Republican rift widens on Medicare  —  A deep rift is opening wider and wider in the Republican Party over controversial proposals to cut Medicare.  —  Senate Republicans have decided to avoid jeopardizing their chances of capturing the upper chamber in next year's elections and will not echo …

U.S. Was Braced for Fight With Pakistanis in Bin Laden Raid  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama insisted that the assault force hunting down Osama bin Laden last week be large enough to fight its way out of Pakistan if confronted by hostile local police officers and troops, senior administration and military officials said Monday.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver announce separation  —  The former first lady has moved out after 25 years of marriage.  Maria Shriver helped bolster Arnold Schwarzenegger's campaign against charges that he groped women during his movie career.  —  Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver …

Billionaire's role in hiring decisions at Florida State University raises questions  —  A conservative billionaire who opposes government meddling in business has bought a rare commodity: the right to interfere in faculty hiring at a publicly funded university.

The Tragedy of Sarah Palin  —  From the moment Sarah Palin's acceptance speech electrified the Republican convention, she was seen as an unbending, hard-charging, red-meat ideologue—to which soon was added “thin-skinned” and “vindictive.”  But a look at what Palin did while in office in Alaska …

Trump collapses  —  Donald Trump has had one of the quickest rises and falls in the history of Presidential politics.  Last month we found him leading the Republican field with 26%.  In the space of just four weeks he's dropped all the way down to 8%, putting him in a tie for fifth place with Ron Paul.

Romney plans major healthcare speech in Michigan on Thursday  —  Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) will deliver a major speech Thursday on healthcare in his native state of Michigan.  —  Romney will make a presentation at the University of Michigan's cardiovascular center laying …

Gingrich Set to Run, With Wife in Central Role  —  WASHINGTON — Callista Bisek's friends from rural Wisconsin were stunned when, well over a decade ago, she confided that she was secretly dating an older, married man: Newt Gingrich.  —  Still in her 20s when they met …

Whiteboard Archives  —  IN THE RED: President Obama is going to Texas on Tuesday to give an immigration speech in El Paso before raising money for his reelection in Austin.  After he speaks at two Democratic National Committee events in Austin, one of which is open to just a print pool reporter …

Microsoft to Acquire Skype  —  Software Giant to Pay $8.5 Billion in Cash for Company  —  The next phase of Skype's life could be as part of Microsoft.  What could the software giant do with the service, and could it be a better fit than its former owner eBay?  WSJ's Andrew LaVallee discusses with Alex Frangos.

BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL  —  BREAKING: Appeals panel hearing ObamaCare suit comprised of 2 Obama nominees and a Clinton nominee  —  Senior Editorial Writer Follow Him @Philipaklein  —  RICHMOND, Va. - A three-judge federal appeals panel comprised of two Obama nominees and a Clinton nominee …

Beyond Obama's Bin Laden Bounce  —  A week after the news broke of the American raid that killed Osama bin Laden, bettors at Intrade, a political futures market, are barely any more likely to think that Barack Obama will win re-election.  —  As of this writing, Mr. Obama's Democrats are given …

Chomsky's Follies  —  The professor's pronouncements about Osama Bin Laden are stupid and ignorant.  —  Anybody visiting the Middle East in the last decade has had the experience: meeting the hoarse and aggressive person who first denies that Osama Bin Laden was responsible for the destruction …

Suspect in flight disturbance had Calif. ID  —  SAN FRANCISCO - The passengers sat stunned as they watched a man walk quickly toward the front of American Airlines Flight 1561 as it was descending toward San Francisco.  He was screaming and then began pounding on the cockpit door.

Tailspin: Obama's numbers on economy reach new low in NBC/WSJ poll  —  He ended up with an overall bounce because of Bin Laden, of course — from 49/45 last month to 52/41 now, with sharp spikes in his ratings on foreign policy, being a strong commander-in-chief, etc.

Liberals in southern Arizona seek to form new state  —  TUCSON, Arizona (Reuters) - A long-simmering movement by liberal stalwarts in southern Arizona to break away from the rest of the largely conservative state is at a boiling point as secession backers press to bring their longshot ambition to the forefront of Arizona politics.

CNN Poll: Democrats up 50-46 percent in battle for House  —  Washington (CNN) - It's one of the storylines for 2012: Can the Democrats win back control of the House of Representatives?  —  A new poll suggests that they may have a chance.  —  Full results (pdf)