I.M.F. Chief, Apprehended at Airport, Is Accused of Sexual Attack  —  The managing director of the International Monetary Fund, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, was taken off an Air France plane at Kennedy International Airport minutes before it was to depart for Paris on Saturday …

Huckabee Opts Against 2012 White House Bid  —  Mike Huckabee said Saturday there would be no sequel to his surprisingly strong 2008 White House bid, in which he won the Iowa Republican caucus and finished second in the primaries to Sen. John McCain.  —  “All the factors say go …

Shadow Stat Misery Index Highest on Record  —  John Williams, over at Shadow Stats, compiles economic data for inflation and unemployment the way it used to be calculated pre-1990.  Based on that data, the CPI inflation rate is over 10%, and the unemployment rate is over 15% (see charts).

Newt Gingrich Proposes Reviving “Poll Tests” Of The Sort Outlawed In The Civil Rights Era  —  Ta-Nehisi Coates heard the dog whistle loud in clear in Newt Gingrich's proclamation last night that Barack Obama is “the most successful food stamp president in modern American history.”

Ryan will decide soon on Wisconsin Senate race  —  House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said on Sunday he'll decide this week if he'll run for the Senate seat being vacated by Democrat Herb Kohl.  —  “Herb just announced this Friday,” Ryan said on CNN's “State of the Union.”

An Evening On The Beltway Yuengling and Minor Assault Circuit  —  So . . . I was walking back from the home of Megan McArdle and Peter Suderman and instead of doing the normal thing and taking Q Street west to 5th and then walking south, I wanted to take a shortcut by walking south on North Capitol to then cut southwest on New York.

Secret Desert Force Set Up by Blackwater's Founder  —  ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Late one night last November, a plane carrying dozens of Colombian men touched down in this glittering seaside capital.  Whisked through customs by an Emirati intelligence officer …

What kind of immunity does the IMF Managing Director Have?  —  The arrest on sexual assault charges of IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Khan (or “DSK” as he's known to the French tabloids) is big news this morning.  Most of the main stream media attention (quite naturally) …

Federal worker pensions emerge as target in debt-reduction talks  —  The generous pension system enjoyed by millions of federal workers from clerks to senators and judges has emerged as a key target in negotiations between Vice President Biden and congressional leaders looking to restrain the growing national debt.

Obama's hypocritical rhetoric on immigration reform  —  Senior Political Analyst Follow Him @MichaelBarone  —  Barack Obama's immigration speech in El Paso, Texas, on May 10 was an exercise in electioneering and hypocrisy.  Hypocrisy because while Obama complained about “politicians” …

McConnell: Debt limit a ‘great opportunity’  —  Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky). said the rapidly approaching debt limit is not a problem, but a “great opportunity” to address government spending.  —  The Senate Republican leader also made clear that he will need to see spending reforms in the short …

Weekly Address: President Obama Announces New Plans to Increase Responsible Domestic Oil Production  —  WASHINGTON - In this week's address, President Obama laid out his strategy to continue to expand responsible and safe domestic oil production, leveraging existing authorities as part …