New polls confirm Obama's Democratic base crumbles  —  With all of the spotlights on the high-stakes debt maneuverings by President Obama and Speaker John Boehner the last few days, few people noticed what Vermont's Sen. Bernie Sanders said:  —  “I think it would be a good idea if President Obama faced some primary opposition.”

Krauthammer on Obama's Address: “I Thought I Was Cynical Until I Heard That Speech” (Video)  —  Charles Krauthammer unloaded on Obama tonight after his stale poll-driven speech to the nation.  Obama still has no plan.  —  “I thought I was cynical until I heard that speech.  It was purely partisan.

Congress In the Lead  —  Some of us like to think big.  We thought at the beginning of this debt crisis that it might be possible to reach a Grand Bargain.  This deal would make a serious dent in the country's awful debt problem.  It would begin to reform entitlements.

Bachmann walks away from WQAD  —  Davenport, Iowa— Michele Bachmann made a visit to the Quad Cities last night to speak with supporters and give interviews to the local television media, that is, with one exception.  Despite promises to WQAD for a one-on-one interview the Congresswoman's managers openly …

A Revenge Plot So Intricate, the Prosecutors Were Pawns  —  Soon after Seemona Sumasar started dating Jerry Ramrattan, she had an inkling that something might be wrong.  —  He said he was a police detective, but never seemed to go to work.  He seemed obsessed with “C.S.I.,” “Law & Order” and other television police dramas.

Jerry Brown nominates Goodwin Liu to California Supreme Court [Updated]  —  Gov. Jerry Brown nominated UC Berkeley law professor Goodwin Liu to the California Supreme Court Tuesday, giving the state high court a fourth Asian justice and a collegial liberal who is likely to be strongly supportive of civil rights.

Rep. David Wu announces he will resign after accusations of sexual misconduct  —  Washington — Rep. David Wu announced his resignation from Congress today, moments after U.S. senators Jeff Merkely and Ron Wyden called for his resignation.  —  The Democrat said in a statement …

The Help-Wanted Sign Comes With a Frustrating Asterisk  —  The unemployed need not apply.  —  That is the message being broadcast by many of the nation's employers, making it even more difficult for 14 million jobless Americans to get back to work.  —  A recent review of job vacancy postings …

O'Reilly Shreds Media for Calling Norway Terrorist ‘Christian’  —  BILL O'REILLY, FOX NEWS HOST: “Impact” segment tonight: mass murder in Norway.  A vicious killer, Anders Breivik, has murdered at least 76 people in the Scandinavian nation of Norway.  Breivik is a brutal fanatic …

‘Off the hook’: Calls Pour Into Capitol Hill  —  ABC News' Sunlen Miller (@sunlenmiller) reports:  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has received over 600 calls between 8-10 this morning.  His office has six people now working the phones, and they continue to be “inundated.”

Wealth Gaps Rise to Record Highs Between Whites, Blacks and Hispanics  —  Twenty-to-One  —  By Rakesh Kochhar, Richard Fry and Paul Taylor, Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends  —  The median wealth of white households is 20 times that of black households and 18 times …

Wisconsin weird: Cops probe balloon popping  —  As if Wisconsin's politics couldn't get any wackier - the popping of a protestor's balloon at the state Capitol has left a trail of blood and is now the subject of a criminal investigation.  —  The latest bizarre incident …

Soros to End Hedge-Fund Career, Return Money  —  George Soros, the billionaire best known for breaking the Bank of England, is returning money to outside investors in his $25.5 billion firm, ending a career as hedge-fund manager that spanned more than four decades.

‘Tell the police to hurry.  People are dying here!’  —  Julie Bremnes, 16, was one of the youths caught on Utoeya island during Anders Behring Breivik's killing spree on Friday.  —  She first called her mother, Marianne, at 1710 to tell her there was “a crazy man who is shooting here” on the island.