NPR executives caught on tape bashing conservatives and Tea Party, touting liberals  —  A man who appears to be a senior National Public Radio senior executive, Ron Schiller, has been captured on camera savaging conservatives and the Tea Party movement.  —  “The current Republican Party …

Republicans divided over Muslim hearings  —  The top two House Republican leaders are divided over how to handle the bubbling controversy surrounding Homeland Security Chairman Peter King's hearing into “radicalization” in the American Muslim community.  —  Majority Leader Eric Cantor …

Blaming Democrats' ‘lack of action,’ GOP prepares a second stopgap  —  House GOP Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) says Republicans are preparing to move a second short-term funding measure to avert a potential government shutdown.  —  McCarthy told reporters Tuesday morning the Senate does …

Drive to recall Wisconsin GOP senators gaining steam, Dems say  —  So how's the drive to recall Wisconsin GOP state senators going?  If these new numbers the Wisconsin Democratic Party shares with me are accurate, it's already exceeding expectations in a big way.

Florida Republicans Are at Odds With Their Leader  —  TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Rick Scott, the conservative Republican billionaire who plucked the governor's job from the party establishment in November with $73 million of his own money and the backing of the Tea Party, vowed during his campaign …

Why I'd Place My Bet on Tim Pawlenty  —  With few declared candidates and no clear frontrunner, the Republican presidential primary appears to be as muddled as ever.  But I actually think things are shaking out in a way as to clear the path for Tim Pawlenty.

Obama's debt expert yells at kids  —  Alan Simpson referred to Snoop Dogg (left) and Eminem (right) in his tirade.  —  AP Photo  —  Alan Simpson might need to freshen up on his pop culture.  —  The co-chairman of President Obama's deficit commission tried to scold the elderly on Monday …

White House memo notes shortage of applicants for contest to have Obama to speak at high school graduation  —  The White House is ramping up an effort to promote a nationwide competition to decide which high school wins a commencement speech by President Obama.

Intruder calls 911, afraid homeowner may have gun  —  (CNN) — This time it was the intruder who called 911.  —  A man who broke into a house in Portland, Oregon, called police — afraid the homeowner may have a gun.  —  The suspect, Timothy James Chapek, was in the bathroom taking a shower …

63% Say U.S. Should Stay Out of Libya Crisis  —  As official Washington buzzes with talk of possible U.S. military intervention in Libya, the majority of U.S. voters continue to favor a hands-off approach.  —  A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just 22% …

Drawing U.S. Crowds With Anti-Islam Message  —  FORT WORTH — Brigitte Gabriel bounced to the stage at a Tea Party convention last fall.  She greeted the crowd with a loud Texas “Yee-HAW,” then launched into the same gripping personal story she has told in hundreds of churches, synagogues and conference rooms across the United States:

Discord Fills Washington on Possible Libya Intervention  —  WASHINGTON — Nearly three weeks after Libya erupted in what may now turn into a protracted civil war, the politics of military intervention to speed the ouster of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi grow more complicated by the day — for both the White House and Republicans.

Report says too many whites, men leading military  —  WASHINGTON - The U.S. military is too white and too male at the top and needs to change recruiting and promotion policies and lift its ban on women in combat, an independent report for Congress said Monday.

Caterpillar's Problem With Peoria  —  Why an American icon is looking beyond Illinois for its future.  —  Just over 100 ago, the company we know as Caterpillar began building track-type tractors at a plant on the banks of the Illinois River.  From these humble origins in East Peoria …

Wisconsin's Walker accuses Senate Democrats of blocking negotiations  —  A chance to end the legislative standoff that has paralyzed the Wisconsin government for weeks seemed to slip away Monday after Gov. Scott Walker (R) accused the leader of the state Senate Democrats of blocking negotiations to end the impasse.

Capitol Chaos: Protesters Shut Down Wauwatosa Town Hall  —  WAUWATOSA - Budget protesters shut down a town hall meeting in Wauwatosa.  —  “Shame, shame, shame” were among the words that came out of protesters mouths as the meeting ended, according to a video taken at the meeting that was placed on YouTube.

Mitt Romney, the most transparent candidate  —  We're all for transparency these days, and if anything is transparently clear about American politics, it is that Mitt Romney will do or say anything to become president.  The best guess is that at heart he is an old-fashioned, business-oriented Republican.

‘Gang of 6’ senators launch public campaign to support deficit reduction  —  RICHMOND - While Washington bickers noisily over cutting a small slice of the federal budget, Sens. Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat, and Saxby Chambliss, a Georgia Republican, launched a campaign Monday to convince …