What is the Tea Party?  A growing state of mind  —  WASHINGTON — The “Tea Party” is less a classic political movement than a frustrated state of mind.  —  A year and a half after the idea of a Tea Party burst into view, three of 10 Americans describe themselves in the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll …

Barack Obama is among best presidents ever - George W. Bush not so much, say scholars in Siena poll  —  George W. Bush was no FDR, but Barack Obama could be.  —  That's the verdict of 238 of the nation's leading presidential scholars, who - for a fifth time - rated Franklin Delano Roosevelt …

Myths of Austerity  —  When I was young and naïve, I believed that important people took positions based on careful consideration of the options.  Now I know better.  Much of what Serious People believe rests on prejudices, not analysis.  And these prejudices are subject to fads and fashions.

WORLD EXCLUSIVE: Mel Gibson's Racist Rant Caught On Tape - Tells Oksana She Would Get ‘Raped By N***ers’  —  In one of the most explosive, racist and vile outbursts by a celebrity ever caught on tape, Mel Gibson told the mother of his love child that the way she was dressed would get her …

Health law risks turning away sick  —  The Obama administration has not ruled out turning sick people away from an insurance program created by the new healthcare law to provide coverage for the uninsured.  —  Critics of the $5 billion high-risk pool program insist it will run out of money before Jan. 1, 2014.

Payrolls drop by 125K, jobless rate falls  —  WASHINGTON - A wave of census layoffs cut the nation's payrolls in June for the first time in six months, while private employers added a modest number of jobs.  The unemployment rate fell to 9.5 percent, its lowest level in almost a year.

First look at Daily Kos's lawsuit: Charges Research 2000 with “fraudulently manufacturing phony results”  —  I've obtained a copy of the lawsuit that Daily Kos just filed against Research 2000, and this going to get nastier than you thought.  —  The suit contains striking new details …

Cantwell a ‘yes’ on Wall St. reform  —  Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington announced Thursday that she'll support a sweeping Wall Street reform bill, bringing Democrats one vote closer to securing Senate passage.  —  Cantwell, who voted against similar legislation on the Senate floor …

Remarks by the President on Comprehensive Immigration Reform American University School of International Service, Washington, D.C.  —  THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much.  Thank you.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Everyone please have a seat.  Thank you very much.

Factory Jobs Return, but Employers Find Skills Shortage  —  BEDFORD, Ohio — Factory owners have been adding jobs slowly but steadily since the beginning of the year, giving a lift to the fragile economic recovery.  And because they laid off so many workers — more than two million since the end of 2007 …

BREAKING: Pelosi Sneaked Approval of Vote on Debt Commission Recommendations into Rule Regarding War Funding, Vote Happening Tonight  —  Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) (photo by Orin)  —  FDL has learned that in a last minute move, Nancy Pelosi sneaked language into the rule that the House is voting on tonight regarding war funding.

Pelosi: Unemployment Checks Fastest Way to Create Jobs  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill June 24.  (AP Photo)  —  Unemployment benefits are creating jobs faster than practically any other program, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday.

Objectivity of spill probe panel is questioned  —  WASHINGTON — On the same day the White House commission investigating the Gulf oil spill announced its first meetings — July 12-13 in New Orleans — a Senate committee cast what amounted to a no-confidence vote on the commission's objectivity.

Russian spy ring may be last straw for Obama nuclear arms treaty  —  A U.S.-Russia arms treaty is teetering in the Senate, lacking support from Republicans and set back by an alleged spy ring.  —  The White House was hoping that the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) …

21 killed in shootout between drug, migrant trafficking gangs near Arizona border  —  HERMOSILLO, Mexico (AP) — A massive gun battle between rival drug and migrant trafficking gangs near the U.S. border Thursday left 21 people dead and at least six others wounded, prosecutors said.

Economic rebound may be losing ground, data show  —  Home and car sales fall.  Manufacturing may be losing steam.  But most experts don't see a double dip looming.  —  The construction sector remains weak.  Spending on building fell 0.2% in May from April.

House Democrats pass ‘budget enforcement resolution’ by 215-210  —  House Democrats passed a budget document Thursday that sets discretionary spending at levels below those proposed by President Barack Obama but doesn't address how Congress should cut deficits.

Boehner doesn't refute the notion that he's drinking at bars every night.  —  During a press conference earlier today, House Republican leader John Boehner was asked about MSNBC host Joe Scarborough's accusation that “every Republican I talk to says John Boehner, by 5 or 6 o'clock at night, you can see him at bars.”

Tony Podesta, Superlobbyist  —  WASHINGTON — On the eve of a critical Congressional vote last week on a sweeping measure to regulate Wall Street, the prominent lobbyist Tony Podesta met with one of the lawmakers to go over some final language and discuss the effect it could have on his many corporate clients.

Short-term insurance buyers in Massachusetts  —  Kay Lazar reports on the increase in part-year insurance buyers described in a new Massachusetts Division of Insurance report in today's Boston Globe. … Part of the problem is that individuals can jump in and out of coverage anytime during the year.