What's Donald Trump really after?  —  Despite an almost universal refusal by Republican establishment figures and the press to take him seriously, Donald Trump is taking very concrete steps toward forming - and announcing - a presidential campaign.  —  He has interviewed at least two people …

The Middle-Class Tax Trap  —  “Let's tell the truth,” Walter Mondale said, accepting the Democratic nomination in 1984.  “Mr. Reagan will raise taxes, and so will I. He won't tell you.  I just did.”  —  Three months later, Mondale lost 49 states, and liberal politicians learned a valuable lesson.

S&P Affirms US AAA Rating, Cuts Outlook to Negative  —  Standard & Poor's on Monday downgraded the outlook for the United States to negative, saying it believes there's a risk U.S. policymakers may not reach agreement on how to address the country's long-term fiscal pressures.

President Obama and Vice President Biden's Tax Returns and Tax Receipts  —  Today, the President released his 2010 federal income and gift tax returns.  He and the First Lady filed their income tax return jointly and reported an adjusted gross income of $1,728,096.

Let's Not Be Civil  —  Last week, President Obama offered a spirited defense of his party's values — in effect, of the legacy of the New Deal and the Great Society.  Immediately thereafter, as always happens when Democrats take a stand, the civility police came out in force.

Where the Tax Money Is  —  Obama targets the middle class while pretending to tax only the rich.  —  A dominant theme of President Obama's budget speech last Wednesday was that our fiscal problems would vanish if only the wealthiest Americans were asked “to pay a little more.”

TheDC Exclusive: Conservatives hit Beck for taking content without attribution  —  A number of conservative activists and bloggers say they're furious at media magnate Glenn Beck for what they call content theft.  Over the past several years, Beck has relied on video, audio and written content …

How Nancy Pelosi Can Save The Day, And Regain Power, In Debt Ceiling Fight  —  Could House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) save the day in the fight over the debt limit, and in so doing return to a position of great influence on Capitol Hill?  Yes she could.  —  The House minority is the Siberia of Congress.

Trump: Rove “devastated” by Romney's performance  —  On Fox & Friends this morning, Donald Trump fired back at Karl Rove for calling him a “joke candidate.” … Trump then offered another reason for Rove's comments. … Trump's assertion that Romney is doing poorly in the polls is hardly air-tight …

(UPDATED) DOJ Source: Gov't Muslim ‘Outreach’ Jeopardized Active Terror Investigations  —  (UPDATE: Rep. Peter King demands answers following Poole's previous article on this topic.)  An explosive, must-read interview brings sunlight to our counterproductive “outreach” programs.

GANG OF SIX ‘VERY CLOSE’ TO AN AGREEMENT, INTENDS TO ‘MAKE EVERYBODY MAD’.... Two months ago, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), a member of the bipartisan “Gang of Six” deficit-reduction talks, said the group was “getting close” to striking a deal.  Two weeks ago, however, the negotiations …

Sarah Palin's website sparks White House buzz  —  Sarah Palin rolled out a new website for her PAC on Monday with significantly more content and features, along with a vehicle for Palin to start gathering email addresses and information from her supporters.  —  The new site, sarahpac.com …

Rep. Frank: Administration ‘wasting time’ with online poker crackdown  —  The Obama administration is wasting time and resources by targeting online poker sites, according to Rep. Barney Frank (Mass.), the senior Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee.

The 30-Cent Tax Premium  —  Tax compliance employs more workers than Wal-Mart, UPS, McDonald's, IBM and Citigroup combined.  —  There is a lot more to taxes than simply paying the bill.  Taxpayers must spend significantly more than $1 in order to provide $1 of income-tax revenue to the federal government.

Roger Ailes Caught Spying on the Reporters at His Small-Town Newspaper  —  The small-town newspapers in New York's Hudson Valley that Fox News chief Roger Ailes owns with his wife Elizabeth are in a staff revolt after employees caught Ailes spying on them with News Corp. security goons.  More »

AFSCME Union Threatens to ‘Weaponize’ Government Jobs  —  It's becoming clearer that the “public service” mentality is quickly slipping way from government employees, if it didn't hit the exits a long time ago.  —  Instead of government employees serving the public, it's clear now their belief is that the public exists to serve them.

E.J. Dionne Jr.  —  America's elites have a duty to the rest of us  —  The American ruling class is failing us — and itself.  —  At other moments in our history, the informal networks of the wealthy and powerful who often wield at least as much influence as our elected politicians accepted …

Pentagon Inquiry Into Article Clears McChrystal and Aides  —  WASHINGTON — An inquiry by the Defense Department inspector general into a magazine profile that resulted in the abrupt, forced retirement of Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal has cleared the general, his military aides and civilian advisers of all wrongdoing.

First Thoughts: 2012's high stakes  —  The high stakes in the 2012 election... One word that summarizes the House GOP's first 100 days: bold... House Republicans head home to sell their votes for the Ryan budget plan... Obama hits the road this week to sell his own plan …

Americans Still Split About Whether Their Taxes Are Too High  —  Majority of wealthy Americans think their taxes are too high and unfair  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Half of Americans believe the amount they pay in federal income taxes is too high, while 43% consider it about right and 4% too low.