Obama to Offer ‘Accomodation’ on Contraception Rule  —  With the White House under fire for its new rule requiring employers including religious organizations to offer health insurance that fully covers birth control coverage, ABC News has learned that later today the White House …

Low Turnout and the Big Tune-Out  —  Voters aren't bothering with the GOP, but Obama has lost their attention too.  —  The Romney campaign is better at dismantling than mantling.  They're better at taking opponents apart than building a compelling candidate of their own.

Is 2012 Slipping Away From the GOP?  —  For a long time, I was confident that Republican voters would oust Barack Obama in 2012, hold the House and, in all likelihood, take the Senate.  Obama is a weak incumbent, who has been chronically unpopular since early in his term.

Foreclosure Deal to Spur U.S. Home Seizures  —  The $25 billion settlement with banks over foreclosure abuses may result in a wave of home seizures, inflicting short-term pain on delinquent U.S. borrowers while making a long-term housing recovery more likely.

Rep. Spencer Bachus faces insider-trading investigation  —  The Office of Congressional Ethics is investigating the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee over possible violations of insider-trading laws, according to individuals familiar with the case.

Mitt Romney's Struggles Take Republican Angst To New Heights … Barack Obama , Mitt Romney , Republican Presidential Primary , Rick Santorum , Cpac , Elections 2012 , Newt Gingrich , Rick Perry , Video , Politics News  —  WASHINGTON — The angst within the Republican Party …

Fox Pundit Tells CPAC Crowd That Rachel Maddow Is ‘The Best Argument In Favor Of Her Parents Using Contraception’  —  In the “closed circuit world on the right,” MSNBC's Rachel Maddow is often the subject of ugly denigrations.  Whether it's being mocked for her sexual orientation, her name …

The Crowd Pleaser  —  At first glance, President Obama and Mitt Romney share some similar traits.  Both Harvard Law School grads are smart and analytical.  Both are emotionally reserved rather than touchy-feely.  Both are traditionalist in their family and personal lives.

UPDATED: Mississippi Rep. Wants ‘Gulf Of Mexico’ Changed To ‘Gulf Of America’  —  Mississippi State Rep. Steve Holland, a Democrat, introduced a bill in the state's lower chamber calling for the part of the Gulf of Mexico that borders his state to be renamed the “Gulf of America.”

Santorum: Combat concerns  —  Rick Santorum, in an interview with CNN's John King a bit ago, was asked whether he thinks it's a good idea or a bad idea for the Pentagon to relax some of the rules about women taking frontline roles in combat, “perhaps opening the door to a broader role for, ultimately, women in combat.”

Swinging job markets  —  EZRA KLEIN wrote yesterday that rougher-than-average economic conditions in swing states could create trouble for Barack Obama in November: … This gives me an opportunity to reproduce the chart in this post, from June, in which I showed that while the level …

Marine scout snipers used Nazi SS logo  —  Marine Corps scout snipers used the logo of the notorious Nazi SS organization while in Afghanistan in 2010, the service acknowledged Thursday.  —  The logo appeared on a flag in a photograph of the platoon taken in September 2010 in Sangin district …

Gay marriage bill introduced in Illinois House  —  SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — A year after gay couples gained the option of civil unions in Illinois, some lawmakers are beginning a push to authorize same-sex marriages.  —  Three legislators filed what they call the “Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act” on Wednesday.

TPM2012  —  CPAC Wants To Help You Get A Hot Conservative Date  —  “'I was thinking about how sexy it would be to kiss you,'” world renowned pickup artist Wayne Elise told a group of young Rick Santorum fans.  “You can say that [to a girl], it's cool.”  —  Elise, better known by his handle …

Money and Morals  —  Lately inequality has re-entered the national conversation.  Occupy Wall Street gave the issue visibility, while the Congressional Budget Office supplied hard data on the widening income gap.  And the myth of a classless society has been exposed: Among rich countries …