Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe to retire in blow to GOP  —  Maine Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe will not seek reelection in 2012, she announced Tuesday.  —  Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) on Dec. 17, 2011, after leaving the floor of the Senate.  (J. Scott Applewhite - AP)

Santorum flips on Dems voting in GOP primaries  —  Washington (CNN) - As voters headed to the polls in Michigan on Tuesday, Rick Santorum defended a robo call his campaign used in the state urging Democrats to support its candidate as a vote against Mitt Romney.

Obama hits Romney with withering mockery as he makes case for reelection  —  In a speech to the United Auto Workers just now, Obama defended his decision to bail out the auto industry, lacing into Mitt Romney with withering derision.  But this speech was about more than the auto-bailout.

Sex-Crazed Co-Eds Going Broke Buying Birth Control, Student Tells Pelosi Hearing Touting Freebie Mandate  —  A Georgetown co-ed told Rep. Nancy Pelosi's hearing that the women in her law school program are having so much sex that they're going broke, so you and I should pay for their birth control.

Santorum regrets ‘throw up’ response to Kennedy speech  —  Rick Santorum regrets saying that he wanted to “throw up” in response to watching a video clip of President John F. Kennedy's 1960 speech about the separation of church and state.  —  “I wish I had that particular line back,” …

Sorry, The Restaurant Receipt Left By That Nasty, Rich Banker Is A Photoshop Hoax  —  The restaurant receipt that a California banker purportedly used to denigrate a waitress—while also leaving her a one percent tip—was wildly “altered and exaggerated,” according to a spokesperson …

Why I am so rude to Warmists  —  Sharing a car back from the BBC Big Question debate in Cardiff on Sunday I had a tremendous bust-up with one of my fellow panelists which I think many of you would have enjoyed hugely.  (Our driver could barely keep a straight face).

Gay Marine and boyfriend in homecoming kiss photo speak out  —  A Marines homecoming photo from a Hawaii base has gained worldwide attention — two men kissing, just months after “Don't Ask Don't Tell” was repealed.  —  The picture has gone viral from Kaneohe, home of Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

Will Mitt Go Quietly?  —  I've addressed this a few times.  But it's probably worth doing again.  —  This morning I got this email from TPM Reader SL ...  SL's question, I think, all but answers itself.  And this is basically why the whole White Knight fantasy is so preposterous.  Go quietly.

Another Death Row Debacle: The Case Against Thomas Arthur  —  In Alabama, a death row prisoner could be exonerated by a DNA test.  Why are the courts preventing this from happening — especially when another man has already confessed to the crime?  —  AP Images

Parents of teen accused of shootings faced charges  —  CHARDON, Ohio — It appears that T.J. Lane had violence in his life from the beginning.  —  Geauga County court records show the father of the teen who authorities say shot five students at Chardon High School on Monday had been arrested …

Wealthy More Likely to Lie, Cheat: Researchers  —  Are society's most noble actors found within society's nobility?  —  That question spurred Paul Piff, a Ph.D. candidate in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, to explore whether higher social class is linked to higher ideals, he said in a telephone interview.

For the Costliest Homes, Foreclosure Comes Slowly  —  Michael Underwood hasn't made a full mortgage payment on his four-bedroom house in San Francisco's East Bay area since early 2008.  But he has yet to be evicted from the home, which includes a lagoon-style pool carved into the property's natural sandstone.

Guantanamo detainees get new $750G soccer field  —  At a time of record deficits, a new soccer field for detainees at Camp 6 in Guantanamo Bay is just getting the finishing touches — at a cost of $750,000 to taxpayers.  —  The project was the highlight of a tour Tuesday of the detention camp …

Dow closes above 13,000  —  NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — U.S. stocks closed at multi-year highs, as investors weighed a small pullback in oil prices and improving consumer confidence against a worse-than-expected drop in durable goods orders.  —  The Dow Jones industrial average ( INDU) …

What Happens if Rick Santorum Wins Michigan?  —  That's the question I asked ABC News contributor Matt Dowd ahead of tonight's primary.  Mitt Romney has been bouncing up and down in the polls of his home state, and is now neck and neck with Rick Santorum.  —  “If Rick Santorum wins tonight it's …

What's the Matter With ‘Nebraska’?  —  A frivolous essay underscores the left's serious prejudices.  —  This column has recently become skeptical of the view—nearly universal on the liberal left but common as well among conservative elites—that Rick Santorum is “unelectable” …

New Hampshire May Revoke Its Gay Marriage Law  —  As same-sex marriage supporters celebrate victories in Washington and Maryland this month, they are keeping a wary eye on New Hampshire, where lawmakers may soon vote to repeal the state's two-year-old law allowing gay couples to wed.

Obama-Supporting Law Firm Advised on Failed Fisker Loan  —  An international law firm, which gave substantial political donations to President Obama and fellow Democrats over the last three campaign cycles, received its own significant stimulus award to advise on a controversial Department …

The Unbearable Gleickness of Being: An Omnibus Climate Update  —  The Gleickgate hits just keep coming.  (Or is it Fakegate, as Heartland is calling it, or Gleick-Out, as I've called it?  Doesn't matter.)  First, Gleick has taken a leave of absence from his post as president of the Pacific Institute …