Sarah Palin issues a call to action to ‘mama grizzlies’  —  Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin told a group of women who oppose abortion rights that they are responsible for an “emerging, conservative, feminist identity” and have the power to shape politics and elections around the issue of life.

Making the Grade: Kagan's Transcript  —  How promising a lawyer was young Elena Kagan?  Judging by her grades at Harvard Law School, you'd be lucky if she was drawing up a contract for you, but maybe less so if you wanted to sue someone over a fender-bender.

The Health Care Reform Already Costs More Than We Thought It Would  —  There's been a spate of bad news recently about the health care bill.  —  Henry Waxman canceled his War on Accounting, not because there was a sudden breakout of common sense on Capitol Hill, but because his committee's …

Proposal Would Delay Hearings in Terror Cases  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama's legal advisers are considering asking Congress to allow the government to detain terrorism suspects longer after their arrests before presenting them to a judge for an initial hearing, according to officials familiar with the discussions.

Read Elena Kagan's college thesis and decide if she's “an open and avowed socialist”...  ... which is what Erick Erickson has concluded.  —  ADDED: I've read the last few pages of the thesis, and a key sentence, at page 130, is: “The story is a sad but also a chastening one for those who …

Maine GOP Forced To Apologize After Convention-Goers Vandalize An Eighth-Grade Classroom  —  Although Maine is known for its two moderate Republican senators — Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins — last week's state GOP convention showed the growing influence of far-right activists.

GOP Kills Science Jobs Bill By Forcing Dems To Vote For Porn  —  In an example of Republican obstructionism rendered beautiful by its simplicity, the GOP yesterday killed a House bill that would increase funding for scientific research and math and science education by forcing Democrats to vote …

Obama rips executives, calls oil spill hearing a ‘ridiculous spectacle’  —  President Barack Obama excoriated the companies involved in the Gulf oil spill Friday for failing to take responsibility.  —  In remarks from the Rose Garden after a meeting with cabinet officials about the ongoing spill …

Governor out to rebrand Arizona over immigration law criticism  —  Acknowledging that Arizona has developed a serious image problem because of its tough new immigration law, Gov. Jan Brewer and tourism-industry leaders said Thursday that they will launch a new effort to stanch the flow of lost trade and convention business in the state.

Big shakeup for ketchup  —  Your fries may never taste the same again!  —  For the first time in 40 years, Heinz ketchup is changing its famous recipe — by lowering the salt content in an effort to appeal to more health-conscious consumers, the company said yesterday.

The New Normal on Abortion: Americans More “Pro-Life”  —  For second year straight, “pro-life” and “pro-choice” closely matched  —  PRINCETON, NJ — The conservative shift in Americans' views on abortion that Gallup first recorded a year ago has carried over into 2010.

Pennsylvania special election could be 2010 pivot point  —  For months, the conventional wisdom about the coming 2010 midterm elections has been that Republicans are not only poised to make major gains this fall but that they also have a realistic chance of taking the chamber back.

Book: Rahm “begged” Obama for days not to pursue ambitious health reform  —  Rahm Emanuel spent nearly a week in the summer of 2009 aggressively trying to talk Obama out of moving foward with an ambitious version of health care reform, and by his own admission “begged” him not to do it, a book out next week reports.

School Official in Basketball Flap Is No Stranger to Controversy  —  The school official who nixed an Illinois girls high school basketball team trip to Arizona once supported a controversial program that required students to attend a “freshman advisory” class where gay upperclassmen shared stories …

Horrible: Full video of the attack on Sweden's Mohammed cartoonist  —  Via Ace, whose post you should read if only for the brilliance of his headline.  Some of you will be tempted twice over to skip this: It's long, and you've already seen the most dramatic bit.  Don't skip it.

Miss., La. govs contrast in responses to oil spill  —  JACKSON, Miss. — The ambitious Republican governors of Mississippi and Louisiana are a study in contrasts as an oil spill threatens coastal economies still reeling from Hurricane Katrina.  —  Mississippi's Haley Barbour …

Republican: Holder 'doesn't deserve to be attorney general'  —  A key House Republican on Friday said that Attorney General Eric Holder “doesn't deserve” to keep his job because of his handling of the failed Times Square bombing attempt.  —  House Homeland Security Committee ranking Republican Pete King …

Dems appear in ‘We Are Lebron’ video  —  From NBC's Mark MurrayTalk about working to save an Ohio job — NBA star Lebron James'.  With James' NBA season over, and with speculation that he might bolt Cleveland for brighter lights, prominent city leaders and personalities have created a “We Are Lebron” song/video.

Their Dirty Little Secret: GOP Senators Say Bailouts Worked — Just Please Don't Tell Anyone!  —  Perhaps the most fascinating political conundrum of the 2010 election is one faced by GOP senators, almost all of whom voted for TARP and supported some of the other bailouts in the thick of the financial crisis.

We're Not Greece  —  It's an ill wind that blows nobody good, and the crisis in Greece is making some people — people who opposed health care reform and are itching for an excuse to dismantle Social Security — very, very happy.  Everywhere you look there are editorials and commentaries …

Obama Administration Makes Emergency Funding Request for Teachers  —  Despite President Obama's pledge for honest budgeting and billions of dollars in stimulus money spent to save teachers' jobs, the Education Department is asking for off-the-books emergency funding to keep local districts …

Pakistani Taliban say America will “burn”  —  (Reuters) - Pakistani Taliban militants have warned America that it will soon “burn” while calling for Pakistan's rulers to be overthrown for following “America's agenda”.  —  The United States is convinced Pakistani Taliban militants allied …

Plan to Build Mosque Near Ground Zero Riles Families of 9/11 Victims  —  Outraged family members and community groups are accusing a Muslim group of trying to rewrite history with its plans to build a 13-story mosque and cultural center just two blocks from Ground Zero, where Islamic extremists flew …