Appeals Court Upholds Obama's Health Care Law  —  The Obama administration won the first appellate review of the 2010 health care law on Wednesday as a three-judge panel from the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati held that it was constitutional for Congress …

14th Amendment: Democratic Senators See Debt Ceiling As Unconstitutional … WASHINGTON — Growing increasingly pessimistic about the prospects for a deal that would raise the debt ceiling, Democratic senators are revisiting a solution to the crisis that rests on a simple proposition: The debt ceiling itself is unconstitutional.

How you know the negotiations have truly failed  —  (SHAWN THEW VIA BLOOMBERG) The best advice I've gotten for assessing the debt-ceiling negotiations was to “watch for the day when the White House goes public.”  As long as the Obama administration was refusing to attack Republicans publicly …

Lennon was a closet Republican: Assistant  —  John Lennon was a closet Republican, who felt a little embarrassed by his former radicalism, at the time of his death - according to the tragic Beatles star's last personal assistant.  —  Fred Seaman worked alongside the music legend from 1979 …

Emanuel hopes Illinois will follow New York in same-sex marriage legislation  —  (CNN)- Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel showed his support for the recently passed New York same-sex marriage law telling CNN's Wolf Blitzer in an interview Wednesday he would support similar legislation in Illinois.

Jewish Dems losing faith in Obama  —  David Ainsman really began to get worried about President Barack Obama's standing with his fellow Jewish Democrats when a recent dinner with his wife and two other couples — all Obama voters in 2008 — nearly turned into a screaming match.

Sarah Palin Blasts Hollywood Stars as ‘Full of Hate’ at Movie Premiere (Exclusive Audio) … PELLA, Iowa — Sarah Palin stared a bit uncomfortably at a movie screen Tuesday night watching a montage of Matt Damon, David Letterman, Madonna, Howard Stern, Bill Maher, Louis C.K. and other celebrities malign her …

Christie Loses Support for Second Term as Residents Oppose Cuts  —  More than half of New Jersey residents say they wouldn't back Governor Chris Christie for a second term, disapproving of his choices on a range of policy and personal issues, from killing a commuter tunnel to using …

TRENDING: Bachmann: Media wants a ‘mud wrestling fight’ with Palin  —  Daniel Island, South Carolina (CNN) - Presidential candidate Michele Bachmann claimed Wednesday that the media is rooting for a catfight between her and Sarah Palin.  —  “They want to see two girls come together …

What Does Newt Gingrich Know?  —  Let's consult the literature — all 21 books by the self-proclaimed ideas man of politics.  (Gingrich cites 23 books on his Web site.  We are not counting the Contract With America or the coffee-table book “Ronald Reagan: Rendezvous With Destiny.")  —  Multimedia

Has Bachmann Met Her Waterloo? … Like This Story  —  Follow Slate's Fighting Words … - Do Gay Bars Make a Lot of Money?  - Extremely Witty Poems by a Poet Who Was Sure He Was Going to Hell- Shafer: Why Patch and Other Hyperlocal Journalism Is a Complete Waste …

Rudy breaks vows  —  The gay car dealer who opened his home to Rudy Giuliani in 2001 during his humiliating divorce battle says the former mayor offered to preside at his wedding if same-sex marriage were ever legalized — but is now ducking his calls to make good on the offer.

Exclusive: S&P to deeply cut U.S. ratings if debt payment missed  —  (Reuters) - The United States would immediately have its top-notch credit rating slashed to “selective default” if it misses a debt payment on August 4, Standard & Poor's managing director John Chambers told Reuters.

Poll: Gov. Perry top pick for GOP nominee among Tea Party  —  The Texas conservative, who's weighing a late entry into the GOP field, beats other candidates among Tea Pary members.  —  Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) is the top choice of Tea Party supporters in a Republican presidential candidate, according to a new poll released Wednesday.

Obama Breaks Silence About Boeing v. NLRB Labor Dispute  —  ABC News' Amy Bingham reports:  —  President Obama broke his silence today about the dispute between Boeing and the National Labor Relations Board over a proposed plant in South Carolina.  —  The move by the NLRB to block Boeing's plan …

Exclusive: Myspace to Be Sold to Specific Media for $35 Million  —  Closing another chapter on one of the Internet's most iconic properties, Myspace has been sold to to Specific Media, an advertising network, for $35 million.  —  Sources close to the situation said the deal is being completed today …

'That's why they're called leaders'  —  One of the more common Republican criticisms of President Obama, at least in the context of the debt-reduction talks, is that he hasn't shown enough “leadership.”  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) took to the floor late last week to cry …

Taking Action Matters  —  Something I like to ask people who are disgruntled with the performance of the political system is what have you, personally, done about it?  When was the last time you wrote or called your member of Congress?  Can you even name the people who represent …

Rove, Dean spar over healthcare exchanges  —  A controversial new report suggesting millions of American workers will get dumped into the healthcare reform law's insurance exchanges is a “great thing,” former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean said Wednesday.  —  The 2008 Democratic presidential candidate …

Obama needs to create jobs, not fight for them  —  (Mark Wilson - Bloomberg) Ron Klain, former chief of staff to both Al Gore and Joe Biden, thinks President Obama needs to make more of a show of fighting for job-creating policies.  “The greatest risk to the president will be if the American people believe …

Report: ‘Neo-Taliban’ are most dangerous terror group  —  Violent Islamist groups in Pakistan have coalesced under the Taliban umbrella to become the world's most significant terrorist threat and are the most capable of obtaining nuclear weapons, according to a report released Wednesday.