GOP Senator: Maybe We Shouldn't Have Tied Debt Vote To Deficit Deal (VIDEO) … WASHINGTON — Some Republicans are starting to have buyer's remorse over their party's insistence that a vote to raise the debt limit be tied to a long-term deficit reduction package.

“Republican Candidate” Extends Lead vs. Obama to 47% to 39%  —  Margin marks first statistically significant lead among registered voters  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Registered voters by a significant margin now say they are more likely to vote for the “Republican Party's candidate for president” …

In Interview, Murdoch Defends News Corp.  —  In his first significant public comments on the tabloid newspaper scandal that has engulfed his media empire, News Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch vigorously defended the company's handling of the crisis but said it would establish …

Documents Show Obama White House Attacked, Excluded Fox News Channel  —  White House Emails Detail anti Fox Bias inside Obama White House: “I'm putting some dead fish in the fox cubby — just cause” “[FNC Anchor] Bret Baier...is a lunatic”  —  Judicial Watch, the public interest group …

Bin Laden Plotted to Attack U.S. on 9/11 Anniversary  —  Osama bin Laden was working to assemble a team of militants to attack the U.S. on the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 hijackings, according to communications that Navy SEALs seized from his Pakistani hideout when they killed the al Qaeda leader this spring.

S&P warns that chance of downgrading U.S. credit rating is 50 percent  —  Standard & Poor's said late Thursday that it could downgrade the U.S. credit rating as soon as this month, and there is a 50 percent chance it will do so within three months, if Washington fails to come to an agreement over the nation's debt.

End to Minnesota Shutdown in GOP Hands  —  Special session could be called within three days  —  ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton sent a letter Thursday to House Speaker Kurt Zellers and Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch, saying he “reluctantly” agrees to accept …

Palin raises over $1.6 million  —  (CNN) - Sarah Palin's political action committee raised over $1.6 million in the first half of 2011, according to a report set to be released Thursday.  —  She now has approximately $1.4 million cash on hand despite having spent almost $1.6 million over the same period, according to Sarah PAC.

Palin political committee spent tens of thousands on bus trip  —  Sarah Palin's political action committee spent tens of thousands of dollars covering the costs of the former Alaska governor's “One Nation” East Coast bus tour this spring — a trip that Palin (R) has repeatedly characterized as a “family vacation.”

Debt Ceiling: What's the End Game For Republicans?  —  Jonathan Podhoretz reads a Quinnipiac poll showing that by a margin of 48-34, the public is going to blame Republicans and not Obama if we don't raise the debt ceiling, and joins the ranks of the Washington sellouts:

The Accused Killer in His Own Words  —  Read a partial transcript of the confession that police say Levi Aron gave during questioning … My name is Levi Aron... On Monday evening around 5:30 I went to my dentist, Dr. Sorcher, to make a payment for visit for exam routine.

Which Is Worse?  Default or Voting to Raise the Debt Ceiling Again in 2012?:  Today's Qs for O's WH - 7/14/2011  —  CARNEY: That is a bad scenario.  I'm not sure — I mean —  TAPPER: Is it worse —  CARNEY: You know, there are things you could anticipate.  But I — yes.

McCain on the Debt Limit  —  As rain splatters the windows of Sen. John McCain's second-floor office on Capitol Hill, the 74-year-old Arizona Republican leans back, clasps his hands, and recalls the Nineties.  Brinksmanship, he says, cost the party then, and it could cripple Republicans this summer …

GOP Demand Obama Protect Seniors From Default, Won't Name What To Cut Instead  —  Republican lawmakers are pushing President Obama to put seniors, troops, and bondholders at the front of the line should Congress fail to raise the debt ceiling.  The rest?  Well, that's up to him.

Mitt Romney Breaks Silence on Debt Ceiling  —  ABC News' Emily Friedman(@EmilyABC) reports:  —  It didn't take long for Mitt Romney to field a question on the debt ceiling negotiations today during an event at the Portsmouth Rotary Club in New Hampshire.  —  After Romney's opening remarks …

Obama To WSB-TV: America Is Stressed Out  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Barack Obama said America is a “stressed out” nation in an exclusive interview with Channel 2 Action News at the White House on Thursday.  —  The Obama administration invited Channel 2's Scott MacFarlane to a short interview …

John Edwards trial set for October  —  Former presidential candidate John Edwards's felony corruption trial has been tentatively set for October, a judge said Thursday afternoon.  —  The date was set at a meeting that U.S. District Court Judge Carlton Tilley held in Greensboro, North Carolina.