Supreme Court reinstates collective bargaining law  —  By Patrick Marley of the Journal Sentinel  —  Madison - Acting with unusual speed, the state Supreme Court on Tuesday reinstated Gov. Scott Walker's plan to all but end collective bargaining for tens of thousands of public workers.

The Most Offensive Political Ad Ever, This Hour  —  Democrats sort of bungled a low-turnout jungle primary for Jane Harman's open seat.  They expected it to produce an all-Democrat race between Janice Hahn and Debra Bowen, but Bowen fell short, and Republican Craig Huey got the other runoff spot.

McDonald is 31st vote for same-sex marriage (updated)  —  Senator Roy McDonald, R-Saratoga, told the Times Union Tuesday that he will back a bill legalizing same-sex marriage.  He becomes the 31st senator to proclaim his public support for the bill.  It needs 32 votes to pass the Senate.

Pawlenty Is Debate's Biggest Loser  —  Tim Pawlenty was debate night's big loser.  He walked onto that stage with one mission: to prove himself the ultra-base alternative to Romney.  He failed, miserably.  —  Pawlenty's failure is not the kind of stumble he can correct later.

Democrats Choose Not to Punish Weiner  —  WASHINGTON—House Democrats took no action Tuesday to punish Rep. Anthony Weiner for a scandal over sexually charged messages sent to women he met online.  Some voiced hope the congressman's wife may convince him to heed the call of party leaders to resign.

Pundit Under Protest  —  I'll be writing a lot about the presidential election over the next 16 months, but at the outset I would just like to remark that I'm opining on this whole campaign under protest.  I'm registering a protest because for someone of my Hamiltonian/National Greatness perspective …

Wingnut debt ceiling demands  —  NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — A lot of politicians are weighing in with demands before they'll support raising the debt ceiling.  Most of their conditions are related to debt, such as put in place a debt reduction plan or cut spending.

Senate keeps $6B in subsidies, but 34 GOPers side with Coburn  —  Thirty-four Senate Republicans, including GOP leaders, voted on Tuesday to eliminate a $6 billion annual tax break for ethanol, striking a blow against a taxpayer pledge that some claim is an obstacle to a deficit-reduction agreement.

Gay jurist in Proposition 8 case had no legal obligation to remove himself, judge rules [Updated]  —  A federal judge on Tuesday refused to invalidate last year's ruling against Proposition 8, deciding the gay jurist who overturned the same-sex marriage ban had no obligation to step aside because of a possible conflict of interest.

HELLO! exclusive: Mildred Baena, the housekeeper who had a child with Arnold Schwarzenegger speaks out for the first time  —  When it was revealed that Arnold Schwarzenegger had a 13-year-old child with a trusted member of the family's domestic staff, the world let out a collective gasp.

Facebook hires Joe Lockhart  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Joe Lockhart, who helped build the press office during the second Clinton term in the White House, is joining Facebook.  —  A former TV reporter, Lockhart joins Facebook as vice president of communications and will manage the company's corporate …

Allen West Violates Federal Law During Weekend Diving Trip  —  ​There's nothing really bad to say about Rep. Allen West going diving off the coast of Deerfield Beach with a bunch of military veterans — except for the fact that he violated U.S. federal law in the process, and provided pictorial of himself doing so.

John King: The grunting moderator  —  During Monday night's GOP debate in New Hampshire, CNN's John King, the moderator, had a hard time keeping the candidates under the 30 second-per-answer time limit.  —  So he resorted to what sounded a lot like grunting.

CNN LIVE EVENT/SPECIAL  —  Republican Debate  —  THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT.  THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.  —  JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, and the first Republican presidential debate in this first-in-the-nation primary state.

Mitt Romney: Federal Disaster Relief For Tornado And Flood Victims Is ‘Immoral,’ ‘Makes No Sense At All’  —  Obama meets victims of the Joplin tornado.  —  Asked about federal disaster relief for recent tornado and flood victims at last night's GOP debate, candidate Mitt Romney called the spending …

Bachmann says she won't seek re-election to Congress, while running for president  —  MINNEAPOLIS - U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann says she's not running for re-election in Minnesota's 6th Congressional District while she's campaigning for the Republican nomination for president.

The GOP's Missing Man  —  The biggest question of the Republican presidential campaign is: What will Paul Ryan do?  Ryan has come to dominate the Republican Party's agenda and has personally become a totem — a sort of mini-Reagan figure, frequently cited as credibility by others and never attacked.

The True Meaning of Marriage  —  The stampede is on.  Our elected senators who have stood courageous in their refusal to capitulate on the state's presumption to redefine marriage are reporting unrelenting pressure to cave-in.  —  The media, mainly sympathetic to this rush to tamper …

Surging college costs price out middle class  —  As portrayed on the left axis, median income has hovered around $33,000 since 1988.  Meanwhile, college tuition and fees — portrayed on the right axis — have more than doubled.  —  NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — What do you get when college costs skyrocket but incomes barely budge?

Is Every Lesbian Blogger a Middle-Aged Man?  —  We're one lesbian away from a bona fide Fleet Street “trend”.  Further to yesterday's post, a lesbian blogger who helped unmask the Syrian lesbian blogger as a middle-aged American male has herself been revealed to be a middle-aged American male:

Why Sarah Palin Must Run in 2012  —  One of the prevailing debates in the GOP these days (if not the only one) is whether or not Governor Sarah Palin will, or should, run for president.  Not only should she, she must if the GOP has any hope of having a legitimate nominee whom everyone can support for the 2012 election.

U.S. Students Remain Poor at History, Tests Show  —  American students are less proficient in their nation's history than in any other subject, according to results of a nationwide test released on Tuesday, with most fourth graders unable to say why Abraham Lincoln was an important figure …

What Larry Summers Can't Bring Himself to Say  —  If you want to understand why the Obama administration's heart is in the right place but it suffers from a chronic lack of political nerve, you need look no further than former chief economic advisor Larry Summers.