Boehner: ‘Maybe 50-50’ Chance of a Debt Deal Reached Within 48 Hours  —  House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, speaks with reporters after a meeting with House Republicans on Capitol Hill on Thursday.  —  House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, informed fellow House Republicans on Thursday …

News of the World to close amid hacking scandal  —  Police are investigating allegations of phone hacking by the News of the World  —  This Sunday's issue of the News of the World will be the last edition of the paper, News International chairman James Murdoch has said.

Why the Republicans Resist Compromise  —  The chart that I'm going to show you is one of the more important ones that we've presented at FiveThirtyEight in some time.  It helps explain a lot of what's going on in American politics today, from the negotiations over the federal debt ceiling to the Republican presidential primaries.

Chase Gets Man Thrown In Jail For Fraudulent Check.  Except The Check Is Legit.  —  Ikenna, a 28-year old construction worker, went to deposit a $8,463.21 Chase cashier's check at his local Chase branch, only for the teller to decide that neither he nor his check looked right and he got tossed in jail for forgery, KING5 reports.

Father spoke of having Obama adopted  —  US immigration files from '61 reveal Kenyan student's plan  —  President Obama as a young boy, with his father, who left when his son was 2.  (Obama for America via Associated Press)  —  In the spring of 1961, President Obama's father revealed …

Elizabeth Smart, Network Pundit?  —  Amid the Casey Anthony frenzy, ABC News is close to unveiling its latest contributor.  Howard Kurtz reports exclusively on the kidnap victim's new career.  —  Elizabeth Smart first came into our consciousness nearly a decade ago as a 14-year-old girl kidnapped from her Salt Lake City bedroom.

Exclusive: Treasury secretly weighs options to avert default  —  (Reuters) - A small team of Treasury officials is discussing options to stave off default if Congress fails to raise the debt limit by the August 2 deadline, sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

Why Jamie Leigh Jones Could Lose Her KBR Rape Case  —  Her story of a brutal attack in Iraq sparked a national outcry—but how much of it is true?  —  Post Comment  —  The allegations were explosive when they first hit in 2007: A 20-year-old woman named Jamie Leigh Jones alleged that four days …

Brody File Exclusive: GOP Presidential Candidates Will be Asked to Sign a Marriage Vow  —  The Brody File has learned that The Family Leader, an influential pro-family group in Iowa will ask each of the 2012 presidential candidates to sign a marriage pledge that professes everything …

SCOTUS refuses to delay Leal execution; Leal's last hope with Governor of Texas  —  ABC News' Ariane de Vogue (@arianedevogue) reports:  —  A divided Supreme Court refused tonight to delay the execution of a Mexican national on death row, despite pleas from top officials of the Obama administration.

‘Fast & Furious’ gets hotter for Holder  —  Don't look now, but the real action in Washington this week isn't the parti san wrangling over the debt ceiling but something — literally — even more incendiary: Operation Fast and Furious, which seems about to explode right in the face …

How Republicans and Tea Partiers Alike Used the Heritage Foundation's #AskObama Script  —  Yesterday, President Obama held a live chat session on Twitter.  Billed as a “townhall,” the President spent an hour fielding questions from Twitter users about the state of the nation.

First Study of Its Kind Shows Benefits of Providing Medical Insurance to Poor  —  When poor people are given medical insurance, they not only find regular doctors and see doctors more often but they also feel better, are less depressed and are better able to maintain financial stability …

Orrin Hatch: The ‘Poor’ Should Do More To Shrink Debt, Not The Rich (VIDEO) … WASHINGTON — Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) voted against beginning debate on a measure that would have the Senate declare the rich should share the pain of debt reduction Thursday, a day after arguing that it's the poor and middle class who need to do more.

House to vote on repealing light bulb efficiency standards  —  House Republicans introduced legislation that would repeal a light bulb efficiency law.  —  House Republicans introduced legislation Wednesday they hope to bring to the floor next week that would repeal a light bulb efficiency law.

LulzSec doc drop: Arizona Officials Say Hezbollah Operating in Mexico  —  A document drop by LulzSec has revealed an ominous bulletin from police officials in Tucson, Arizona.  In short, law enforcement is advised to be on the lookout for Hezbollah terrorists operating in the traditional smuggling corridors …

Apple Plans Fix for iPhone Flaw  —  Apple Inc. said Thursday it is working to resolve a security hole in its iPhone and other mobile products that German authorities warned could allow cyber criminals to access confidential information or intercept phone conversations.

MSNBC Nixes Chris Matthews's Cameo in Aaron Sorkin's Pilot About Cable News [UPDATED]  —  While he was writing the pilot script for his new HBO project More As This Story Develops, Aaron Sorkin reportedly spent some time on the set of Hardball With Chris Matthews.

How to Fix USAID  —  A broken aid agency helps no one.  Instead of throwing development projects at the military, the US should put effort into fixing the aid agency's problems.  —  Glenn Zorpette, the executive editor of I.E.E.E. Spectrum, wrote a powerful op-ed in the New York Times yesterday …