“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.

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 …

No Letup in Syrian Crackdown on Protesters, Activists Say  —  BEIRUT, Lebanon — Syrian pro-democracy activists said Thursday that military operations against protesters seeking to oust President Bashar al-Assad had not stopped, a day after Mr. Assad told the U.N. secretary general that the crackdown had ended.

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 …

Bachmann: I'll bring back $2 gas  —  NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — President Michele Bachmann has a promise: $2 gas.  —  “Under President Bachmann you will see gasoline come down below $2 a gallon again,” Bachmann told a crowd Tuesday in South Carolina.  “That will happen.”

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 …

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) …

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 …

Chris muscles Mike on 9/11 invite for pol  —  Hot-headed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie yesterday threw his weight around to get his way for the upcoming 10th-anniver-  —  sary 9/11 ceremony after blasting Mayor Bloomberg for excluding ex-Jersey Gov. Donald DiFrancesco from the solemn event.

Phone hacking: News of the World Hollywood reporter is arrested  —  James Desborough is arrested by London police investigating UK hacking allegations  —  James Desborough, an award-winning reporter at the former News of the World newspaper, has been arrested by officers investigating the phone-hacking scandal.

Grim economic data send U.S. markets tumbling  —  Stocks plummeted Thursday morning, following on a big selloff in Europe and the release of a series of disappointing government reports that stirred anxiety about a gasping economy.  —  Two hours into the trading day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average spiraled …

Liveblog: Coordinated terror attacks near Egyptian border  —  This is a liveblog of the events currently going on near the Egyptian border in the area of Eilat.  There are three events.  —  1. ‘Palestinian’ terrorists shot at an Egged bus - number 392 - from Beer Sheva to Eilat.

Top 10 Least Wanted  —  “Oh, there's nothing halfway about the Iowa way to treat you,  —  When we treat you which we may not do at all.  —  There's an Iowa kind of special chip-on-the-shoulder attitude.  —  We've never been without that we recall.  -"Iowa Stubborn" from The Music Man

Wrong Answers in Britain  —  Nothing can justify or excuse the terrifying wave of violent lawlessness that swept through London and other British cities earlier this month.  Hardworking people in struggling neighborhoods were its principal victims.  Public support for racial and ethnic coexistence …

The Dirty Thirties  —  Larry J. Sabato, Director, U.Va. Center for Politics  —  President Obama has found himself in the cellar for the first time since taking office: He fell to 39% in Gallup Poll tracking over the past weekend.  Obama may or may not have a month or months when his average is below 40%.

Rain or shine, see the weather in Google Maps  —  Whether you're organizing a trip overseas or a picnic at a local park, knowing the weather forecast is a crucial part of the planning process.  Today, we're adding a weather layer on Google Maps that displays current temps and conditions around the globe …

O'Donnell walks out of CNN interview  —  (CNN) - Christine O'Donnell, the former Delaware GOP Senate candidate, walked off the set of CNN's “Piers Morgan Tonight” Wednesday when asked about her views on sexual abstinence and gay marriage.  —  “I'm not talking about policies.

Malcolm's moment  —  As I read Paul Rahe's recent Ricochet post “Rioting for fun and profit,” it occurred to me that events in England had made this Malcolm's moment — Malcolm as in Professor Joyce Lee Malcolm.  Professor Malcolm is a historian and constitutional scholar specializing …

The BBB recovery  —  An early morning helping of doom and gloom, courtesy of Morgan Stanley, which has cut its global growth forecast for 2011-12 by a full percentage point.  —  The bank - one of the more bearish houses on the Street - reckons the US and Europe are dangerously close …