Mark Halperin suspended over Obama remark on Morning Joe (video)  —  MSNBC senior political analyst Mark Halperin was suspended on Thursday by the cable network after he called President Obama “a dick” on a popular morning show and then quickly apologized.  —  “I thought he was a dick yesterday …

Geithner Said to Consider Leaving Treasury After Debt Debate  —  Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner has signaled to White House officials that he's considering leaving the administration after President Barack Obama reaches an agreement with Congress to raise the national debt limit …

FEC rules in favor of Stephen Colbert  —  The Federal Election Commission ruled Thursday that comedian Stephen Colbert could form his eponymous political action committee with a media exemption.  —  “I am sorry to say, we won,” Colbert declared to supporters outside the FEC building after the commissioners issued their advisory.

Rep. McCotter to launch presidential bid on July 2  —  Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich. will launch his presidential campaign on July 2, making him the third sitting member of the House to run for the White House in 2012.  —  McCotter will make his bid official in his home state of Michigan …

How health care rulings are covered  —  Regular readers may recall an item from February, in which I compared coverage of health care court rulings from several major media outlets.  Given yesterday's developments, it's time to revisit the subject.  —  To briefly review …

Roger Ailes' Secret Nixon-Era Blueprint for Fox News  —  Republican media strategist Roger Ailes launched Fox News Channel in 1996, ostensibly as a “fair and balanced” counterpoint to what he regarded as the liberal establishment media.  But according to a remarkable document buried deep within …

Against the constitutional option, cont'd  —  Jonathan Chait and David Dayen both think that the breakdown of debt-ceiling negotiations strengthens the case for the Obama administration to attempt the “constitutional option,” in which they simply declare the debt limit unconstitutional and hope the Supreme Court agrees.

White House rejects McConnell invitation for Obama to meet Senate GOP  —  The White House has rejected Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) invitation for President Obama to meet Thursday with Senate Republicans about their position on the debt ceiling talks.

Amazon ends deal with 25,000 California websites  —  Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law California's tax on Internet sales through affiliate advertising which will immediately cut small-business website revenue 20% to 30%, experts say.  —  The bill, AB 28X, takes effect immediately.

Romney backtracks on argument that Obama made economy worse  —  Over the last few weeks, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has argued that President Obama's policies have made the economy worse.  —  Here was Romney in New Hampshire on Monday:

Harvard: July 4th Parades Are Right-Wing  —  Democratic political candidates can skip this weekend's July 4th parades.  A new Harvard University study finds that July 4th parades energize only Republicans, turn kids into Republicans, and help to boost the GOP turnout of adults on Election Day.

Confessions of a Financial Deregulator  —  print recommend Send link clip secure rights  —  BERKELEY - Back in the late 1990's, in America at least, two schools of thought pushed for more financial deregulation - that is, for repealing the legal separation of investment banking …

Fire Up the Grill, Not the Atmosphere  —  FOOD is responsible for 10 to 30 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.  By many estimates, cooking represents more of a meal's carbon footprint than transport.  For certain vegetables, it accounts for more emissions than agriculture, transport and disposal combined.

Married, With Infidelities  —  Last month, when the New York congressman Anthony Weiner finally admitted that he had lied, that his Twitter account had not been hacked, that he in fact had sent a picture of his thinly clad undercarriage to a stranger in Seattle, I asked my wife of six years …

In Utah, Huntsman's son hits Romney rally  —  • Will Huntsman, son of presidential candidate Jon Huntsman, attended a rally on Friday for rival White House hopeful Mitt Romney and posed for a photo with the former Massachusetts governor.  —  In a photo obtained by The Salt Lake Tribune …

Ballad of the Long Shot  —  Before you announced your campaign, you said that the liberal establishment is scared that “a real black man might run against Barack Obama.”  Are you suggesting Obama isn't really black?  —  A real black man is not timid about making the right decisions, that's what I meant.

Huma Abedin taking time off from Weiner, job  —  Anthony Weiner's wife is taking time off from her senior job with the State Department — as well as time off from the randy former representative, The Post has learned.  —  While Weiner, 46, heads to an “intensive” rehab program to recover …

Bill Clinton Network Exclusive: Proposes Debt Impasse Deal, but Fears GOP Too Hamstrung by Ideology  —  Former President Bill Clinton sees a possible way past the bipartisan impasse over raising the debt limit: agree to cut spending AND raise taxes, but do neither until later, after the economy improves.