Crowd laughs and applauds at Rep. Akin's comment about lawmakers almost being ‘lynched’ at town halls.  —  At a “Freedom Conference” meeting earlier this week, Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) mentioned that some Democratic lawmakers were almost “lynched” by angry protesters around the country at town hall meetings.

Pelosi: Town Hall Protesters Are “Carrying Swastikas”  —  Nancy Pelosi claims protesters are “carrying swastikas and symbols like that to a town meeting on healthcare.”  VIDEO: Man At Town Hall: “You Need To Get The Government The Hell Out Of Our Way” VIDEO: DNC Web Ad Attacks Protesters …

Poll: Obama approval drops 7 points over last 100 days  —  CNN Deputy Political Director  —  WASHINGTON (CNN) — As President Obama approaches 200 days in the White House, a new national poll shows his approval rating has dropped seven points since the 100-day mark in April.

Dear Huffington Post, About That Headline  —  Yesterday was a pretty big day.  The lives of two amazing journalists were saved, their families spared more emotional agony.  It all started, as the New York Times reported it, after being arrested on March 17 near the North Korean border …

No More Perks: Coffee Shops Pull the Plug on Laptop Users  —  They Sit for Hours and Don't Spend Much; Getting the Bum's Rush in the Big Apple  —  A sign at Naidre's, a small neighborhood coffee shop in Brooklyn, N.Y., begins warmly: “Dear customers, we are absolutely thrilled that you like us …

Furor Over an Obama Puff Piece  —  Student Barack Obama in a 1980 photo shoot at Occidental College.  (Lisa Jack/Getty Images)  —  It was only a matter of time before someone combined a certain memorable image of a young future president with a jokey twist on his campaign slogan …

White House Affirms Deal on Drug Cost  —  WASHINGTON — Pressed by industry lobbyists, White House officials on Wednesday assured drug makers that the administration stood by a behind-the-scenes deal to block any Congressional effort to extract cost savings from them beyond an agreed-upon $80 billion.

Senate Committee's Bipartisan Health-Care Reform Talks Move Toward Center  —  Bipartisan Talks On Reform Move Toward Center  —  Senate negotiators are inching toward bipartisan agreement on a health-care plan that seeks middle ground on some of the thorniest issues facing Congress …

Obama as The Joker: Racial Fear's Ugly Face  —  ‘Political’ Poster Turns On Violent Symbolism  —  Between Jack Nicholson's 1989 portrayal of the Joker in “Batman” and Heath Ledger's 2008 characterization in “The Dark Knight,” something sinister happened to the villain's iconic makeup.

U.S. Considers Remaking Mortgage Giants  —  ‘Bad Bank’ Would Wipe the Slate Clean for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac by Taking Their Toxic Loans  —  The Obama administration is considering an overhaul of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that would strip the mortgage finance giants of hundreds of billions …

Obama's dissident database could be secret — and permanent  —  The White House request that members of the public report anyone who is spreading “disinformation” about the proposed national health care makeover could lead to a White House database of political opponents that will be both secret …

Murdoch vows to charge for all online content  —  Rupert Murdoch has vowed to charge for all the online content of his newspapers and television news channels, going well beyond his prediction in May that the company would test pay models on one of its stronger papers within the year.

Dem Congressman's Office: His Life Has Been Threatened Over Health Care Bill  —  Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC) will not be hosting any town hall events this August — instead, he's making himself available to constituents for one-on-one meetings about health care reform — and at least part of the reason is this …

You can never say, “Y'know, that's a good point, maybe I'm wrong”  —  Marc Ambinder marches on past his intellect  —  And it isn't just people trying to rationalize why the hell they were all for invading Iraq six and a half years ago.  It applies to just about every villager when they get called …

Lynette ‘Squeaky’ Fromme to be released  —  (CNN) — The president she once pointed a gun at has been dead for nearly three years, and her longtime idol and leader, Charles Manson, remains in prison.  —  However, Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme is about to get her first taste of real freedom in more than three decades.

OFA tries to counter “mobs” with their own supporters  —  As Democrats seek to outwardly frame the lusty voices appearing at congressional town hall meetings as “mobs” whose appearance is manufactured by outside groups, President Obama's political arm is moving to match the opposition …

Health Reform and the Tax Pledge  —  Polling and focus groups have led the president astray on his top priority.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  Americans are now seeing the damage that polls and focus groups can inflict on White House decision-making.  President Barack Obama is no longer shaping …

Obama Plans to Use More Than Bombs and Bullets to Fight Terrorism  —  The U.S. government must fundamentally redefine the struggle against terrorism, replacing the “war on terror” with a campaign combining all facets of national power to defeat the enemy, John O. Brennan …

Conservativism's Next Generation: Young, Dumb, and Full of...?  —  Remember these guys?  —  Well... I ran into them at the Young America's Foundation convention right after Gingrich's speech.  Of course, Gingrich lionized Reagan.  He's their legend.  And they named an airport after him!

About half of U.S. mortgages seen underwater by 2011  —  NEW YORK (Reuters) - The percentage of U.S. homeowners who owe more than their house is worth will nearly double to 48 percent in 2011 from 26 percent at the end of March, portending another blow to the housing market, Deutsche Bank said on Wednesday.

Autocracy and the Decline of the Arabs  —  The Arab world is plagued by despots.  But don't expect the U.N. to give President Bush any credit for challenging this order.  —  Printer  —  Friendly  —  'It made me feel so jealous," said Abdulmonem Ibrahim, a young Egyptian political activist, of the recent upheaval in Iran. "

Agreement on a Vote to Extend Car Program  —  WASHINGTON — Leaders of both parties had reached a deal that could allow the Senate to approve an extension of the “cash for clunkers” program, Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader, said Wednesday night.  —  The program has run out of money …