Shootings way up in two weeks  —  Bullets are flying over Broadway — and everywhere else in the city.  —  The number of people shot surged 154 percent two weeks ago — to 56 from 22 over the same week last year — and spiked 28 percent in the last month.  —  Last week tallied another increase …

Medical help for illegal immigrants could haunt Mitt Romney  —  On the Republican campaign trail, he derides any such public aid.  But the healthcare law he signed as Massachusetts governor allows it.  —  Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney sharply criticizes public aid for illegal immigrants.

Santorum: Because Of Obama, We've ‘Lost The War In Iraq’  —  Last Friday, President Obama announced a total troop withdrawal from Iraq at the end of year to signify that “after nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over.”  Naturally, the 2012 GOP presidential field took this historic opportunity …

Jobs Plan Stalled, Obama to Try New Economic Drive  —  WASHINGTON — With his jobs plan stymied in Congress by Republican opposition, President Obama on Monday will begin a series of executive-branch actions to confront housing, education and other economic problems over the coming months …

Chemical bomb tossed into Occupy Maine encampment  —  PORTLAND — Portland police are looking for the person who threw a chemical bomb at the Occupy Maine encampment in Portland during the early morning hours today.  —  Sgt. Glen McGary said police responded around 4 a.m. today to an explosion …

Karl Rove sticks a fork in Herman Cain  —  The Republican super-strategist pulls out a whiteboard on Fox News to tick off Herman Cain's self-destructive mistakes, concluding: “I think it has created an image of him as not being up to this task.  That's really deadly.”  —  More on POLITICO

Rick Perry ads start Tuesday in Iowa  —  Television ads supporting Rick Perry's presidential campaign are scheduled to start running in Iowa on Tuesday, multiple sources familiar with the ad buy told POLITICO.  —  A source said time has been booked in the Cedar Rapids and Des Moines markets.

Libya's liberation: interim ruler unveils more radical than expected plans for Islamic law  —  Libya's interim leader outlined more radical plans to introduce Islamic law than expected as he declared the official liberation of the country.  —  Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, the chairman …

Lieberman Irks Democrats Before Race for His Senate Seat  —  WASHINGTON — A few months ago, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, an independent from Connecticut who is allied with the Democratic majority in the Senate, had a surprising guest at his office: Linda E. McMahon, the former wrestling mogul …

Yes, the GOP Just Might Nominate a Candidate Patently Unqualified to Be President  —  Herman Cain's recent stumbles over substantive issues have a way of making Rick Perry seem like the Stephen Hawking of politics.  In the midst of a softball CNN interview last week, he appeared to abandon his no-exceptions anti-abortion stance.

Democrats duck Obama  —  Despite President Barack Obama's sagging poll ratings, top Democratic leaders from around the country insist they'd love for him to visit.  From state party chairmen to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, the message remains remarkably consistent: No one views the president as a political liability.

Americans Would Swap Electoral College for Popular Vote  —  Majority of Republicans now agree with most Democrats that Constitution should be amended  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Nearly 11 years after the 2000 presidential election brought the idiosyncrasies of the United States' Electoral College into full view …

The Hill Poll: Voters say US is in decline  —  More than two-thirds of voters say the United States is declining, and a clear majority think the next generation will be worse off than this one, according to the results of a new poll commissioned by The Hill.

Michele Bachmann, Husband Marcus Defend Characterizing Being Gay As ‘Personal Enslavement’ … 2012 Elections , Michele Bachmann , Republican Candidates , Elections 2012 , Gay Marriage , Gay Rights , Michele Bachmann 2012 , Republican Primary , Same-Sex Marriage , Video , Bachmann …

The Romney Economy  —  At Bain Capital, Romney remade one American business after another, overhauling management and directing vast sums of money to the top of the labor pyramid.  The results made him a fortune.  They also changed the world we live in.  —  One day early this August …

Vatican calls for global authority on economy, raps “idolatry of the market”  —  The Vatican called on Monday for the establishment of a “global public authority” and a “central world bank” to rule over financial institutions that have become outdated and often ineffective in dealing fairly with crises.

Where Spots Are Hot … The South Norwalk Metro-North station.  Some Connecticut commuters face long waiting lists for parking permits.  —  FAIRFIELD, Conn.—In the Metro-North parking lots along Connecticut's Gold Coast, the haves and the have-nots aren't defined by their clothes, car or even their net worth.

Flag Creates a Flap for Texas License-Plate Plan  —  The Sons of Confederate Veterans says it will sue if Texas rejects this specialty license plate.  It has won such suits elsewhere.  —  From sports fans to pet owners, many groups in Texas, as in other states, want a specialty license plate that reflects their passions.

Rhode Island: Athens of America?  —  Rhode Island is looking more and more like Greece, and not in a good way.  That is one message of this important piece by Mary Williams Walsh in the New York Times.  Years of blue social policy have wrecked local and state government finance …

The Hole in Europe's Bucket  —  If it weren't so tragic, the current European crisis would be funny, in a gallows-humor sort of way.  For as one rescue plan after another falls flat, Europe's Very Serious People — who are, if such a thing is possible, even more pompous and self-regarding …