Democrats Retrench as GOP Pulls Away  —  Democratic strategists acknowledged they are abandoning a dozen House seats the party now holds, as they try to salvage their majority in the chamber by shoring up candidates with better chances.  —  With Republicans expanding their advertising …

Fired up?  Not so much  —  If President Barack Obama needed any more reminders that it's not 2008, he got another one Thursday night in a town hall with young voters.  —  Back when he was a candidate, Obama inspired legions of young people who responded to his message of hope …

Merkel says German multicultural society has failed  —  Angela Merkel said Germany had “kidded itself” multiculturalism was working  —  Attempts to build a multicultural society in Germany have “utterly failed”, Chancellor Angela Merkel says.  —  In a speech in Potsdam, she said the so-called …

You've Gotta See This Ad  —  Jack Conway's trailing Rand Paul down in Kentucky.  But he's not out of it yet.  And there are some signs he's starting to turn the corner.  (The current TPM Poll Average is Paul 46.9%, Conway 41.7%.)  But this ad ... man, this ad.  Whew.

Why Liberals Don't Get the Tea Party Movement  —  Our universities haven't taught much political history for decades.  No wonder so many progressives have disdain for the principles that animated the Federalist debates.  —  Highly educated people say the darndest things, these days particularly about the tea party movement.

2 Top Candidates Skip G.O.P. Rally  —  ANAHEIM, Calif. — What if you held a voter turnout rally and the top candidates on the ballot didn't show up?  —  Michael Steele, the Republican National Committee chairman, and Sarah Palin, arguably the biggest draw in the Republican Party …

Actress Billingsley, 94, dies  —  (CNN) — Barbara Billingsley, who wore a classy pearl necklace and dispensed pearls of wisdom as America's quintessential mom on “Leave it to Beaver,” has died at age 94, a family spokeswoman said Saturday.  —  The actress passed away at 2 a.m. (5 a.m. ET) …

Threats against liberal Democrats keep bubbling up — and it's not just the ‘nutcases’  —  It turns out that the right-wing crazy who was threatening Patty Murray supporters with a cleaver in Spokane on Thursday is a man with a history of mental illness:

The Boehnerization of Barack Obama  —  Why has stimulus become a dirty word?  Many reasons, I guess: an inadequate plan combined with a wildly overoptimistic forecast was more or less guaranteed to create the impression of a failed program.  But it's also true that the president himself …

Fort Hood soldier ordered to delete video of rampage  —  FORT HOOD, Texas — A US soldier who captured a deadly 2009 rampage at Fort Hood with his cell phone camera testified Friday that he was ordered to erase the video by his commanders.  —  The video could have provided key evidence …

At Fiorina event, McCain doesn't hide disdain for Boxer — she's ‘bitterly partisan’ and ‘anti-defense’  —  Former Republican presidential contender John McCain reunited with his onetime advisor Carly Fiorina on the campaign trail Saturday in San Diego, offering a blistering indictment …

Organizer's Influence Helped Shape Obama  —  When President Obama hosted a televised youth town-hall style meeting on Thursday, he cited the need to make a long-term commitment to reach policy goals and for citizens to look to one another, not just politicians, for change.

U.S. Will Enforce Marijuana Laws, State Vote Aside  —  LOS ANGELES — The Department of Justice says it intends to prosecute marijuana laws in California aggressively even if state voters approve an initiative on the Nov. 2 ballot to legalize the drug.  —  The announcement by Eric H. Holder Jr. …