Why the White House changed course  —  President Obama's deficit-reduction plan (pdf) is most interesting for what's not in it.  It does not cut Social Security by “chaining” the program's cost-of-living increases.  It does not raise the eligibility age for Medicare from 65 to 67.

Multi-Millionaire Rep. Says He Can't Afford A Tax Hike Because He Only Has $400K A Year After Feeding Family  —  Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) appeared on MSNBC with Chris Jansing this morning to attack President Obama's new deficit reduction plan, which includes some tax increases on the wealthy.

The Qwikster and the Dead  —  This morning I found an apology-laden missive in my inbox from Reed Hastings of Netflix, explaining that they'd really messed up the transition when they announced the end of free streaming, and that in order to fix it, they had . . . decided to more decisively split their DVD and streaming services.

Justice Department opposes Texas Congressional map  —  The Department of Justice on Monday expressed its opposition to the congressional map devised by Texas Republicans, claiming it does not meet the requirements of the Voting Rights Act and needs to be redrawn.

Bill O'Reilly's Civil War  —  The Fox News host thinks America is in dire straits—and what it needs is a history lesson.  In this week's Newsweek, he tells Peter J. Boyer about his new book and why he likes Obama.

Poll: Perry, Romney draw support from distinct groups  —  WASHINGTON - Texas Gov. Rick Perry leads former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds, in what is becoming a battle between the candidate who excites more Republicans …

Secret recordings raise new questions in ATF ‘Gunwalker’ operation  —  Updated 5:09 pm, Sept. 19, 2011 with comment from the Office of the Inspector General  —  WASHINGTON - CBS News has obtained secretly recorded conversations that raise questions as to whether some evidence is being withheld in the murder of a Border Patrol agent.

Rangel makes surprise appearance at Perry's N.Y. event  —  Washington (CNN) - Gov. Rick Perry's meeting Monday in New York with Hispanic business leaders had an unexpected guest in attendance: Democratic Rep. Charles Rangel, who represents the district where the meeting took place.

ONE DRUG ARREST EVERY 19 SECONDS IN THE U.S.  —  New FBI Numbers Reveal Failure of “War on Drugs”  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — A new FBI report released today shows that there is a drug arrest every 19 seconds in the U.S. A group of police and judges who have been campaigning to legalize …

Fill In the Blanks  —  Just a few winters ago my wife and I took our daughters to witness the inauguration of a man who had campaigned on hope and embodied possibility.  We are pretty immune to political euphoria, but, circulating among the footsore pilgrims, we could imagine our country …

The Socio-Economic Causes of Obesity  —  Charles L. Baum, Shin-Yi Chou  —  NBER Working Paper No. 17423  —  The NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health provides summaries of publications like this.  You can sign up to receive the NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health by email.

Elite team of 5 assigned to seek truth on Obama  —  Sheriff Joe picks ‘Cold Case Posse’ to investigate president's eligibility  —  Arizona's Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio told WND he has assigned a five-member “Cold Case Posse” to investigate the authenticity of Barack Obama's birth certificate.

Liberals vow to challenge Obama in Democratic primaries  —  President Obama's smooth path to the Democratic nomination may have gotten rockier Monday, after a group of liberal leaders, including former presidential candidate Ralph Nader, announced plans to challenge the incumbent in primaries next year.

Susan Rice: Palestinians Are Delaying Creation of Their State  —  The anti-Israel Barack Obama, who has strengthened America's defense and intelligence ties with Israel (despite secretly hating it, as many Republican will tell you), also appointed the secretly Israel-hating Susan Rice …

California Christian Coalition Explains Repeal Effort Against Gay Education Law: Bullying Is Normal  —  ThinkProgress filed this report from Los Angeles, California.  —  California Christian Coalition head Robert Newman chats with Orly Taitz at the California GOP convention

Thompson files fundraising papers for Senate run  —  MADISON - Former Governor Tommy Thompson has said that his long consideration of a run for U.S. Senate is over, and the process to run for the Senate has begun.  —  “I've filed my corporation documents today, which allows me now to build my organization …

When Ronald Reagan Was President, There Was A Soviet Union And A Cold War  —  Via Spencer Ackerman, Eli Lake reports on Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-SC) acting like a complete fool who thinks the GOP congressional staffers are tiny children: … There's not much to engage with in this argument except …

A Blockbuster Case Yields an Unexpected Result  —  WASHINGTON — People who hate Citizens United, last year's blockbuster campaign finance decision by the Supreme Court, tend to blame it for allowing secret money from corporations and unions to flood the political landscape.

Great Stagnation...or Great Relocation?  —  “I was on top of the Westin Hotel being shown the sights of [Shanghai], and I had a sudden crisis as I looked out at the extraordinary skyscrapers the architecture and the art deco.  I thought to myself, well, the mandate of heaven has passed from us and come home.”