CNN Exclusive: Bachmann to form exploratory committee in June, possibly earlier  —  Washington (CNN) - CNN has exclusively learned that Rep. Michele Bachmann will form a presidential exploratory committee.  The Minnesota Republican plans to file papers for the committee in early June, with an announcement likely around that same time.

President Barack Obama gets locked out of White House  —  Staff wasn't ready for his return  —  Last Updated: 1 hour and 48 minutes ago  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Barack Obama had to try a couple of doors at the White House before finally gaining access to the Oval Office on Wednesday.

BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL  —  White House: Libya fight is not war, it's ‘kinetic military action’  —  In the last few days, Obama administration officials have frequently faced the question: Is the fighting in Libya a war?  From military officers to White House spokesmen up to the president himself …

'I'm through whining about a liberal press,' says Sarah Palin  —  Sarah Palin insists she's done complaining about the liberal media.  —  Speaking to Greta Van Susteren on Fox News Wednesday night, the former Alaska governor shrugged off what she contends is a double standard in the way conservative women are treated.

Top Ten Accomplishments of the UN No-Fly Zone  —  1. The participation of the Muslim world in the United Nations no-fly zone over Libya has been underlined.  The measure was called for by the Arab League, which has not in fact changed its mind about its desirability.

Romney's Ask: Raise $50 Million  —  About 100 fund-raisers gathered at Manhattan's venerated Harvard Club this morning to hear former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney lay out his ambition: Raise $50 million fast.  —  One Romney fundraiser said the $50 million figure was what the governor wanted …

Liberal Bias at NPR?  —  Surveys show that millions of conservatives choose NPR, even with powerful conservative alternatives on the radio.  —  On the day NPR chief executive Vivian Schiller lost her job, I was reporting from Egypt.  That evening, I had dinner with employees from NPR's Cairo bureau.

Rights Are Curtailed for Terror Suspects  —  New rules allow investigators to hold domestic-terror suspects longer than others without giving them a Miranda warning, significantly expanding exceptions to the instructions that have governed the handling of criminal suspects for more than four decades.

Unsustainable budget threatens nation  —  Repeated battles over the 2011 budget are taking attention from a more dire problem—the long-run budget deficit.  —  Divided government is no excuse for inaction.  The bipartisan National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform …

Dear Reuters, You Must Be Kidding  —  This is from a Reuters story on the Jerusalem bombing earlier today: … Those Israelis and their crazy terms!  I mean, referring to a fatal bombing of civilians as a “terrorist attack”?  Who are they kidding?  Everyone knows that a fatal bombing …

Why Trump's Birth Certificate statement will resonate  —  ...in three sentences.  —  My wife is starting a new job, we will be getting new insurance because of it.  We are REQUIRED to provide not only our marriage certificate but the long form copies of the birth certificates of both of our children.

Dept. of ingratitude  —  The dreaded Koch family gave the DSCC $30,000 last cycle, but that's no defense from this, in a fundraising email from Harry Reid, headlined “Koch Brothers”: … Full email after the jump.  —  Dear xxxx,  —  We should be trying to put Americans back to work, not trying to put public radio out of business.

Forced Into Medicare  —  A federal judge tells seniors to take it or lose Social Security.  —  This week marks the first anniversary of ObamaCare, and if you are wondering where that coercive law is headed, we'd point to a case in federal court.  That's where Judge Rosemary Collyer has ruled …

Worldwide Approval of U.S. Leadership Tops Major Powers  —  U.S. also remains top desired destination for potential migrants  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States continues to achieve higher global approval ratings than China, Russia, Japan, France, the United Kingdom, and Germany.

Former US president seeks N. Korea trip: official  —  SEOUL — Former US President Jimmy Carter intends to visit North Korea in an apparent bid to help ease acute cross-border tensions, South Korea's foreign ministry said Thursday.  —  Seoul is “paying attention to Carter's plan to visit North Korea …

Paglia on Taylor: “A luscious, opulent, ripe fruit!”  —  Camille Paglia considers the “volcanic” Elizabeth Taylor — and all the unworthy starlets who could never match up … I remember reading your essay on Elizabeth Taylor from Penthouse in 1992 (it appeared in the collection “Sex, Art …

Because We Say So  —  How Republicans are explaining the constitutionality of every bill they introduce.  —  Last week's House vote to ban federal funds for NPR was a Republican slam dunk—mostly.  Seven members of the party voted against the bill, and at least one did so on constitutional grounds …

Ohio Voters Divided On Second Term For Obama, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; But Voters Like Him More Than Gov. Kasich  —  Ohio voters are split 45 - 46 percent on whether President Barack Obama deserves a second term, but they favor him over an unnamed Republican 2012 challenger 41 …

Yemeni President Nears Deal to Resign  —  By MARGARET COKER in Abu Dhabi and HAKIM ALMASMARI in San'a, Yemen  —  Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and the country's top general are hashing out a political settlement in which both men would resign from their positions within days in favor …

Brawl over spaghetti in NYC subway ignites debate … NEW YORK (AP) — The city's subway riders can handle panhandlers, rats and tuneless street musicians.  But eating spaghetti in a crowded subway car?  Well, that's just going too far.  —  An Internet video that shows New Yorkers brawling …

State-Level Anti-Stimulus  —  Atrios says “All the various cuts that our horrible new Republican governors are trying to implement aren't just going to make the residents of their states suffer, they're also going to work against the macroeconomy.”  —  I don't really think that's true.

A Surprising Snapshot  —  Among common impressions of the current Supreme Court are that Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas are joined at the hip and that the majority tilts reflexively in favor of corporations and employers.  —  As the court heads into the current term's final three months, I looked at the statistics.