Sarah Palin: Why She Resigned  —  Sarah Palin Talks to ABC News About Why She Resigned  —  After her bombshell announcement Friday that she was resigning as governor of Alaska 18 months before the end of her first term, and questions about her political future ricocheting from Alaska to Washington D.C. …

Obama to Rahm: Shut.  Up.  —  Today's Wall Street Journal: … This forced Obama to interrupt his diplomacy in Russia to release this statement: … What happened here?  Rahm likely was blabbering to a reporter and just went with his natural gut instinct — to be weak, and cave to Republicans.

Dan Froomkin hired by The Huffington Post  —  (updated below)  —  In yet another sign of how online media outlets are strengthening as their older establishment predecessors are struggling to survive, The Huffington Post has hired Dan Froomkin to be its Washington Bureau Chief and regular columnist/blogger.

In Russia, President Obama Explains His Support for Ousted President of Honduras  —  MOSCOW - Facing criticism for having backed the “wrong” side in the recent coup in Honduras, President Obama Tuesday tried to explain his advocacy on behalf of ousted President Manuel Zelaya.

Al Gore likens fight against climate change to battle with Nazis  —  Al Gore today compared the battle against climate change with the struggle against the Nazis.  —  The former US Vice President said the world lacked the political will to act and invoked the spirit of Winston Churchill …

Obama's Approval Drops In Ohio - Critical Swing State, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; 2010 Senate Race Tips Slightly To Democrats  —  President Barack Obama gets a lackluster 49 - 44 percent approval rating in Ohio, considered by many to be the most important swing state in a presidential election …

Big Banks Don't Want California's IOUs  —  A group of the biggest U.S. banks said they would stop accepting California's IOUs on Friday, adding pressure on the state to close its $26.3 billion annual budget gap.  —  The development is the latest twist in California's struggle to deal with the effects of the recession.

Putin praises Bush hospitality during Obama visit  —  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin praised the hospitality and openness of U.S. former President George W. Bush in a telegramme sent hours before meeting his successor Barack Obama.

Obama Adviser Says U.S. Should Mull Second Stimulus  —  The U.S. should consider drafting a second stimulus package focusing on infrastructure projects because the $787 billion approved in February was “a bit too small,” said Laura Tyson, an outside adviser to President Barack Obama.

Pope calls for ‘God-centered’ global economy  —  Pope Benedict XVI today called for reforming the United Nations and establishing a “true world political authority” with “real teeth” to manage the global economy with God-centered ethics.  —  In his third encyclical, a major teaching …

UPDATED: Alberto Gonzales, former U.S. attorney general, expected to teach at Texas Tech University  —  Alberto Gonzales, who resigned as the Bush administration's embattled attorney general nearly two years ago, has lined up a fall-semester teaching spot at Texas Tech University, the university confirmed today.

In Search of Dignity  —  When George Washington was a young man, he copied out a list of 110 “Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation.”  Some of the rules in his list dealt with the niceties of going to a dinner party or meeting somebody on the street.

Former Gitmo Inmate Leading Fight Against U.S. in Helmand  —  As U.S. forces are pushing ahead with the massive Operation Khanjar in the southern Afghanistan province of Helmand, Mullah Zakir is leading the Taliban fight against them.  —  FOXNews.com  —  A former Guantanamo Bay inmate …

U.S. House May Include Surtax on Wealthy in Health-Care Package  —  House Ways and Means Committee members are likely to propose a surtax on high-income Americans to help pay for an overhaul of the health-care system, according to people familiar with the plan.

The Real Quagmire in the Middle East  —  The Middle East is a hard place for idealists, especially for the Western liberal variety.  My feelings of optimism for the region have been ground down over time like rocks under slow-moving glacial ice.  —  Last time I visited Israel …

Commentary: Galloway on McNamara: Reading an obit with great pleasure  —  “I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure.”  —Clarence Darrow (1857-1938)  —  Well, the aptly named Robert Strange McNamara has finally shuffled off to join LBJ and Dick Nixon in the 7th level of Hell.

George Allen's road back?  —  A book is often a start on that road, and Regnery announced today that they're publishing one by the former Virginia senator:  —  The book, due out next year, will be called, “The Triumph of Character: What Washington Can Learn from the World of Sports.”

Howard Dean: Private Health Care Is Breaking Our Economy  —  And the Republicans are all a bunch of liars.  And Washington is as scared of change as a cult.  And other things you'd expect Howard Dean to say in a hot-button debate.  Except, when it comes to this particular hot-button debate …