Obama Rejects Obamaism  —  I'm a sap, a specific kind of sap.  I'm an Obama Sap.  —  When the president said the unemployed couldn't wait 14 more months for help and we had to do something right away, I believed him.  When administration officials called around saying that the possibility …

Perry Looks Better Against Romney Than Against Obama  —  Leads Romney by 10 points in “narrow down” but trails Obama  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Rick Perry leads Mitt Romney by 31% to 24% in a new USA Today/Gallup poll of Republican presidential nomination preferences.

Obama makes play to base with tax plan  —  President Obama made a direct appeal to his often-disgruntled base on Monday, proposing steep tax hikes on the wealthy as part of a $3 trillion deficit-reduction package.  —  By calling for $1.5 trillion in higher taxes for the rich and promising to institute the …

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.

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.

House Dems outraise Republicans for Aug.  —  The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) outraised the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) in August and narrowly leads it in overall fundraising for the year to date.  —  The DCCC raised $3.6 million last month to the NRCC's $3 million.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio Assigns ‘Cold Case Posse’ To Investigate Obama's Birth Certificate  —  Hey, remember the birthers?  —  Infamous Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio does — which is why he announced a five-person “Cold Case Posse” that will delve into the issue of President Obama's birth certificate.

Apology Adds An Epilogue To Kelo Case  —  Supreme Court Justice's Startling Apology Adds Human Context To Tough Ruling  —  Though she lost the eminent domain case against New London and her home, Susette Kelo, seen at an eminent domain protest at the Capitol in 2006, became a compelling figure in the property rights movement.

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 …

Man announces intent to run against Boehner  —  WEST CHESTER TWP.  — A Batavia resident announced Monday his intent to run against U.S. House Speaker John Boehner in the primary election for 8th Congressional District.  —  Lewis said if he wins the primary against Boehner, R-West Chester Twp. …

Get the Energy Sector off the Dole  —  Why ending all government subsidies for  —  fuel production will lead to a cleaner energy future—and why Obama has a rare chance  —  to make it happen.  —  ast September, President Obama promised that the cornerstone of his legislative program …

Just how important is Ohio in 2012?  Very!  —  (CNN) - How important is Ohio to the Obama White House?  Vice President Joe Biden heads there Tuesday, the fourth visit to the crucial battleground state by President Barack Obama or Biden since Labor Day.  And Obama will be there again on Thursday to lobby for his jobs package.

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.

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.

Greek Crisis Exacts the Cruelest Toll  —  HERAKLION, Greece—The first time he despaired of his debts, Vaggelis Petrakis drank a poisonous brew of beer and gasoline.  —  A note he left didn't mention the financial woes of his fruit and vegetable business, of which his family was well aware.

No Extra Credit  —  What if everything that is happening in Washington right now is just meaningless noise?  —  What if the Obama jobs plan, the coming deliberations of the supercommittee, the debate over taxing millionaires — what if none of it is likely to make a whit of positive difference for the economy?

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.

Italy's sovereign debt rating cut by S&P on growth fear  —  The timing of this ratings cut could not be worse for the eurozone  —  Italy has had the rating of its creditworthiness cut, the latest move in the European debt crisis.  —  Standard and Poor's cut its rating by one level to A from A+.

U.S. Probes Rating-Cut Trades  —  Regulators Subpoena Hedge Funds, Others Over Actions Ahead of S&P Downgrade  —  Securities regulators have sent subpoenas to hedge funds, specialized trading shops and other firms as they probe possible insider trading before the U.S. government's long-term credit rating …

A future for drones: Automated killing  —  One afternoon last fall at Fort Benning, Ga., two model-size planes took off, climbed to 800 and 1,000 feet, and began criss-crossing the military base in search of an orange, green and blue tarp.  —  The automated, unpiloted planes worked on their own …