MSNBC Trashes Obama's Address: Compared To Carter, “I Don't Sense Executive Command”  —  Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann and Howard Fineman react to President Obama's Oval Office Address on the oil spill.  Here are the highlights of what the trio said: Olbermann: “It was a great speech …

Exclusive: Al Gore Cheats with Larry David's Ex  —  Al Gore's split from wife Tipper after 40 years of marriage was a shock to everyone who thought theirs was the ideal marriage.  Now Star can exclusively reveal that the former Vice President was having an affair with Larry David's ex-wife — for the past two years!

Sharron Angle needs time to prepare for media's questions, says senior Republican  —  The top Senate Republican campaign strategist promised Tuesday that reporters would have “complete access” to Sharron Angle, the GOP nominee in Nevada, “in a few weeks,” but not now.

8 House members investigated over fundraisers held near financial reform vote  —  The Office of Congressional Ethics is investigating eight lawmakers who held fundraisers within 48 hours of a major House vote on a Wall Street reform bill or received substantial donations from business people …

British media fall out of love with Obama  —  The BBC reports of Barack Obama's speech last night are about as derisive as it would be possible to be about someone you were describing only a few months ago as the incarnation of Hope and Optimism.  Yes indeed, the romance is over.

Nightmare vision for Europe as EU chief warns ‘democracy could disappear’ in Greece, Spain and Portugal  —  Democracy could ‘collapse’ in Greece, Spain and Portugal unless urgent action is taken to tackle the debt crisis, the head of the European Commission has warned.

New York Senate Approves No-Fault Divorce  —  ALBANY — The State Senate on Tuesday, clearing aside decades of opposition, put New York on a course to adopt no-fault divorce — the last state to do so.  It approved legislation that would permit couples to separate by mutual consent …

Dems flirt with backing Crist  —  The emergence of a politically unknown billionaire self-funder in the Florida Senate race is prompting top Democrats in the state to say publicly what some have been whispering for weeks: If Jeff Greene, who got rich betting on the collapse of the housing market …

Housing starts drop to five-month low in May  —  (Reuters) - Housing starts fell more than expected in May to their lowest level in five months, a government report showed on Wednesday, as a popular homebuyer tax credit that had buoyed construction activity over the past two months expired.

Seattle officer punches girl in face during jaywalking stop  —  SEATTLE — Seattle police are investigating what they call an assault of an officer in South Seattle.  —  However, a police officer is seen punching a 17-year-old girl in the face during the incident captured by a video camera on Monday.

More straight talk from Chris Christie - The day of reckoning is here  —  Dude, this guy needs no explanation because he does it so well himself.  I'll be honest, I can't get enough of Christie.  I need this guy to be president right freaking now!!!!  It's painful to hear such great words coming …

When Mama Grizzlies Rebut  —  Wow.  Sarah Palin was on Bill O'Reilly to comment on Obama's address tonight, and it's every bit as crazy-stupid as you'd expect - even BillO seemed amazed by her performance.  Just so you know what to expect, this post is kind of a belated DVR-aided liveblog of her appearance …

Arizonans should watch closely  —  The same complaint echoes through California and Arizona: Elected officials are too partisan, too ideologically rigid and not pragmatic enough.  —  Last week, California voters approved a radical solution.  Proposition 14 amends the state constitution to create an “open primary” system.

It Begins... Obama Gives Major Swath of Arizona Back to Mexico (Video)  —  The federal government is now telling American citizens to stay out of three southern Arizona counties.  —  It is too dangerous because of armed smugglers from Mexico.  —  Patch Adams posted this today:

Puzzling complexity  —  Imagine a jigsaw puzzle of 1 billion pieces.  They are scattered randomly across a pasture that is 1 million miles square.  If someone assigns you the task of finding all these pieces, how would you do so?  —  One option is to search for each of these billion pieces by yourself.