go for $540.

The Use of Torture and What Nancy Pelosi Knew  —  Torture is an impermissible evil.  Except under two circumstances.  The first is the ticking time bomb.  An innocent's life is at stake.  The bad guy you have captured possesses information that could save this life.  He refuses to divulge.

INSIDE WASHINGTON: Taxpayers to get rude surprise  —  INSIDE WASHINGTON: Millions of couples, retirees may have to repay some of Obama tax credit  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Millions of Americans enjoying their small windfall from President Barack Obama's “Making Work Pay” tax credit are in for an unpleasant surprise next spring.

Hispanic Dems furious over GOP video  —  Hispanic Democrats are furious and demanding an apology over an image wedged in a new GOP web video on terrorism that shows members of the Hispanic Caucus sitting at a table with President Obama.  —  “On behalf of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus …

Gingrich insult rankles RNC members  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) - Several members of the Republican National Committee are miffed at Newt Gingrich for claiming that they're a small bunch of egomaniacs who need to be coddled by the party chairman.  —  “Newt needs to take a breath,” New Jersey committeeman David Norcross told CNN.

The Lenders Obama Decided to Blame  —  Peter A. Weinberg and Joseph R. Perella are part of a band of Wall Street renegades — “a small group of speculators,” President Obama called them Thursday — who helped bankrupt Chrysler.  —  That, anyway, is the Washington line.

Castro blasts Obama on May Day  —  HAVANA (AFP) - Fidel Castro blasted US President Barack Obama Friday in provocative May Day remarks, saying the United States only wanted Cuba to return “to the fold, like slaves.”  —  Castro, 82, who led Cuba for almost 50 years and remains head …

Survey: Churchgoers more likely to back torture  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — The more often Americans go to church, the more likely they are to support the torture of suspected terrorists, according to a new survey.  —  More than half of people who attend services at least once a week …

An Affordable Salvation  —  The 2008 election ended the reign of junk science in our nation's capital, and the chances of meaningful action on climate change, probably through a cap-and-trade system on emissions, have risen sharply.  —  But the opponents of action claim that limiting emissions …

Lying About Cass Sunstein  —  I could probably write a post running several thousand words just listing all the issues on which I disagree with legal/political theorist Cass Sunstein, but I was nevertheless pretty sanguine about news of his appointment to head the Office of Information an Regulatory Affairs.

Genius: The Modern View  —  Some people live in romantic ages.  They tend to believe that genius is the product of a divine spark.  They believe that there have been, throughout the ages, certain paragons of greatness — Dante, Mozart, Einstein — whose talents far exceeded normal comprehension …

Company warned officials of flu 18 days before alert was issued  —  WASHINGTON — A Washington state biosurveillance firm raised the first warning about a possible outbreak of swine flu in Mexico more than two weeks before the World Health Organization offered its initial alert about a public health emergency of international concern.