Who's In Charge?:  Against Gov. Jindal's Wishes, Oil-Sucking Barges Stopped by Coast Guard  —  59 Days Into Oil Crisis, Gulf Coast Governors Say Feds Are Failing Them  —  Eight days ago, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal ordered barges to begin vacuuming crude oil out of his state's oil-soaked waters.

Utah firing squad death announced on Twitter  —  Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff uses Twitter to get his message out  —  It was a very modern way to announce a very old-fashioned death.  —  Shortly after midnight in the US state of Utah, Attorney General Mark Shurtleff picked up his Apple iPhone …

Jobs bill blocked in Senate  —  The Senate effectively rejected a slimmed-down package of jobless benefits and state aid late Thursday, rebuffing President Obama's call for urgent action to bolster the economic recovery.  —  Sens. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) and Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.) …

EXCLUSIVE: Alert Issued for 17 Afghan Military Members AWOL From U.S. Air Force Base  —  FILE: Air traffic controllers from the 37th Operations Support Squadron prepare to navigate F-16 Falcons down the runway on Lackland Air Force Base.  —  A nationwide alert has been issued for 17 members …

Republican Backpedals From Apology to BP  —  WASHINGTON — Representative Joe L. Barton had to be truly sorry by the time he apologized for his apology on Thursday.  —  In the four hours between his televised apology to BP — for what he called a $20 billion “shakedown” …

That '30s Feeling  —  Suddenly, creating jobs is out, inflicting pain is in.  Condemning deficits and refusing to help a still-struggling economy has become the new fashion everywhere, including the United States, where 52 senators voted against extending aid to the unemployed despite …

Giannoulias Campaign Aide Manhandles Videographer  —  More rough tactics were on display last night in Washington DC as a hotheaded campaign workerfor the Alexi Giannoulias campaign for Senator of Illinois confronted a man with a video camera at a fundraising event.

Obama and the vision thing  —  Barack Obama doesn't do the mundane.  He was sent to us to do larger things.  You could see that plainly in his Oval Office address on the gulf oil spill.  He could barely get himself through the pedestrian first half: a bit of BP-bashing, a bit of faux-Clintonian …

Inhofe: Obama 'Hasn't Made Good Decision Yet' on Spill  —  Sen. Jim Inhofe tells Newsmax that President Obama “hasn't made a good decision yet” on the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and his Tuesday night speech about the spill was his “worst moment.”

Context on Etheridge Poll  —  The right is predictably giddy about a new poll showing Bob Etheridge trailing Renee Ellmers 39-38 for reelection.  —  It reminds me of a poll we did immediately after Joe Wilson's ‘you lie’ incident.  He was trailing challenger Rob Miller 44-43.

Hillary Clinton should be Obama's vice president  —  Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden should switch jobs.  —  Really.  —  It makes sense for the Democrats, actually.  Clinton has done an incredible job as secretary of state.  First of all, she has worked harder than anyone should ever be expected to.

Margaret Wente  —  After the sensational 2007 murder of Aqsa Parvez, the 16-year-old girl who disobeyed her traditional family, many Muslim girls in Canada discussed the story on Facebook.  “That's my story too,” some of them wrote.  —  This week, Aqsa's father and brother pleaded guilty …

Obama Twists Arms at BP, Setting Off a Debate on Tactics  —  WASHINGTON — First there was General Motors, whose chief executive was summarily dismissed by the White House shortly before the government became the company's majority shareholder.  Chrysler was forced into a merger.

Dale Peterson Cuts The Best Political Endorsement Ad Ever Made (VIDEO)  —  What's Your Reaction: … Gun-toting enemy of “thugs” Dale Peterson may have finished third in the GOP primary for Alabama Agriculture Commissioner, but he's not done being a YouTube star.

GOP Senate Nominee Sharron Angle Breaks Her Silence … LAS VEGAS - As Sharron Angle greeted supporters at Stoney's Restaurant in Las Vegas, 8 News NOW Reporter Nathan Baca approached her to ask about her Social Security plan.  —  Her website calls for “transitioning out” Social Security and Medicare.

S.C. Dems keep Greene as Senate nominee  —  Democratic Party officials in South Carolina voted Thursday to uphold the result of their controversial Senate primary.  —  Columbia, South Carolina (CNN) - Democratic Party officials in South Carolina voted Thursday to uphold the result …

Obama Admin. Argues in Court That Individual Mandate Is a Tax  —  In order to protect the new national health care law from legal challenges, the Obama administration has been forced to argue that the individual mandate represents a tax — even though Obama himself argued the exact opposite while campaigning to pass the legislation.

Oil companies push for status quo on environmental regulations for deep-water drilling rigs  —  The pleas come as the White House Council on Environmental Quality is reviewing whether the federal drilling watchdog has appropriately followed the National Environmental Policy Act.