Wall St. Makes Fallback Plans for Debt Crisis  —  Lawmakers in Washington are racing to reach a deal to save the country from defaulting on its debt, but on Wall Street, financial players are devising doomsday plans in case the clock runs out.  —  These companies are taking steps to reduce …

It Begins: Top Republicans Push Away From Gang Of Six Plan  —  As time goes on, and conservative interest groups and members of Congress rip into it, support among Republicans for the Gang of Six plan to reduce deficits will begin to wane.  In fact, that's already happening.

President calls debt crisis ‘self-created’  —  Washington (CNN) - As President Barack Obama sat down with television stations from three key political states, he said he is still hopeful the White House and congressional leadership will come to an agreement to raise the nation's debt ceiling but said politics is interfering.

Allen West Says He Apologized to Wasserman Schultz  —  Freshman Rep. Allen West said Wednesday that he has apologized to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz for calling her “vile, unprofessional and despicable” in an email.  —  “I just apologized,” West (R-Fla.) told a Huffington Post reporter.

Obama in perilous shape  —  For the first time since last July Barack Obama does not lead Mitt Romney in PPP's monthly national poll on the 2012 Presidential race.  Romney has now pulled into a tie with the President at 45%.  —  Obama's approval rating this month is 46% with 48% of voters disapproving of him.

Anita Perry encourages husband to run for president  —  AUSTIN, Texas — Gov. Rick Perry will need money, organization, staff and stamina if he runs for president.  —  But he appears to already have the support that's most important for the race — his wife's.

The Shuttle Ends Its Final Voyage and an Era in Space  —  The last space shuttle flight rolled to a stop at 5:58 a.m. on Thursday, closing an era of the nation's space program.  —  It was the 19th night landing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to end the 135th space shuttle mission.

Never Before Seen: The ‘Inside Scoop’ on Some 2012 Presidential Contenders  —  On this week's edition of The Brody File show, some never before seen footage from my interviews with Sarah Palin, Speaker John Boehner, Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann as we get the 'scoop" on some of their “personal preferences.

Franken Destoys Focus On The Family Witness, Exposes Misuse Of HHS Study  —  During this morning's Senate DOMA hearings, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) destroyed Focus on the Family's Tom Minnery's argument that children are better off with opposite-sex parents by demonstrating how Minnery misrepresented an HHS study.

Obama Maintains Sub-50% Job Approval in 10th Quarter  —  Too soon to say what 46.8% average approval portends for re-election  —  PRINCETON, NJ — President Barack Obama earned a 46.8% average approval rating in his 10th quarter in office ending July 19, essentially unchanged from the 9th quarter …

Larry Summers calls Winklevoss twins ‘A**holes’  —  NEW YORK (Fortune) — What did Larry Summers really think of the Winklevoss twins?  —  “Rarely, have I encountered such swagger, and I tried to respond in kind,” the former president of Harvard said in an interview at Fortune's Brainstorm Tech conference.

Las Vegas resort sues tea party group over hotel bill  —  Some Tennessee tea partiers are in hot water with a Las Vegas gambling resort that's accusing them of skipping out on a big hotel bill.  —  On Monday Venetian Casino Resort, LLC., filed suit against Tea Party Nation Corporation of Franklin …

Sarah Palin is going to be a grandmother again.  Eldest child Track Palin married high school sweetheart Britta Hanson two months ago, and now we hear that Britta is pregnant.  The picture above of “Britta Pie,” which was posted on a Wasilla friend's Facebook wall, confirms the news she's expecting.

My Country 'Tis Of Thee, Sweet Land of...Removing the Pledge of Allegiance?!  —  Hard to believe, right?  Well, it's true ... and it happened in Bowie County, Texas.  —  Just when I thought nothing could be as outrageous as my recent post “God Bless Our Military ... just not at the Houston National Cemetery …

About Jonathan Weil  —  Curse the Geniuses Who Gave Us Bank of America: Jonathan Weil  —  Ask anyone what the most immediate threats to the global financial system are, and the obvious answers would be the European sovereign-debt crisis and the off chance that the U.S. won't raise its debt ceiling in time to avoid a default.