The Mother of All No-Brainers  —  The Republicans have changed American politics since they took control of the House of Representatives.  They have put spending restraint and debt reduction at the top of the national agenda.  They have sparked a discussion on entitlement reform.

Romney supporters raise $12 million to bolster WH bid  —  A super-PAC run by supporters of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) announced a $12 million haul during the first half of this year.  —  Restore Our Future, the outside spending group founded by supporters of Romney's presidential campaign …

White Supremacist Stampede  —  A startling number of white-power candidates are seeking public office.  Eve Conant reports on their under-the-radar strategy and David Duke's White House flirtation.  —  Add to the growing list of candidates considering a bid for the GOP presidential nomination …

DSK accuser sues NY Post for “prostitute” report  —  (Reuters) - The hotel maid who accused former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault sued the New York Post and five of its journalists for libel on Tuesday for reporting that she was a prostitute.

Newt Gingrich offers bleak view of campaign finances  —  Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich talks with residents of Clear Lake, Iowa during the town's Independence Day parade Monday.  (Charlie Neibergall/AP)  —  Newt Gingrich, whose presidential bid has been beset by problems including …

The riddle of the missing US ambassador as London toasts Ronald Reagan centenary  —  It was one of the most glittering events of the year, attracting some of the greatest names in American and British politics.  —  But as the British roasted lamb and the sunny Californian chardonnay were cleared away …

BMW layoffs exemplify the evisceration of the middle class  —  Every working American should be dismayed by — and afraid of — what BMW is doing.  —  By all accounts, BMW's parts distribution warehouse in Ontario was one of the jewels of the company's system.

Boat People  —  Some questions for the “activists” aboard the Gaza flotilla.  —  The tale of the Gaza “flotilla” seems set to become a regular summer feature, bobbing along happily on the inside pages with an occasional update.  A nice sidebar for reporters covering the Greek debt crisis …

Behind the Scenes, Christian Right Leaders Rally Behind Rick Perry  —  In early June, TIME has learned, a group of prominent figures on the Christian Right held a conference call to discuss their dissatisfaction with the current GOP presidential field, and agreed that Rick Perry would be their preferred candidate if he entered the race.

Solid Majority of Jewish Americans Still Approve of Obama  —  Changes in approval among Jews continues to reflect broader U.S. patterns  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Jewish Americans gave President Barack Obama a 60% job approval rating in June, down from 68% in May, but statistically unchanged from 64% in April.

Koch Industries Subsidiary Cited for Illegal Donations  —  The Federal Election Commission has fined a Luxembourg subsidiary of Kansas-based Koch Industries Inc. $4,700 for making illegal foreign campaign contributions.  —  A limited liability company organized in Luxembourg, INVISTA …

Herman Cain loses key Iowa tea party backer  —  The wave of staff departures from Herman Cain's campaign have now cost the tea party favorite a key Iowa tea party supporter.  —  Charlie Gruschow, founder of the Des Moines tea party and an emphatic Cain supporter, submitted his resignation …

Global warming lull down to China's coal growth  —  Solar power is coming to China - but coal-burning grew amazingly quickly a few years back  —  The lull in global warming from 1998 to 2008 was mainly caused by a sharp rise in China's coal use, a study suggests.

The Shame of the Cities and the Shade of LBJ  —  President Lyndon Johnson and the “best and the brightest” who staffed his administration led this country into three quagmires.  By far the most famous, but perhaps not the most expensive and dangerous resulted from LBJ's escalation of the Vietnam War.

Rick Santorum's Math Fail: Blasts Obama For Creating ‘Only 240 Million Jobs’  —  2012 GOP presidential hopeful Rick Santorum continued his long-shot campaign this morning with an appearance on CNN.  During the interview, Santorum attempted to criticize the Obama administration's record on jobs …

U.S. Officials Behind ‘Fast and Furious’ Gun Sales Should Be Tried in Mexico, Lawmaker Says  —  While the investigation continues into the U.S. operation that helped send thousands of guns south of the border, Mexican lawmakers say they'll press for extradition and prosecution in Mexico …

Arizona conservatives scramble after campaign finance law's defeat  —  The state's Clean Elections Act had swept a surge of small-government Republicans into power.  —  Arizona Republican state Sen. Steve Smith, right, had never run for public office before last year.

The Sorrow and Pity of Another Liquidity Trap  —  There is only one real law of economics: the law of supply and demand.  If the quantity supplied goes up, the price goes down.  —  Back in the third quarter of 2008, the public held about $5.3 trillion of U.S. Treasury bills, notes and bonds.

Huckabee's daughter signs on with Pawlenty to lead Iowa push  —  The daughter of former Arkansas.  Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) joined the presidential campaign of former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R).  —  Sarah Huckabee Sanders joined Pawlenty's campaign as a senior political adviser working out of Iowa …

Population Density Fact Of The Day: The Netherlands Is An Agricultural Exporter  —  I'm not sure how relevant this is to the debate between Ha-Joon Chang and Jagdish Baghwati over the importance of manufacturing, but Chang's point about Dutch agriculture is fascinating: