A Certificate of Embarrassment  —  With sardonic resignation, President Obama, an eminently rational man, stared directly into political irrationality on Wednesday and released his birth certificate to history.  More than halfway through his term, the president felt obliged to prove that he was a legitimate occupant of the Oval Office.

Rand Paul has ‘birther’ demand for Trump: Prove you're a Republican  —  Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Thursday took a swipe at billionaire businessman Donald Trump, demanding to see his “Republican registration.”  —  While speaking at a breakfast with New Hampshire Republicans one day after …

Dozens of tornadoes kill 194 in 5 Southern states  —  PLEASANT GROVE, Ala. (AP) — Dozens of tornadoes spawned by a powerful storm system wiped out entire towns across a wide swath of the South, killing at least 194 people, and officials said Thursday they expect the death toll to rise.

Superman Renounces [SPOILER] in ‘Action Comics’ #900  —  After recently undertaking a journey to walk — not fly — across the United States in the “Grounded” storyline and reconnect with the country and everyday Americans, Superman appears to be taking another step that could have major implications …

Solar Panels Rise Pole by Pole, Followed by Gasps of ‘Eyesore’  —  ORADELL, N.J. — Nancy and Eric Olsen could not pinpoint exactly when it happened or how.  All they knew was one moment they had a pastoral view of a soccer field and the woods from their 1920s colonial-style house; the next all they could see were three solar panels.

Gross Domestic Product, 1st quarter 2011 (advance estimate)  —  Real gross domestic product — the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States — increased at an annual rate of 1.8 percent in the first quarter of 2011 (that is …

Daniels faces difficult decision on Planned Parenthood funding  —  Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, who irked many conservatives last year with his call for a “truce” on social issues, has been thrust into the debate over federal funding for Planned Parenthood.  —  The state's Republican-led legislature …

4/28: Obama's Handling of the Economy at All-Time Low  —  Registered voters nationally are not satisfied with how President Barack Obama is handling the nation's economy.  According to this McClatchy-Marist Poll, four in ten voters — 40% — approve of how the president is dealing …

National GOP Primary Poll: Trump 19% Romney 17% Huckabee 15%  —  Republican primary voters at this early stage of the game now give billionaire developer Donald Trump the edge over presumptive favorites Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee in the race to be the GOP's presidential nominee in 2012.

Honoring Those Who Said No  —  IN January 2004, Spec.  Joseph M. Darby, a 24-year-old Army reservist in Iraq, discovered a set of photographs showing other members of his company torturing prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison.  The discovery anguished him, and he struggled over how to respond.

Poll: Mass. Republicans want ‘RomneyCare’ repealed  —  A majority of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents in Massachusetts would like to see the 2006 health care law enacted by then-Gov. Mitt Romney and the state legislature repealed and replaced with something else …

Rep. West says Medicare spells end of United States  —  Several booted from Boca town hall  —  BOCA RATON, Fla. - If those opposed to Rep. Allen West have their way, the 2012 election will be fought on his recent vote to privatize Medicare starting in 2023.

Fanatics' fury at Muslim Playgirl  —  A MUSLIM actress has caused a storm by posing naked for Playboy.  —  Sila Sahin has been branded a “whore” and a “western slut” after appearing topless on the cover of the German edition of the men's magazine.  —  And Islamic fanatics have posted threatening internet messages.

The demand threatened to open another yawning abyss, the debate over affirmative action and race, and black leaders sharply rebuked Trump.  —  “Trump and the rest have played a very divisive card from the fact of his birth to now implying that he got into two Ivy League schools …

FBI Director Bob Mueller glanced at the black chronograph he wears Marine-style, the face inside his wrist.  It was 7:38 a.m. Not quite time.  He reviewed his inbox.  Drummed a four-fingered staccato on the desk.  Consulted his wrist again: 7:39.  —  Mueller had already slashed through …