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.

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.

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 …

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 …

The Missing Fifth  —  In 1910, Henry Van Dyke wrote a book called “The Spirit of America,” which opened with this sentence: “The Spirit of America is best known in Europe by one of its qualities — energy.”  —  This has always been true.  Americans have always been known for their manic dynamism.

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.

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 …

Hillary Clinton: Chinese System Is Doomed, Leaders on a 'Fool's Errand'  —  In an exclusive interview, the secretary of state says Beijing's human rights record is “deplorable” and it is “trying to stop history” by opposing the advance of democracy  —  In my latest Atlantic cover story …

GOP Sen. Rand Paul questions whether White House has ‘enemies list’  —  Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) asked Tuesday if the White House had an “enemies list” in light of the National Labor Relations Board's complaint against Boeing for moving some of its operations to South Carolina.

The myth of American exceptionalism  —  “The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line,” W.E.B. Du Bois wrote in 1903 — and I will not quibble.  But the problem of the 21st century is the problem of culture, not just the infamous “culture of poverty” but what I would call the culture of smugness.

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 …

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)

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.

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 …

59% Favor Cutoff of Federal Funds to Sanctuary Cities  —  New legislation being considered by the House would stop all federal funding for cities that give sanctuary to illegal immigrants, and most voters like the idea.  But very few believe Congress is likely to pass such a measure.