Breaking: Stupak Will Retire  —  Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) plans to announce his retirement today, Democrats briefed on his decision said.  Stupak, the leader of a pro-life faction within his party, had received death threats and was under intense political pressure after he agreed to support …

President Obama questions Sarah Palin's nuclear acumen  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Thursday made clear he was not going to take advice from Republican Sarah Palin when it comes to decisions about the U.S. nuclear arsenal.  —  Palin, the former vice presidential candidate …

Republicans convene in New Orleans, with no mention of Katrina  —  Five years after President Bush's failed response to a natural disaster in New Orleans deeply damaged his party's credibility and helped sweep them from power, top Republicans speaking to supporters in New Orleans tonight made no mention of Hurricane Katrina.

Big Banks Mask Risk Levels  —  Quarter-End Loan Figures Sit 42% Below Peak, Then Rise as New Period Progresses; SEC Review  —  Major banks have masked their risk levels in the past five quarters by temporarily lowering their debt just before reporting it to the public, according to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Anger over health-care reform spurs rise in threats against Congress members  —  Anger over the health-care overhaul has led to a nearly threefold increase in recent months in the number of serious threats against members of Congress, federal law enforcement officials said.

Netanyahu Cancels Trip to U.S. Nuclear Summit  —  JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has canceled his plans to attend the Nuclear Security summit meeting in Washington next week and will send a minister in his place, Israeli and American government officials said Thursday.

What makes NPR (and the Economist) so special?  —  I've been thinking a bit about this NPR graph that's been floating around.  I wish it included another data point: The Economist magazine.  Their explosive growth over the last decade is well known, but consider that the publication had a record year in 2009.

Democratic Party Image Drops to Record Low  —  Favorable images of Democratic, Republican Parties now tied  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Americans' favorable rating of the Democratic Party dropped to 41% in a late March USA Today/Gallup poll, the lowest point in the 18-year history of this measure.

BREAKING: Obama Administration Denies Visas to Israeli Nuclear Scientists  —  The Obama administration is now denying U.S. visas to Israeli scientists who work at that nation's Dimona nuclear reactor.  This startling reversal of traditional policy was reported April 7, 2010 …

Learning From Greece  —  The debt crisis in Greece is approaching the point of no return.  As prospects for a rescue plan seem to be fading, largely thanks to German obduracy, nervous investors have driven interest rates on Greek government bonds sky-high, sharply raising the country's borrowing costs.

The Methane Apocalypse  —  Some very frightening news from the world of climate science, as an international scientific team discovers that the Arctic permafrost in Siberia may be starting to leak huge amounts of methane into the atmosphere.  —  And if this proves to be true, my friends …

The Conservative Misinformation Feedback Loop, Cont'd  —  A few weeks ago, I wrote a post entitled “The Doc Fox Myth And The Right's Misinformation Feedback Loop.”  I used the example of a medium-sized claim that's demonstrably false, but has recirculated endlessly among conservatives, most prominently rising star Paul Ryan.

It's War: SEIU Starting Third Party In North Carolina  —  In a shot across the bow of Dems, the labor powerhouse SEIU is starting a new third party in North Carolina that hopes to field its own slate of candidates, part of an effort to make the Democratic Party more reliable on issues important to labor, I'm told.

CIA spies and Dartmouth deans  —  Ishmael Jones is the pseudonymous former Central Intelligence Agency case officer who focused on human sources with access to intelligence on terrorism and weapons of mass destruction.  His assignments included more than 15 years of continuous overseas service under deep cover.