Weiner Tells Friends He Will Step Down  —  WASHINGTON — Representative Anthony D. Weiner has told friends that he plans to resign his seat after coming under growing pressure from his Democratic colleagues to leave the House in the wake of revelations of his lewd online exchanges with women, said a person told of Mr. Weiner's plans.

Romney: 'I'm Also Unemployed'  —  TAMPA, Fla. — Mitt Romney sat at the head of the table at a coffee shop here on Thursday, listening to a group of unemployed Floridians explain the challenges of looking for work.  When they finished, he weighed in with a predicament of his own.

Jon Huntsman Cancels Appearance At Republican Leadership Conference Due To Illness  —  ABC News' Michael Falcone (@michaelpfalcone) reports:  —  Although he was slated to speak at a major gathering of Republicans taking place in New Orleans this weekend — just days before the official rollout …

Senate kills off ethanol tax credits in possible break with tax pledge  —  The Senate voted 73-27 Thursday to kill a major tax break that benefits the ethanol industry, handing a political win to a bipartisan group of lawmakers that call the incentive needless and expensive.

Glitter Bandits Strike Pawlenty  —  ABC News' Matt Jaffe (@jaffematt) and Arlette Saenz (@ArletteSaenz) report:  —  Another glittered bandit struck out at a GOP presidential candidate.  —  A few weeks ago it was Newt Gingrich who was doused in glitter by a liberal activist.  On Thursday, it was Tim Pawlenty.

Union leader compares NJ gov to Hitler at rally  —  Thousands participate in a rally to protest a Senate Budget Committee hearing on employee benefits at the State House Annex in Trenton, N.J.,Thursday, June 16, 2011.  Labor leaders rallying for collective bargaining rights in New Jersey went …

2012 Voter Preferences for Obama, “Republican” Remain Close  —  Forty-four percent prefer the Republican; 39%, Obama  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Forty-four percent of registered voters say they are more likely to vote for “the Republican Party's candidate” and 39% for Barack Obama …

Obama Fails to Justify the Legality of War in Libya  —  In a letter to John Boehner and a 38-page report, the White House could not prove it complied with the War Powers Resolution  —  Is the U.S. at war in Libya, putting President Obama in violation of the War Powers Resolution?

Ex-Spy Alleges Bush White House Sought to Discredit Critic  —  WASHINGTON — A former senior C.I.A. official says that officials in the Bush White House sought damaging personal information on a prominent American critic of the Iraq war in order to discredit him.

Dan Choi Rips Up Obama Flyer: 'I Won't Support Obama If He Doesn't Endorse Marriage Equality'  —  Lt. Dan Choi ripped up an Obama For America (OFA) flyer this afternoon during a panel at Netroots Nation when he was confronted by an Obama volunteer who attempted to explain away the President's opposition to same-sex marriage:

Our Lefty Military  —  As we search for paths out of America's economic crisis, many suggest business as a paradigm for cutting costs.  According to my back-of-the-envelope math, top C.E.O.'s earn as much as $1 a second around the clock, partly by cutting medical benefits for employees.

McKinsey official wrote previous study finding opposite of McKinsey study  —  Yet another interesting turn in the case of the mystery health care study.  —  As you know, the consulting firm McKinsey and Company recently released a study that — unlike other studies — found that larger numbers …

Norah O'Donnell moves to CBS  —  Norah O'Donnell, one of NBC's best-known Washington bureau reporters, is moving to CBS News to be chief White House correspondent, CBS announced.  —  It's a stunning shakeup for both the front row of the White House briefing room and for Washington's intensely competitive network news bureaus.

Bloomberg: Marriage Bill Passes With More Than ‘Bare Majority’  —  New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg met privately with Senate Republicans for about 45 minutes today to discuss the same-sex marriage bill and emerged to say at a Q and A that he expects the measure to pass beyond just 32 votes.

How Today's Conservatism Lost Touch with Reality  —  “Conservatism is true.”  That's what George Will told me when I interviewed him as an eager student many years ago.  His formulation might have been a touch arrogant, but Will's basic point was intelligent.  Conservatism, he explained, was rooted in reality.