Vulnerable GOPs want Palin to stay home  —  Republicans facing tough elections in 2010 don't want Sarah Palin campaigning with them.  —  Though the soon-to-be-former Alaska governor is seen as popular with the conservative grass roots, several Republicans said she'd help them by staying home in Wasilla.

Ensign's parents paid mistress $96K  —  Sen. John Ensign's parents shelled out big bucks to pay off their son's mistress, the latest twist in an unfolding scandal that has upended the political career of the one-time rising GOP star.  —  The scandal has also touched Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) …

Democrats Are at Odds on Financing Health Care  —  WASHINGTON — House and Senate Democrats appeared on Thursday to be on a collision course over how to pay for a sweeping overhaul of the nation's health care system, with the House planning to propose an income tax increase on the wealthiest Americans …

Specter: Sestak a ‘flagrant hypocrite’  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) - Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter called his fellow Democrat, Rep. Joe Sestak, a “flagrant hypocrite” and accused his rival of registering as a Democrat “just in time to run for Congress.”  —  Sestak has said that he will challenge Specter …

High-Priced F-22 Fighter Has Major Shortcomings  —  The United States' top fighter jet, the Lockheed Martin F-22, has recently required more than 30 hours of maintenance for every hour in the skies, pushing its hourly cost of flying to more than $44,000, a far higher figure than for the warplane it replaces …

AIG Seeks Clearance For More Bonuses  —  $2.4 Million in Executive Payments Due Next Week  —  American International Group is preparing to pay millions of dollars more in bonuses to several dozen top corporate executives after an earlier round of payments four months ago set off a national furor.

Roland Burris won't run for Senate seat in 2010  —  Sneed has learned U.S. Sen. Roland Burris has decided NOT to seek election to the seat he fought the government to keep.  —  Sen. Burris is planning to announce his decision Friday by issuing a statement to the press.

The Stimulus Trap  —  As soon as the Obama administration-in-waiting announced its stimulus plan — this was before Inauguration Day — some of us worried that the plan would prove inadequate.  And we also worried that it might be hard, as a political matter, to come back for another round.

Economists Oppose More Stimulus  —  Most economists believe the U.S. doesn't need another round of stimulus now despite expectations of continued severe job losses.  —  Just eight of 51 economists in The Wall Street Journal's latest forecasting survey said more stimulus is necessary …

Watchdog group: Dozens of active-duty troops found on neo-Nazi site  —  WASHINGTON — It is the Facebook for the fascist set, and the typical online profiles of its members reveal expected tastes.  —  Favorite book: “Mein Kampf”  —  Favorite movie: the Nazi propaganda film “Triumph of the Will”

With Sale of Good Assets, G.M. Out of Bankruptcy  —  General Motors completed a major step in its turnaround on Friday and closed the sale of its good assets to a new, government-backed carmaker, at a speed unimagined by auto and bankruptcy experts even six months ago.

CNN Poll: Do Americans want Sotomayor confirmed?  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — Just three days before the start of Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings, a new national poll indicates that by a narrow margin, Americans would like the Senate to confirm her as the next Supreme Court justice.

White House Press Corps Spent the Fourth of July Hanging Out With Obama, Off the Record  —  Reporters from roughly 30 television networks, newspapers, magazines, and web sites celebrated the Fourth of July with Barack Obama at the White House last weekend.  Why didn't you know that?

Whip Inflation Now  —  Over the past few decades, health care inflation has exceeded the general rise in prices by about 2.5 percent a year.  These inexorably rising costs are bankrupting the nation, walloping businesses and squeezing middle-class salaries.  —  Fortunately, the country now has an excellent opportunity to change that.

TAIL TO THE CHIEF  —  O-GLER PREZ JOINS 'KOZY FOR A SUMMIT REAR VIEW  —  Baby got Barack!  —  The leader of the free world and his French counterpart were caught sneaking a peek at a the pink-satin-draped booty of a 17-year-old junior G-8 delegate just moments before the summit's official group photo was snapped in Italy yesterday.

Congress Targets Wealthiest Earners for Health Reform Funds  —  House and Senate negotiators are looking to wealthy individuals to pay much of the $1 trillion price tag for their plan to reform health care, though they are struggling to agree on the most viable option for obtaining that new revenue.

'My Cousin In Kenya Can't Get a Job Without Paying a Bribe': Obama Tells African Leaders to Get Their Houses in Order  —  ABC News' Jake Tapper and Sunlen Miller report:  —  L'AQUILA, ITALY — In a meeting this morning with the leaders of Egypt, Algeria, Senegal, Nigeria, Libya and Ethiopia …

10 Questions for Bill Keller  —  Why do you think the press gave the Bush Administration a free pass on the misleading statements it made to get us into the war in Iraq?  Randal Davis, PORTLAND, ORE.  —  It was partly the insatiable desire for scoops people in the Administration were feeding about the potential threat in Iraq.

New York Times Considers $5 Monthly Web-Access Fee  —  New York Times Co. said in a survey of print subscribers that it's considering a $5 monthly fee for access to its namesake newspaper's Web site.  —  Times Co. also asked whether subscribers would be willing to pay a discounted fee …