Strauss-Kahn Is Released as Case Teeters  —  Dominique Strauss-Kahn was released from house arrest on Friday as the sexual assault case against him moved one step closer to dismissal after prosecutors told a Manhattan judge that they had serious problems with the case.

Minnesota government begins historic shutdown  —  Dayton renewed his call to tax the rich; GOP pointed to harm of long-term debt.  The governor and legislative leaders worked into the evening in a last-ditch bid for resolution.  —  Talks imploded Thursday between DFL Gov. Mark Dayton …

EXCLUSIVE: FOX6 talks to four of the seven Wisconsin Supreme Court Justices  —  Grabbing the microphone - and the spotlight.  Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice David Prosser did both when FOX6's Mike Lowe attempted to speak with him about the serious allegations of a physical altercation with Justice Anne Walsh Bradley on Thursday.

Pawlenty Raises $4.2 Million, Ron Paul Collects $4.5 Million in Quarter  —  Former Republican Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty raised about $4.2 million during the second quarter in his bid for the White House, his campaign announced Friday afternoon.  That number is respectable …

Why Mark Halperin Is a D—k  —  The political commentator erred in speaking disrespectfully of the president.  His far greater sin: being so cowed by conservatives that he's offended by Obama's mild poke at the GOP.  —  Here's why Mark Halperin is a disgrace.

Fact checking a claim on tax breaks  —  'I think it's only fair to ask an oil company .... to give up a tax break,' Obama said.  —  AP Photo  —  President Obama used oil barons and corporate jet owners to anchor his opposition to Republicans' demands on taxes in his press conference on Wednesday.

Reid: Millionaires should pay more taxes for deficit reduction  —  The Democratic leader of the Senate has introduced a measure asking the wealthy to make a large contribution to deficit reduction.  —  The resolution offered by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) …

To the Limit  —  In about a month, if nothing is done, the federal government will hit its legal debt limit.  There will be dire consequences if this limit isn't raised.  At best, we'll suffer an economic slowdown; at worst we'll plunge back into the depths of the 2008-9 financial crisis.

Employees had been increasingly troubled by Gingrich's Tiffany purchases  —  Employees of presidential candidate Newt Gingrich grew increasingly concerned in recent years about their boss's purchases from luxury jeweler Tiffany & Co., worried that if he followed through on plans to run …

Dems pounce on Romney's latest mega flip-flop  —  Yesterday Mitt Romney backtracked on one of his core campaign messages — that Obama made the economy “worse” — and the Democratic National Committee has rushed out a new video documenting the flip-flop with footage.

Cory Maye To Be Released From Prison … MONTICELLO, Miss. — After 10 years of incarceration, and seven years after a jury sentenced him to die, 30-year-old Cory Maye will soon be going home.  Mississippi Circuit Court Judge Prentiss Harrell signed a plea agreement Friday morning …

Official Calls For Riverside, 12 Other Counties To Secede From California  —  RIVERSIDE (CBS) — Is the state of California about to go “South”?  —  Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone apparently thinks so, after proposing that the county lead a campaign for as many as 13 Southern California counties to secede from the state.

Laura D'Andrea Tyson Can't Possibly Be Treasury Secretary  —  I've heard some chatter that were Timothy Geithner to step down, Laura Tyson might replace him as Treasury Secretary but it's clear from what she's wrote today that she's far too sensible to be confirmed: … Crazy talk.

Weapons linked to controversial ATF strategy found in Valley crimes  —  PHOENIX - Weapons linked to a questionable government strategy are turning up in crimes in Valley neighborhoods.  —  For months the ABC15 Investigators have been searching through police reports and official government documents.

Barbara Boxer's blatant rewriting of history  —  (Paul Sakuma/AP) “I think we ought to go back to the people and the party that was the only party and the only people to balance the budget in 40 years.  I hate to break it to my Republican friends, but that is the Democratic Party.

7/1: Independence Day — Seventeen Seventy When?  —  Just in time for the July 4th weekend, the Marist Poll has asked Americans in which year the United States declared its independence.  And, the result is many Americans need to brush up on their American history.

Union curbs rescue a Wisconsin school district  —  “This is a disaster,” said Mark Miller, the Wisconsin Senate Democratic leader, in February after Republican Gov. Scott Walker proposed a budget bill that would curtail the collective bargaining powers of some public employees.

Obama campaign to go on the offensive against conservative critics of Israel stance  —  Obama's top presidential campaign advisers are putting together a plan to go on the offensive against critics of his stance on Israel, I'm told, and are assembling a team of high profile surrogates …

White House says stimulus boosted employment by as many as 3.6M jobs  —  A White House report released Friday said the 2009 stimulus bill raised GDP by as much as 3.2 percent in the first quarter of 2011.  —  The report from the White House Council of Economic Advisers said the stimulus added 2.3 …

Obama Administration Overrides 2009 Ogden Memo, Declares Open Season on Pot Shops in States Where Medical Marijuana Is Legal  —  The Department of Justice sent out a memo Wednesday instructing the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration and leading officials in the U.S. Attorneys Office …

Senate GOP mocks president with video of Obama on golf course  —  Senate Republicans on Friday said President Obama should look in the mirror before questioning their work ethic.  —  The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), the Senate GOP's campaign arm, released a Web video …