The Problem Was the Wife  —  The problem was the wife.  Aides to Newt Gingrich have resigned from his presidential campaign in protest of what they felt was a takeover by Callista Gingrich, the candidate's wife since 2000.  —  The euphemism offered by departing staffers was they disagreed with Gingrich's “strategy” for the campaign.

Alaska poised to release Palin emails  —  FRIDAY: More than 24,000 pages will be available in Juneau.  —  JUNEAU — The state of Alaska will release thousands of Sarah Palin's emails from her first two years as governor today, a disclosure that has taken on national prominence as she flirts with a run for the presidency.

Rule by Rentiers  —  The latest economic data have dashed any hope of a quick end to America's job drought, which has already gone on so long that the average unemployed American has been out of work for almost 40 weeks.  Yet there is no political will to do anything about the situation.

House Dems to call for expiration of Bush tax rates in debt-limit deal  —  A group of House Democrats is calling for any deal to raise the debt ceiling to bring about the end of the Bush tax rates for the wealthy.  —  The lawmakers, led by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), also say that …

Exclusive: Clinton in talks about possible move to World Bank  —  (Reuters) - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been in discussions with the White House about leaving her job next year to become head of the World Bank, sources familiar with the discussions said Thursday.

Sarah Palin snub by Margaret Thatcher aides infuriates US rightwing  —  Rush Limbaugh joins supporters accusing Thatcher's circle of disgracing former PM with ‘Palin is nuts’ comment  —  A firestorm on the US right has erupted after the Guardian reported that Sarah Palin will be denied …

Haaretz exclusive: Secret cables show Israel's battle plan over Palestinian UN bid  —  Foreign Ministry documents outline instructions to envoys to thwart international recognition of Palestinian state.  —  Israel has started mobilizing its embassies for the battle against UN recognition …

Weiner can't afford to quit the DC day job  —  Even if scandal-stained Rep. Anthony Weiner didn't want to stay in office, he needs to stay in office.  —  Unlike many of his peers in the House, Weiner doesn't have a business or even a law degree to fall back on.

Two separate and reliable source in Texas tell me serious preparations are being made for Governor Rick Perry, 61, to seek the Republican nomination for president.  —  Dave Carney and Rob Johnson — the former top Perry aides who on Thursday left Newt Gingrich's campaign …

Professor disaster  —  No billions or trillions needed — here's the simplest num ber to describe the dismal state of the US economy:  —  One.  —  With the departure of chief economic adviser Austan Goolsbee, that's the number of members from the original Obama economic team still working …

Poll: Majority Of Weiner's Constituents Think he Should Stay In Office  —  While lawmakers from Rep. Anthony Weiner's (D-NY) own party have now begun to call for his resignation, a Marist poll released Thursday night finds that his constituents think he should stay.

The Lone Star Jobs Surge  —  The Texas model added 37% of all net U.S. jobs since the recovery began.  —  Richard Fisher, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, dropped by our offices this week and relayed a remarkable fact: Some 37% of all net new American jobs since the recovery began were created in Texas.

Romney will skip Iowa straw poll  —  Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) said Thursday that he'd be skipping the influential August straw poll of potential Iowa caucusgoers.  —  Romney, who won the 2007 straw poll, announced through his campaign that he would skip the Ames Straw Poll this cycle …

Anthony Weiner Is a Modern Human Being  —  My friend Morgan Rank owned an art gallery in East Hampton several years ago.  He moved to Italy, living in the quiet countryside there for nearly a decade.  We had lost touch and then, at an art event in New York, someone approached me and said, “Morgan is back.”

Beshear leads Williams in Ky. governor's race by 21 points after ad blitz, cn|  2 poll shows  —  After airing ads for the last three weeks, Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear posted a 21-point lead over the Republican challenger David Williams, according to the latest cn|  2 Poll.

Behind the Scenes, Plans for Insurance Exchange  —  Gov. Rick Perry has made no secret of his disdain for federal health reform or for one of its key tenets, a Travelocity-like state insurance marketplace in which consumers could choose from public and private health plans.

Ruling Favors a 10-Inch Citizen of France  —  PARIS — France was punished on Thursday for not taking proper care of its hamsters.  —  The Court of Justice in Luxembourg, the European Union's highest court, ruled Thursday that France had failed to protect the Great Hamster of Alsace …

Leicester City Council ‘not ready’ for zombie attack  —  The FOI request said “councils across the kingdom” should be prepared for a potential zombie attack  —  A worried member of the public has forced Leicester City Council to admit it is unprepared for a zombie invasion.

Do more on jobs, Dems tell Obama  —  Senior Senate Democrats are growing frustrated by what they see as President Obama's passivity on the economy, and are beginning to discuss a large infrastructure package funded by tax increases.  —  Some Democrats, such as Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin …