Language guru: Obama speech too ‘professorial’  —  (CNN) — President Obama's speech on the gulf oil disaster may have gone over the heads of many in his audience, according to an analysis of the 18-minute talk released Wednesday.  —  Tuesday night's speech from the Oval Office of the White House …

The Playboy Article on the Tea Party  —  I can't wait to tell my Baptist mother that her daughter is in Playboy.  —  This month's issue of Playboy features an interesting article on the tea party movement and in particular, focuses on a particular group of activists, myself included.

Bullied into a £13bn cave-in: Obama forces BP to set up huge compensation fund for U.S. oil spill victims - and British pensioners will pick up the bill  —  The crisis engulfing BP plumbed new depths last night as President Obama bullied the company into depositing £13.5billion …

Election 2010: Arkansas Senate  —  Arkansas Senate: Boozman (R) 61%, Lincoln (D) 32%  —  Republican John Boozman now holds a near two-to-one lead over Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln in Arkansas' U.S. Senate race, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in the state.

In Illinois Race, a Teaching Career Is Questioned  —  WASHINGTON — Representative Mark S. Kirk of Illinois, a Republican candidate for the United States Senate, has often reminisced about his time as a teacher.  —  On the floor of the House, in campaign commercials and during interviews …

Israel to Ease Gaza Land Blockade  —  JERUSALEM — Weeks after its commandos killed nine people aboard an aid flotilla trying to breach its blockade of Gaza, Israel on Thursday announced what it called a liberalization of the three-year-old restrictions, promising to ease the importation …

New RNC ad: How many rounds did you golf while the oil was leaking, champ?  —  A snappy montage illustrating Obama's “bloodless quality” and “emotional detachment” from the spill, as rabidly right-wing NYT columnist Maureen Dowd put it this morning.  Sad to say, I don't think this meme's …

More Than 90 Banks Miss TARP Payments  —  More than 90 U.S. banks and thrifts missed making a May 17 payment to the U.S. government under its main bank bailout program, signaling a rising number of lenders are struggling to meet their obligations.  —  The statistics, compiled by SNL Financial …

The Boring Speech Policy  —  On Monday night in Ohio, a 62-foot-tall statue of Jesus got hit by lightning and burned to the ground.  (The adult bookstore across the street was unscathed.)  Less than 12 hours later, Gen. David Petraeus — who is not God, although certain members of Congress …

Closing Arguments in Marriage Trial  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Lawyers made their closing arguments in the federal trial over the legality of California's ban on same-sex marriage on Wednesday, framing the issue as a war between the civil rights of gay men and lesbians and the traditional understanding and role of marriage.

Unemployment may be at 9.7%, but the Senate is moving on  —  Or, at the least, they care about the deficit more.  By a vote of 52 to 45, the Senate rejected a jobs package that would've extended unemployment insurance, offered some tax breaks to individuals and businesses, kept doctors in the Medicare program and more.

Biden coming to Silicon Valley in July to raise money for Boxer  —  WASHINGTON — Vice President Joe Biden is coming to Silicon Valley on July 8 to raise money for Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer's re-election bid, her campaign said Wednesday night.  He'll attend a second fundraiser for her the following day in Los Angeles.

House Democrats set to retire aren't paying their party's dues  —  House Democratic leaders want a going-away present from the members who are leaving Congress next year — their committee dues.  —  A dozen retiring House Democrats have racked up almost $2 million in outstanding balances …

GAO still encounters delays in access to federal agencies  —  Numerous government agencies are denying the investigative arm of Congress access to information, despite repeated attempts by officials and lawmakers to remedy the situation, according to a letter sent this week and obtained by The Hill.

With Criminal Charges for Oil Spill, Costs to BP Could Soar  —  As BP watches its bill rise quickly for the oil spill, including $20 billion it is setting aside for claims, it could find the tally growing much faster in coming months if the United States Department of Justice files criminal charges against the company.

Bizarre getaway as student hurls puppy at German biker gang  —  A German student “mooned” a group of Hell's Angels and hurled a puppy at them before escaping on a stolen bulldozer, police have said.

Red ink, not oil, is the best focus for Obama  —  Far be it from me to tell the crew of public relations officials who now occupy those West Wing offices as a reward for running one of the best presidential campaigns anyone has ever seen, but . . .  If there is any value in President Obama's knocking himself …

Once again we must ask: ‘Who governs?’  —  In 1974, Edward Heath asked: “Who governs - government or trade unions?”  Five years later British voters delivered a final verdict by electing Margaret Thatcher.  The equivalent today would be: “Who governs - government or financial markets?”

BRIAN TAMANAHA: Wake Up, Fellow Law Professors, to the Casualties of Our Enterprise. … Just casualties of the recession?  Or more signs of a bursting bubble?  The only positive angle I can contribute is this: With a college degree now functioning, essentially, the way a high-school diploma used to …

Twitterati report: Syria trip mixes work with play  —  The State Department's two leading Twitterati, Special Advisor on Innovation Alec J. Ross (@alecjross) and Policy Planning staffer Jared Cohen (@jaredcohen), are in Syria this week leading a delegation of tech companies hoping to …