Mitt Romney builds case for inevitability  —  HANOVER, N.H - Hours after Chris Christie signaled he believes Mitt Romney is the Republican party's inevitable nominee, Romney and the rest of the GOP field went about proving him right.  —  Romney again outclassed the opposition in Tuesday's Bloomberg/Washington Post debate.

Obama's jobs plan blocked in Senate  —  President Obama received a slap from members of his own party Tuesday as the Senate voted 50-49 to block his $447 billion jobs package.  —  The jobs plan, which the president has spent much of the last month touting on a cross-country tour, fell well short of the 60 votes it needed to proceed.

Plot to kill ambassador unraveled on SW border  —  The unraveling of an alleged plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States came from a surprising place — the front lines of the drug war along the Mexican border.  —  And like a Hollywood thriller, the murder-for-hire tale cuts …

Who is Rich Lowrie?  —  Herman Cain says his much-touted “9-9-9” plan is the product of extensive testing and thinking, but the only man he cited as involved with its research — Rich Lowrie, of Cleveland, Ohio — is not a trained economist.  —  Instead, Lowrie — who's the only economic adviser Cain …

Occupy L.A. Speaker: Violence will be Necessary to Achieve Our Goals  —  Citizen journalist Ringo captured this speaker at the Occupy Los Angeles camp a few days ago letting the cat out of the bag: After dismissing nonviolence as a dead end, he admits that for the Occupiers to achieve their goals …

Mayor Thomas Menino Responds To Occupy Boston Arrests  —  BOSTON — Mayor Thomas Menino is defending the decision to arrest about 100 protesters on the Rose Kennedy Greenway early Tuesday, saying “they were getting out of control.”  —  The arrests came after the demonstrators tried to expand …

Perry Botches U.S. Revolution Century  —  Texas Governor Rick Perry energetically bounded into the Beta Theta Pi fraternity on Dartmouth College's campus after Tuesday night's debate, but when he was asked a question about states' rights, he slipped up on the dates for when the American Revolution was fought.

Obama: 'I'm a fourth-quarter player'  —  (CNN) - President Barack Obama compared his re-election bid to a game of basketball, to make the point to Democratic supporters that he's a strong closer.  —  The president made his comments Tuesday night at the second of two campaign fundraisers in Florida.

Michelle Obama often unrecognized  —  Michelle Obama says when she takes a trip to Target or Petco, she is often surprised that people don't even recognize her.  —  “It's amazing how people don't recognize you,” the first lady said in an interview that aired on NBC Wednesday morning.

Heartbreak for Huma as new messages reveal how Anthony Weiner called her parents ‘backwards thinking’ and compared her to his ‘sextees’ in vulgar messages  — Accused his successor Bob Turner of being ‘just another rich businessman trying to buy himself an election’

Family of Al Qaeda's Samir Khan Gets ‘Condolence Call’ From U.S. State Department  —  The U.S. State Department made a phone call to the family of Al Qaeda propagandist Samir Khan to offer the government's condolences on his death during a U.S. drone strike in Yemen, a department spokesman confirms.

Wall Street's Gullible Occupiers  —  The protesters have been sold a bill of goods.  Reckless government policies, not private greed, brought about the housing bubble and resulting financial crisis.  —  There is no mystery where the Occupy Wall Street movement came from …

Clarence Thomas' Influence On The Supreme Court … Twenty years ago, Justice Clarence Thomas was confirmed to the Supreme Court by the narrowest margin in 100 years.  He's the most conservative justice since the 1930s, and, in his passion for his own version of “original intent,” …

Drunkblogging the GOP Presidential Debate  —  Did Romney close the deal?  Did Herman Cain break through?  Also see David Steinberg liveblogging at the Tatler, sans booze.  —  4:44PM Tonight, the talk is supposed to be all about the economy.  That's just fine, since the debate is being hosted …

TPM2012  —  Barney Frank Slams Newt Gingrich For Calling For His Imprisonment  —  Is it a violation of Congressional decorum to call for your former colleagues to be thrown in jail?  Newt Gingrich lobbed a bomb early in Tuesday's Bloomberg/Washington Post debate by telling the audience …

A conspiracy only Bachmann could create  —  As tempting as it is to simply ignore Michele Bachmann's nonsense, there was one gem from last night's debate that I really enjoyed. … What's amusing about this is how truly ridiculous Bachmann's silly conspiracy theory — and imaginary exchange with the president — really is.

Does Anyone Have a Grip on the G.O.P.?  —  It wasn't that long ago that Republican moneymen and operatives in Washington were moping around K Street like Eeyore in the Hundred Acre Wood, lamenting their party's extremist image and casting about for a candidate with a chance of beating Barack Obama in 2012.