Dem leader says he'll help GOP on debt-ceiling vote, but at a price  —  House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) on Wednesday said he's willing to help Republicans secure the votes they need to pass an increase in the debt ceiling, but not without conditions.

The Obama-Keynes Mystery  —  I'm not alone in marveling at the extent to which Obama has thrown his rhetorical weight behind anti-Keynesian economics; Ryan Avent is equally amazed, as are many others.  And now he's endorsing the structural unemployment story too.

White House uses Twitter to bully critics  —  President Obama's director of progressive media is obsessed with one particular conservative provocateur.  Jesse Lee's duties at the White House include “online response” — and there has been no shortage of responses to one person who routinely communicates with him on Twitter.

Bachmann surging, signs of weakness for Romney  —  When PPP polled New Hampshire in April Michele Bachmann was stuck at 4%.  She's gained 14 points over the last three months and now finds herself within single digits of Mitt Romney.  Romney continues to lead the way in the state with 25% …

CNN Cancels ‘In the Arena’ With Eliot Spitzer  —  1:30 p.m. |  Updated CNN on Wednesday cancelled Eliot Spitzer's 8 p.m. political talk show, “In The Arena,” and said it would shift Anderson Cooper's 10 p.m. nightly newscast into the time slot.  —  The cable news channel also said that Erin Burnett …

Jeff Sessions: Saying Millionaires Should Share Pain Is ‘Rather Pathetic’ … WASHINGTON — Having the Senate declare that millionaires should share more of the pain involved in putting America's financial house in order is “rather pathetic,” Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) declared Tuesday.

Court bars enforcement of 'don't ask, don't tell'  —  (07-06) 13:16 PDT SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court ordered a halt today to the armed forces' discharge of openly gay service members, citing the Obama administration's disavowal of laws that discriminate based on sexual orientation.

Policy shift in presidential condolence letters  —  PLAY CBS NEWS VIDEO  —  NEW YORK - Most families who lose a loved one in the war zones receive a letter of condolence from the President of the United States.  But there are a few who do not receive this honor.

Union Workers Replaced With Prison Labor Under Scott Walker's Collective Bargaining Law  —  While Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's (R) law dismantling collective bargaining rights has harmed teachers, nurses, and other civil servants, it's helping a different group in Wisconsinites — inmates.

What became of ‘repeal and replace’?  —  When they took control of the House, Republicans could barely stop talking about their plans to “repeal and replace” the health care reform law.  —  Six months later, they hardly talk publicly about those plans at all.  And they're nowhere close to “replacing” the law.

Katie Pavlich Scandal Grows: FBI, DEA Involved With Operation Fast and Furious  —  Yesterday, Acting ATF Director Kenneth Melson answered questions from Rep. Darrell Issa and Senator Charles Grassley surrounding Operation Fast and Furious.  Melson voluntarily participated in the interview …

Michele Bachmann's husband shares her strong conservative values  —  Lake Elmo, Minn. — In an interview last year with a Christian-  —  radio talk show, Marcus Bachmann, a therapist who runs a faith-infused counseling center here, compared homosexuals to “barbarians” who “need to be educated, need to be disciplined.”

Better Lives for Mexicans Cut Allure of Going North  —  AGUA NEGRA, Mexico — The extraordinary Mexican migration that delivered millions of illegal immigrants to the United States over the past 30 years has sputtered to a trickle, and research points to a surprising cause …

Gov. Rick Perry: The Candidate Obama Would Fear the Most  —  More than any other potential GOP presidential candidate, President Obama fears Texas Gov. Rick Perry.  That's because Perry is the only one who can devastate virtually any Obama claim.  —  Take the whine we hear most often from the President …

Rep. Tim Scott Floats Impeachment If Obama Invokes 14th Amendment On Debt Limit (VIDEO) … WASHINGTON — While some have asserted that the debt limit might be unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment, and therefore President Obama does not need congressional approval to raise it …

REPORT REVEALS CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY IN SYRIAN TOWN  —  The brutal methods used in a devastating Syrian security operation in the western town of Tell Kalakh may constitute crimes against humanity, Amnesty International said today in a new report.  —  Crackdown in Syria …

Bill Clinton likens GOP effort to Jim Crow laws  —  Former President Bill Clinton Wednesday compared GOP efforts to limit same-day voter registration and block some convicted felons from voting to Jim Crow laws and poll taxes.  —  In a speech to liberal youth activists Wednesday …

How Effective Was The 2009 Stimulus Program?  —  So the stimulus — the so-called American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 or ARRA — is starting to wind down.  What are the results?  —  Depends on whom you ask, of course.  Conservatives will say unemployment is near double-digits and growth is slow, so clearly it didn't work.

Investigation into APS cheating finds unethical behavior across every level  —  Across Atlanta Public Schools, staff worked feverishly in secret to transform testing failures into successes.  —  Teachers and principals erased and corrected mistakes on students' answer sheets.

CHART OF THE DAY: The Stealth Social Security Cut In Debt Talks  —  For months, the high-stakes stand-off over raising the debt ceiling and cutting the deficit has proceeded from two basic premises — that Republicans would take their toys and go home the minute Democrats proposed significant …

The GOP's evolving case against taxes  —  There are two ways to increase taxes.  One is you just raise rates, particularly the top rates.  Economists in general — and Republican economists in particular — don't much like this approach because it raises taxes on the last dollars you've earned.

Watch a 50-Mile Wide Dust Storm Devour Phoenix  —  Now, we have a new reason to compare the Great Recession to the Great Depression: Steinbeck-style dust storms.  Tuesday evening, a massive cloud of darkness known as a “habub” overtook Phoenix.  The National Weather Service reports that the wall …