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 …

Freshman Democrat Joe Manchin: Obama has ‘failed to lead’ on budget  —  West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin is planning to rip President Barack Obama on his budget proposals in a Senate floor speech Tuesday, a rare rebuke from a freshman Democrat who's clearly worried about the politics …

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 …

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.

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.

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 …

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 …

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.

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:

GOP Sen. Lugar says he'll support House Republican spending cuts  —  Sen. Dick Lugar (R-Ind.), who faces a Tea Party-backed challenge in his 2012 primary, has withdrawn his stated opposition to House-passed spending cuts.  —  Lugar said Tuesday afternoon that he made a mistake …

Hundreds of council tax protesters storm courtroom in attempt to make citizens' arrest of judge  —  Hundreds of protesters stormed a courtroom and attempted to make a citizens' arrest on a judge in support of a man challenging his council tax bill.  —  In chaotic scenes …

Can Any One Of These People Beat President Obama?  —  To do so, one of these candidates has to win the 2012 GOP presidential nomination.  What follows is a cheat sheet of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the GOP presidential candidates and a quick assessment of where they stand now.

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 …

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 …

Robert Gates: Troops to be tested in spring  —  NATO forces have made great progress in Afghanistan, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Tuesday, but they will soon face an “acid test” as the weather gets warmer and the Taliban mounts an insurgency.  —  “I do feel like the pieces are coming together …