Wisconsin GOP Senator Glenn Grothman chased, trapped by hecklers, saved by Dem.  Rep. Hulsey  —  Phil Ejercito is a 29 year old freelance photographer based in Madison, WI.  His primary photographic services include (but are by no means limited to) live music, event coverage, politics and activism …

Huckabee: Obama Grew Up “In Kenya”  —  During a radio appearance yesterday, Mike Huckabee repeatedly falsely claimed that President Obama grew up in Kenya.  After questioning Obama's purported secrecy about the birth certificate, radio host Steve Malzberg asked Huckabee if “we deserve to know more about this man.”

Late 2012 GOP start a boon for Obama  —  Hey, Newt, what's the rush?  —  That's what senior Democrats and White House officials enjoying the time off between campaigns are saying as former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) readies an announcement he is forming an exploratory committee for a White House run.

‘I already know I could win’  —  Dan already wrote a piece about it, but Chris Christie was in the office last week.  I just wanted to quote him more extensively on 2012.  I asked him whether he knew that, given the moment, there is a serious chance he could win the Republican nomination if he ran.

Obama's 'Where's Waldo?' presidency  —  For a man who won office talking about change we can believe in, Barack Obama can be a strangely passive president.  There are a startling number of occasions in which the president has been missing in action - unwilling, reluctant or late to weigh in on the issue of the moment.

Assange in ‘Jewish conspiracy’ row  —  Ian Hislop writes in Private Eye that Assange accused him, the Guardian and Index on Censorship, before withdrawing claim  —  Julian Assange has blamed a number of journalists for a “Jewish” conspiracy against his whistleblowing website, WikiLeaks …

Eric Holder: Black Panther case focus demeans ‘my people’  —  Attorney General Eric Holder finally got fed up Tuesday with claims that the Justice Department went easy in a voting rights case against members of the New Black Panther Party because they are African American.

Issa press aide scandal is like bad reality TV  —  If Washington's political culture gets any more incestuous, our children are going to be born with extra fingers.  —  The latest symptom of our deformed political-journalistic complex presented this week, when news broke that the office of Rep. Darrell Issa …

Fierce battles rage in Libya  —  Pro- and anti-government forces fight for control of strategic towns including Brega, which houses a key oil facility.  —  Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, are reported to have regained control of two strategic towns in the country's northwest …

Unless they're paying beaucoup bucks, his transfer to New York makes no sense to me. … Like This Story  —  Follow Slate's Press Box … - The U.S. Has Frozen $30 Billion of Qaddafi's Assets.  Can We Spend It?  - John Roberts Writes the Funniest Sentence in Supreme Court History …

OPINION: Wisconsin governor is waging ‘jihad’ against unions  —  Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's (R) jihad against public employee unions is about 30 years late and likely to make Republicans even less popular with voters, who endorse collective bargaining rights for public employees — professionals for whom they have abiding respect.

Movie math  —  Why can't states grasp the absurdity of giving welfare to film and TV producers?  —  If you want to understand why it's so hard for governments, both federal and state, to put their accounts in order, consider the recent comments of Bill Richardson, former nearly everything including governor …

Walker Unveils Budget — Says Cuts Will Be More Painful If Dems Don't Return  —  Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) gave a speech at the state Capitol Tuesday to unveil his budget for the next two years, even as the debate over his budget repair bill still rages.

Wisconsin Sheriff Pulled Deputies From Capitol, Says They Won't Be ‘Palace Guard’ (VIDEO)  —  At the same press conference where Dane County, Wisc., District Attorney Ismael Ozanne told reporters he found nothing criminal in Gov. Scott Walker's comments to a prank caller last week …

Raucous First Caucus For House Tea Partiers Exposes Dangerous Rifts … UPDATE at 4:21 PM ET: The House has just passed a two-week funding measure to avert a government shutdown.  It includes $4 billion in budget cuts for the rest of the fiscal year — but continues to fund Obama's healthcare law (for those two weeks).

N.J. unions vow to fight Sweeney's bill boosting workers' payments for benefits  —  TRENTON — Calling it an attempt to throw out collective bargaining rights, leaders of New Jersey's public workers unions Monday said they will launch a full court press against a bill sponsored …

Pakistan Minorities Minister Shahbaz Bhatti shot dead  —  Watch: Shahbaz Bhatti predicted his death as he defended his faith four months ago  —  Pakistani Minorities Minister Shahbaz Bhatti has been shot dead by gunmen who ambushed his car in broad daylight in the capital, Islamabad.

U.S. Economic Confidence Down Sharply in Last Two Weeks  —  Confidence erodes after reaching three-year peak  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Americans have become much less confident in the U.S. economy over the past two weeks, with Gallup's Economic Confidence Index falling from -18 to -30 during that span.