“Have you ever had sex with Rick Perry?”  —  An Austin Ron Paul supporter has taken out a full-page ad in the local alt weekly newspaper seeking any “stripper ... escort ... or ‘young hottie’” who has slept with Rick Perry, part of his single-minded jihad against the presidential candidate.

When the United States says “jump,” Syria says....  So the big Middle East news this AM is that the Obama administration has explicitly called for Syrian leader Bashir Assad to leave power.  The White House blog has the full text of Obama's statement.  On Assad:

New DHS rules cancel deportations  —  The Homeland Security Department said Thursday it will halt deportation proceedings on a case-by-case basis against illegal immigrants who meet certain criteria such as attending school, having family in the military or are primarily responsible for other family members' care.

Christine O'Donnell Says CNN's Piers Morgan Would Not Stop Trying to Talk About Sex  —  WASHINGTON - In her first television appearance since walking out of an interview with Piers Morgan Wednesday, Christine O'Donnell told FOX 5 that the CNN host would not stop talking about sex!

Obama's unhelpful advice  —  Obama's advice to the farmer was simple: ‘Contact USDA.’  —  At Wednesday's town hall in Atkinson, Ill., a local farmer who said he grows corn and soybeans expressed his concerns to President Obama about “more rules and regulations” - including those concerning dust …

Fight ends Georgetown basketball exhibition in China  —  BEIJING — What began as a goodwill trip to China for the Georgetown men's basketball team turned violent Thursday night, when its exhibition game against the Bayi Rockets deteriorated into a melee during which players exchanged blows …

Jon Huntsman: The Outsider  —  Kate Moss:  —  Kiss Me, Kate  —  Photographed by Annie Leibovtiz  —  If you're looking for the most conservative region in America, upcountry South Carolina would be a strong contender.  Greenville, the area's biggest city, is home base to Senator Jim DeMint …

Inflation Expectations Falling, Will Narayana Kocherlakota Admit He Was Wrong?  —  When dissenting from the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee's modest gesture in the direction of monetary stimulus, Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota did the world the favor of offering …

HP to Spin Off PCs, Eyes Software Purchase  —  Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ), the world's largest computer maker, said it is in talks to buy Autonomy Corp. and is exploring strategic options for its personal- computer business.  —  Hewlett-Packard will discontinue its line of products running …

Michele Bachmann Is Not a Doctor  —  ...But she played one on TV.  The story behind the Minnesota congresswoman's bogus “Dr.” claim.  —  Post Comment  —  On the campaign trail in Iowa, Rep. Michele Bachmann's response to the argument that she lacks the experience to run for president has been to turn the argument on its head.

West: I'll lead you off ‘plantation’  —  Rep. Allen West says he is a “modern-day Harriet Tubman” who wants to lead black voters away from the “plantation” of the Democratic Party.  —  There is a “21st century plantation” of African-American voters unwaveringly supporting Democrats …

A ‘policy-induced slowdown’  —  The markets are tanking.  Again.  And it's in part because they expect us to screw up.  Again.  —  That, at least, is what JP Morgan is saying.  Part of what's driving the market down is that the company announced that it was cutting its global growth forecasts …

Coburn Suggests Taking Care of The ‘Frail Elderly’ Is Unconstitutional Because 'That's A Family Responsibility'  —  Sen. Coburn Suggests This Woman's Medicare Is Unconstitutional  —  Last week, ThinkProgress reported that Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) believes that Medicare and Social Security are unconstitutional.

Perry's Public Service  —  Behold, a hard-money Texas politician.  —  All the world's right-thinkers are denouncing Rick Perry for suggesting this week that Texans would get “pretty ugly” with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke if he guns the money supply any more between now and the 2012 election.

Coburn: Good thing I can't pack a gun  —  Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) ripped his colleagues during a tour of northeast Oklahoma, calling them “career elitists,” “cowards” and said, “It's just a good thing I can't pack a gun on the Senate floor.”  —  Coburn's gun-on-the- floor comment comes less …

Another Bachmann History Flub: The American People Are Worried About ‘The Rise Of The Soviet Union’  —  Of all the candidates vying for the GOP presidential nomination, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) perhaps has the most colorful record of flubbing historical facts.

Obama orders federal agencies to focus on diversity  —  President Obama issued an executive order Thursday intended to coordinate a “government-wide initiative to promote diversity and inclusion in the federal workforce.”  —  The order creates a council of deputy agency chiefs …

U.S. Inquiry Is Said to Focus on S.&P. Ratings  —  The Justice Department is investigating whether the nation's largest credit ratings agency, Standard & Poor's, improperly rated dozens of mortgage securities in the years leading up to the financial crisis, according to two people interviewed …

Exclusive: Goldman Sachs VP Changed His Name, Now Advances Goldman Lobbying Interests As Top Staffer To Darrell Issa  —  Peter Haller, also known as Peter Simonyi, a former Goldman Sachs VP now working for Chairman Issa to block regulations on Goldman Sachs  —  Has Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) …