The GOP's special failure  —  All the evidence pointing to monster Republican House gains this fall—the Scott Brown upset win in Massachusetts, the scary polling numbers in once-safely Democratic districts, the ever-rising number of Democratic seats thought to be in jeopardy—was contradicted Tuesday.

More on Rand Paul  —  So is Rand Paul, on a personal level, just a deeply unlikeable guy?  One of the weird things about his acceptance speech last night was that he held it at the local country club — to what looked uncannily like a members only crowd.  This morning he defended the venue …

Obama Turns His Back On the Press  —  At a ceremony to sign a bill promoting press freedom around the world on Monday, President Obama refused to take questions from the reporters in attendance.  “I'm not doing a press conference today,” he told Chip Reid of CBS News, “but we'll be seeing you guys during the course of the week.”

Wall Street reform fails key vote  —  Sen. Harry Reid and Democrats failed to secure enough votes to end debate on Wall Street reform legislation.  —  Washington (CNNMoney.com) - After months of negotiation and debate, far-reaching legislation to overhaul the rules of Wall Street failed …

Slow learners at the 9th Circuit  —  The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is a stimulus package for the Supreme Court, which would rather not have one.  The 9th Circuit, often in error but never in doubt, provides the Supreme Court with steady work: Over the past half-century …

Dean: N.Y. Times story a ‘hatchet job’  —  Howard Dean on Wednesday took the New York Times to task for running a “hatchet job” story on Democratic Senate candidate Richard Blumenthal misstating his service in Vietnam without acknowledging that the information came from a GOP campaign.

Rahm's Son's Bar Mitzvah Irks Some in Israel  —  Israeli Activists Say They Will ‘Blow Up,’ Figuratively, Zach Emanuel's Bar Mitzvah  —  White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel's plan to take his son, Zach, to Jerusalem's famous Western Wall for his Jewish coming-of-age ritual appeared to have run into serious trouble.

Power Play Over Immigration Law  —  LA's boycott resolution sparks a threat over power the city receives from Arizona  —  An Arizona utility commissioner said he's willing to pull the plug on Los Angeles if the city goes through with a boycott of his state.

Who woulda thunk it: Fact-checking is popular!  —  Has anyone else noticed that the Associated Press has been doing some strong fact-checking work lately, aggressively debunking all kinds of nonsense, in an authoritative way, without any of the usual he-said-she-said crap that often mars political reporting?

Florida mosque bombed; FBI calls for help; national media mute  —  On May 10th, a middle-aged man carried a can of gasoline and a pipe bomb into the Jacksonville Islamic Center of Northeast Florida during evening prayers and detonated it.  Fortunately, there were no injuries to people, though the bomb did damage property.

Girl Outs Mother's Citizenship Status During First Lady's School Visit  —  A second-grader may have unwittingly blown the whistle on her mother's citizenship status during Michelle Obama's visit to a Silver Spring, Md., school — and right in front of Mexico's first lady.

Why Are Incumbents Faltering?  Check Out The Election Night FinReg Massacre  —  Yesterday's results in the election showed what has now become conventional wisdom: an “anti-incumbent mood,” something the media will parrot from now to November.  Have they explored why?

Attorney General Tom Corbett Subpoenaes Twitter To Identify Anonymous Critics  —  Tom Corbett, current Attorney General of the state of Pennsylvania and Gubernatorial Candidate, has subpoenaed Twitter to appear as a Grand Jury witness to “testify and give evidence regarding alleged violations of the laws of Pennsylvania”.

BP CEO Hayward Bets On ‘Very, Very Modest’ Impact From Disaster  —  Tony Hayward, CEO of oil giant BP, is betting that the environmental impact of the Deepwater Horizon disaster will be “very, very modest.”  Even though a million gallons of crude have flooded into the Gulf of Mexico every …

Utah Sen. Bennett may announce future tomorrow  —  Sen. Bob Bennett, kicked off the ballot this month at Utah's Republican convention, could make a decision about whether to seek a fourth-term as a write-in candidate as early as tomorrow, Bennett tells USA TODAY.

Heavy Sludge Oozes into Marshes of Louisiana  —  Governor Bobby Jindal Flew over Site and Reported “Heavy Oil;” CBS Cameras Turned Away by BP, Coast Guard  —  (CBS/AP) It may be the most disturbing site yet: the first heavy sludge now oozing into the marshes of Louisiana as the slick continues to grow in size out in the gulf.