Sarah Palin's Unlikely Supporter  —  ABC News' Sheila Marikar (@SheilaYM) reports from Pella, Iowa:  —  There's the stereotype of the Sarah Palin supporter, and then there's Sonnie Johnson.  —  The 30-year-old African-American mother and wife is featured in “The Undefeated” …

Levin: Stephanopoulos Is Foolish in Lecturing Bachmann  —  Sigh.  —  You'd think liberals would learn.  —  Of course not.  —  George Stephanopoulos made the mistake of going after Michele Bachmann on history — and promptly proceeded to get his history foolishly wrong.  Said George:

Bachmann is so not ready for presidency, but Pawlenty has the judgment and skills  —  In early 2012, Iowans in all 99 counties will bundle up, brave the cold night air, and join neighbors and fellow Republicans in casting their vote for the next president of the United States.

Bombers attack luxury hotel in Kabul  —  Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — A group of people using bombs and small arms attacked the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul Tuesday, and fighting was ongoing with Afghan security forces, Chief of Criminal Investigation Mohammed Zahir told CNN.

Kucinich has language problem in Syria  —  Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) gave a press conference in Syria this week and appeared to heap praise upon Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who is being widely criticized for the brutal crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations in that country.

N.Y. town clerk: I won't sign gay wedding license  —  New York's gay weddings victory lap has not extended to all parts of the Empire State, with a rural town clerk determined to not sign any same-sex marriage licenses.  —  Barbara MacEwen, the town clerk in upstate Volney who is responsible …

Ethics watchdog calls for FBI to investigate Rep. Richardson  —  Allegations of ethics violations within the office of Rep. Laura Richardson (D-Calif.) are worthy of a criminal investigation, a leading ethics watchdog group charged Tuesday.  —  Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics …

Tearful Glenn Beck Describes How He And His Family Were Attacked In New York Park  —  “These people were some of the most hateful people I have ever seen,” said a distraught Glenn Beck this morning as he described an altercation he and his family had last night while watching a screening …

Bachmann plays Petty tune again  —  MYRTLE BEACH, S.C.—Maybe Tom Petty's cease-and-desist letter hasn't arrived yet.  —  The singer was reportedly nonplussed that Michele Bachmann played his “American Girl” classic when she officially kicked off her presidential campaign in Iowa Monday.

More Details Emerge in Wisconsin's ‘Chokegate’  —  With the Wisconsin Supreme Court devolving into a storyline only Vince McMahon could love, rumors are still swirling about what actually happened when two justices engaged in a physical confrontation behind closed doors on June 13.

Two thousand years in one chart  —  An alternative timeline for the past two millennia  —  SOME people recite history from above, recording the grand deeds of great men.  Others tell history from below, arguing that one person's life is just as much a part of mankind's story as another's.

White House dumps ‘secret shopper’ survey of doctors  —  The Obama administration will not move forward on a controversial proposal to have “secret shoppers” pose as patients to investigate how difficult it is for Americans to obtain primary care.  —  “On April 28th, the U.S. Department …

Obama Troop Cuts Went Beyond Largest Withdrawal Offered By Top General  —  Marine Lt. Gen. John Allen, nominated to replace Gen. David Petraeus as head of coalition forces in Afghanistan, acknowledged Tuesday that President Obama's decision to draw down 10,000 troops by the end of this year …

How the demise of a trusted adviser could bring down Mahmoud Ahmadinejad  —  Iran's President has survived mass uprisings, but a corruption row engulfing his inner circle may soon be his undoing.  Robert Fisk reports from Tehran  —  Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's irascible …

BofA Nears Huge Settlement  —  $8.5 Billion Payment to Investors in Mortgage Securities Would Be Biggest Yet  —  Bank of America Corp. is close to an agreement to pay $8.5 billion to settle claims by a group of high-profile investors who lost money on mortgage-backed securities purchased …

Power Leads to Tea Party Policy Splits  —  HARRISBURG, Pa. — When Tea Party groups celebrated their victories here in November — they had helped take the governor's office and the legislature — it seemed that one of their priorities, school choice legislation, would have an easy time passing.

Real Union Enemy Isn't Boeing, It's Competition: Ramesh Ponnuru  —  The liberal writer John B. Judis, who means to offer a compliment, says it “may be the most radical thing the Obama administration has done.”  He is referring to the National Labor Relations Board's complaint against Boeing Co. (BA)

Kenner Councilman Joe Stagni apologizes for underwear picture, ‘inappropriate relation’  —  Kenner City Councilman Joe Stagni admitted today that he sent a picture of himself in his underwear to a city employee 18 months ago and that the image ended up on a city computer server.

Johann Hari denies accusations of plagiarism  —  Independent columnist admits incorporation of written quotes into interviews was an error - but denies it was churnalism  —  A high-profile interviewer and columnist was at the centre of a plagiarism row and a Twitter storm on Tuesday …

Report: Treasury must cut spending 44 percent in default  —  New analysis by the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) which has been shared extensively with members of Congress estimates that the Treasury Department would not be able to pay all its bills and would need to implement an immediate 44 percent cut …

Obama's lunch stop includes ‘mountains’ of greasy food  —  President Obama made a lunchtime pit stop during his Iowa trip Tuesday.  —  Obama's motorcade made an unannounced visit to Ross' Restaurant in Bettendorf, Iowa, one of the quad cities on the border of Illinois and Iowa.

“Go the F*** to Sleep” not funny  —  Editor's note: Karen Spears Zacharias is the author of the forthcoming memoir, “The Shelter of Mockingbirds: The Murder of 3-Year-Old Karly Sheehan.”  Follow her on Twitter.  —  (CNN) — “Go the F*** to Sleep” is being hailed as a cathartic children's book for parents.

Huntsman's Big Daddy  —  Jon Huntsman Sr. is one of the richest men in the world.  He's also been his son's best ally.  McKay Coppins and David A. Graham on how his father aided the former Utah governor's political rise.  —  Jon Huntsman Jr. stood proudly in the national spotlight last week …