Effort to Plug Well Faces Another Setback  —  HOUSTON —As BP engineers failed again to plug the gushing oil well on Saturday, officials said that the company was eyeing other options to stem the flow spreading into the Gulf of Mexico.  —  BP made a third attempt Friday night at what is termed the …

Joe McGinniss tells his side of the story about becoming Sarah Palin's neighbor  —  According to Joe McGinniss, the offer to rent the house next to Sarah Palin's came because the landlord trusted him to respect the former governor's privacy.  —  “She was talking to this mutual friend of ours and said …

Obama to Arizona Governor: Don't Call Me, I'll Call You  —  President Obama has turned down Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer's request to meet while she's in Washington next week as tensions mount between his administration and Arizona over the state's new law cracking down on illegal immigrants.  (AP)

Weakening America: Mitch McConnell Shows How  —  Depressed about how hard it is to get first-rate people into federal jobs, so they're ready to handle emergencies like the BP oil disaster?  Wondering if our systems of self-government really are up to the challenges of the moment?

Not Dead Yet  —  Introducing the pre-obituary: a few choice words before you go.  —  I have an idea for a brand new type of newspaper feature.  And gosh do newspapers need one.  No industry in living memory has collapsed faster than daily print journalism.

Dennis Hopper dead at 74  —  Two-time Academy Award nominee was battling prostate cancer  —  LOS ANGELES — Dennis Hopper, the high-flying Hollywood wild man whose memorable and erratic career included an early turn in “Rebel Without a Cause,” an improbable smash with “Easy Rider” …

Illinois Senate candidate admits claim about military award was inaccurate  —  The Republican candidate for President Obama's old Senate seat has admitted to inaccurately claiming he received the U.S. Navy's Intelligence Officer of the Year award for his service during NATO's conflict with Serbia in the late 1990s.

Options studied for a possible Pakistan strike  —  The U.S. military is reviewing options for a unilateral strike in Pakistan in the event that a successful attack on American soil is traced to the country's tribal areas, according to senior military officials.

Documents Show Earlier Worries About Safety of Rig  —  WASHINGTON — Internal documents from BP show that there were serious problems and safety concerns with the Deepwater Horizon rig far earlier than those the company described to Congress last week.  —  The problems involved the well casing …

Trust Women  —  This weekend marks the one-year anniversary of Dr. George Tiller's murder, a terrorist act committed to stop him for providing women with safe, legal abortions.  The murder was only the most obvious sign that the anti-abortion movement is winning, steadily shaving away women's constitutional rights.

Placing the Blame as Students Are Buried in Debt  —  Like many middle-class families, Cortney Munna and her mother began the college selection process with a grim determination.  They would do whatever they could to get Cortney into the best possible college, and they maintained a blind faith that the investment would be worth it.

Give Them Something They Can Feel  —  There are many things at which the president is extraordinarily gifted.  Emoting isn't one of them.  —  Thursday, in the opening remarks of his press conference, the president said: “Every day I see this leak continue I am angry and frustrated.”

BP bused in 100s of temp workers for Obama visit, state official says  —  Perhaps you saw news footage of President Obama in Grand Isle, La., on Friday and thought things didn't look all that bad.  Well, there may have been a reason for that: The town was evidently swarmed by an army …