Question to Broun: Who's going to shoot President Obama?  —  At Rep. Paul Broun's town hall meeting on Tuesday, the Athens congressman asked who had driven the farthest to be there and let the winner ask the first question.  —  We couldn't hear the question in the back of the packed Oglethorpe …

Gingrich: If Palin Took Obama Actions, There Would Be Calls for Impeachment  —  In an exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV Friday, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said President Barack Obama's decision not to fully enforce the Defense of Marriage law eventually could lead to a constitutional crisis …

Why a U.S. government shutdown is worth it  —  The cost-cutting battle lines are drawn in the U.S. Congress.  But the fight will affect only maybe a sixth of spending, with big-ticket items like defense and Social Security getting a bipartisan pass for now.  Still, tackling even that small slice would save money and reassure markets.

Breaking: Kathleen Parker Splits From CNN's ‘Parker Spitzer’  —  Kathleen Parker, the co-host of “Parker Spitzer,” CNN's four-month-old, ratings-challenged primetime show, is being dropped from the program, according to sources inside the CNN newsroom.  Eliot Spitzer, her co-host, will remain …

Jeremy Bernard: A historic choice for White House social secretary  —  The White House is set to make news and history this afternoon when it announces the new social secretary.  Jeremy Bernard, currently the chief of staff to the U.S. ambassador to France, will become the third person to hold the job in the Obama administration.

Pulling Apart  —  Congress was more polarized last year than in any other year since National Journal began compiling its vote ratings.  Overlap between the parties is disappearing.  —  Republicans in lockstep: House Speaker John Boehner, flanked by GOP Whip Kevin McCarthy (left) …

How To Run America Like a Business: Get Rid Of All The Old People  —  Jamelle Bouie tags Sarah Lacy's piece on why America can't “function like a fiscally responsible company” as a good example of “why tech writers should stay away from politics.”  —  I endorse his critiques, but there's really a deeper issue here.

Rubicon: A river in Wisconsin  —  The magnificent turmoil now gripping statehouses in Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana and soon others marks an epic political moment.  The nation faces a fiscal crisis of historic proportions and, remarkably, our muddled, gridlocked, allegedly broken politics have yielded singular clarity.

DSCC attacks Brown on abuse revelation  —  The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is circulating a number of clips to reporters suggesting that Sen. Scott Brown's (R-Mass.) revelations of sexual abuse as a child is either a political stunt or a hypocritical move in the light of his endorsement …

The Craigslist Congressman and the Crossdressing Prostitute  —  Chris Lee's resignation from the House on Feb. 9 may be the quickest political downfall in history: It came just three hours after Gawker published a photo of Lee standing in the mirror shirtless, along with a story …

The Untold Story of Scott Walker's Longstanding History with Labor  —  may be a new marvel to cable news, but he is certainly no stranger to Wisconsin politics.  Scott K. Walker, son of a Baptist preacher, began his political career in the early 1990s when he ran for an Assembly seat in the State Legislature.

Rep. Anthony Weiner Wants ‘Sexist’ Queens Statue Removed  —  NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Congressman Anthony Weiner is taking a stand against a statue in Queens that has been a source of controversy for nearly 90 years.  —  1010 WINS' Al Jones with Rep. Anthony Weiner who says the statue does not represent civic virtue

Southern Poverty Law Center lists anti-Islamic NYC blogger Pamela Geller, followers a hate group  —  Manhattan blogger Pamela Geller and her posse of anti-Islamic protesters have been branded a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.  —  Stop the Islamization of America was included …

Foiled by the winter: The £25,000 eco-classroom that can't be used because solar panels don't provide enough heat  —  Eco-campaigners who built a classroom powered by the sun believed they were paving the way for the future.  —  Instead they have been taught a valuable lesson …

Jury Nullification Advocate Is Indicted  —  Julian P. Heicklen sat silent and unresponsive as his bail hearing began last week in federal court in Manhattan; his eyes were closed, his head slumped forward.  —  “Mr. Heicklen?” the magistrate judge, Ronald L. Ellis, asked.  “Mr. Heicklen?

Is Barack Obama Secretly Swiss? … Like This Story  —  Follow Slate's Fighting Words … - What It's Like To Spend the Night With the Village of Protesters in Wisconsin's Capitol- The MPAA Ratings System Is Much Harsher on Independent Films Than on Studio Films- Slate Readers Hate Their iPads …

Pelosi edits honorary resolution...on Pelosi  —  The Democratic National Committee wanted to honor Nancy Pelosi Thursday — but its praise wasn't good enough for the House minority leader.  —  When the DNC's Resolutions Committee brought up a resolution commemorating Pelosi's years as speaker of the House …

Egyptian Armed Forces Fire At Christian Monasteries, 19 Injured  —  (AINA) — For the second time in as many days, Egyptian armed force stormed the 5th century old St. Bishoy monastery in Wadi el-Natroun, 110 kilometers from Cairo.  Live ammunition was fired, wounding two monks and six Coptic monastery workers.

Shock Doctrine, U.S.A.  —  Here's a thought: maybe Madison, Wis., isn't Cairo after all.  Maybe it's Baghdad — specifically, Baghdad in 2003, when the Bush administration put Iraq under the rule of officials chosen for loyalty and political reliability rather than experience and competence.