Gas prices sink Obama's ratings on economy, bring parity to race for White House  —  Disapproval of President Obama's handling of the economy is heading higher — alongside gasoline prices — as a record number of Americans now give the president “strongly” negative reviews …

Romney to forgo Medicare  —  Jackson, Mississippi (CNN) - Mitt Romney is celebrating his 65th birthday.  But unlike many seniors who reach that age, the GOP presidential candidate will forgo the Medicare program, according to a source with the Romney campaign.

Justice Dept opposes Texas voter ID law  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department's civil rights division on Monday objected to a new photo ID requirement for voters in Texas because many Hispanic voters lack state-issued identification.  —  Texas follows South Carolina as the second state …

EXCLUSIVE: 141 Companies Drop Advertising From Rush Limbaugh  —  ThinkProgress has obtained an internal memo from Premiere Radio Networks listing 96 national companies that have “specifically asked” their advertisments not be played during the Rush Limbaugh Show.  Premiere is the distributor of Limbaugh's program.

Catholicism Is Not the Tea Party at Prayer  —  WASHINGTON — The nation's Roman Catholic bishops will make an important decision this week: Do they want to defend the church's legitimate interest in religious autonomy, or do they want to wage an election-year war against President Obama?

Nicky Larkin: Israel is a refuge, but a refuge under siege  —  Through making a film about the Israeli-Arab conflict, artist Nicky Larkin found his allegiances swaying  —  I used to hate Israel.  I used to think the Left was always right.  Not any more.  Now I loathe Palestinian terrorists.

Bill introduced to regulate men's reproductive health  —  Part of a trend, she likens the bill to men legislating 'a woman's womb.'  —  COLUMBUS - Before getting a prescription for Viagra or other erectile dysfunction drugs, men would have to see a sex therapist, receive a cardiac stress test …

Santorum Campaign Responds To Dutch Euthanasia Outrage  —  Rick Santorum has drawn fire for controversial statements about assisted suicide in the Netherlands.  In an impromptu interview with Dutch television station RTL4, Santorum press secretary Alice Stewart offered no explanation …

Barack Obama is Such a Traditional Jew Sometimes  —  Two weeks ago, after I finished interviewing President Obama on the subject of Iran and Israel, I handed him a copy of the New American Haggadah, the Passover user's guide edited by Jonathan Safran Foer, which includes commentary by Goldblog.

‘Doonesbury’ creator Garry Trudeau discusses divisive strips about abortion  —  Only once in the long history of “Doonesbury” has Garry Trudeau's syndicate ever intensely objected to one of his story arcs.  It was 1985, and the subject was abortion.  —  Starting Monday, amid heated debate …

Hoopster-in-Chief Obama Offers NCAA Bracket Challenge  —  “Think you got game?”  That's the question President Obama is posing to sports fans in a new, online interactive contest aimed at expanding his re-election campaign's contact list and collecting some grassroots cash.

Blagojevich will find life inside a jolt, ex-inmates say  —  This week, Rod Blagojevich becomes federal prisoner number 40892-424.  —  The former Illinois governor is expected on Thursday to arrive at Englewood, a low-security facility in Littleton, Colo., located 15 miles southwest of Denver …

Coffee Is an Essential Benefit Too  —  Here are some other health-care mandates that government should impose on employers.  —  Dear President Obama,  —  Can you believe the nerve of employers?  Many of them still seem to think that they should be allowed to determine the benefits they offer.