US Adds 120,000 Jobs; Unemployment Falls to 8.2%  —  U.S. payrolls rose far less than expected in March, keeping the door open for further monetary policy support from the Federal Reserve, even as the unemployment rate fell to a three-year low of 8.2 percent.

Republican Committee Makes Big Turnaround on Fund-Raising  —  Once teetering on the edge of bankruptcy and irrelevance, the Republican National Committee has raised more than $110 million over the past 15 months and retired more than half its debt, accumulating large cash reserves …

Is Obama ‘Dangerously Close To Totalitarianism’?  —  Power: Given the president's end-runs around Congress, his shredding of the Constitution and his assault on the authority of the courts, a second term free of electoral restraints may be a frightening prospect.

Romney using ethics exception to limit disclosure of Bain holdings  —  Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney, whose wealth has become a central issue in the 2012 campaign, has taken advantage of an obscure exception in federal ethics laws to avoid disclosing the nature and extent of his holdings.

Santorum's daughter, ‘Bella,’ hospitalized again  —  (CNN) - Rick Santorum's three-year-old daughter Isabella, who suffers from a chromosomal condition called Trisomy 18, is back in the hospital, his spokesman Hogan Gidley announced Friday.  —  “Rick and his wife Karen have taken …

Noonan: Oh, for Some Kennedyesque Grace  —  Obama makes his campaign strategy clear.  It's divide and conquer.  —  These are things we know after President Obama's speech Tuesday, in Washington, to a luncheon sponsored by the Associated Press:  —  The coming election fully occupies his mind.

David Brooks to the Rescue!  —  Last year, the New York Times' David Brooks was one of the pundits who declared Paul Ryan “brave” and “serious” for his proposal to pillage the social safety net and direct the spoils to rich people.  Since then—and in particular, the debt ceiling showdown …

Effort would change Texas primary to winner take all, benefit Santorum  —  Updated at 5:20 p.m. to include comments from the RNC throwing cold water on the winner-take-all effort:  —  A spokesman for the Republican National Committee said Texas would need — but not receive — a waiver from the national party to change its primary.

Rob Portman tops veepstakes  —  If he wins the GOP presidential nomination, Mitt Romney's vice presidential pick will ultimately come down to two basic choices: whether he wants a running mate who helps him govern or one who helps him politically.  —  Which imperative reigns won't be clear until …

Blacks, Nonblacks Hold Sharply Different Views of Martin Case  —  Blacks more likely to believe race is a major factor  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Black Americans' views differ dramatically from those of nonblacks regarding the circumstances involved in the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., on Feb. 26.

DWS?s ?  Jewbag? hire questioned  —  The staffer for DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz who posted the controversial ‘Jewbag’ photo on her Facebook page in 2006 is no anonymous aide — but the daughter of Mark and Nancy Gilbert, two major Florida donors who have raised more than $500,000 for the Obama campaign.

Schlafly says contraception issue contrived  —  Photo by Leroy Burnell/staffCitadel cadet Spencer Mellon (left) holds the door for Colleen Holmes, executive director the Eagle Forum (center), and Phyllis Schlafly.  The famous political activist delivered a lecture in a new course being offered …

Kraft abandons conservative group  —  Kraft Foods, Inc. has become the third corporate titan to abandon a conservative group that supports the type of “Stand Your Ground” gun law at the center of the Trayvon Martin controversy in Florida.  —  Kraft — one of many corporation members …

Not Enough Inflation  —  A few days ago, Alan Greenspan, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve, spoke out in defense of his successor.  Attacks on Ben Bernanke by Republicans, he told The Financial Times, are “wholly inappropriate and destructive.”  He's right about that …

The Strange (and Formerly Sexist) Economics of Engagement Rings  —  Diamonds are forever, but the meaning of the diamond engagement ring has changed dramatically in the last century.  Today's symbol of love was once something more like virginity insurance.  —  Norman Chan/Shutterstock

Hugo Chavez weeps and calls on God to spare his life  —  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez wept and asked God to spare his life during a pre-Easter Mass on Thursday after returning from his latest session of cancer treatment in Cuba.  —  Very little is known about the 57-year-old socialist …

Sparks fly over Israel during Connecticut Democrats' U.S. Senate debate  —  moleary@nhregister.com / Twitter: @nhrmoleary  —  WEST HARTFORD — It was a new tone and a new day in the race for the U.S. Senate race among Democrats, when Lee Whitnum called one of the contenders “a whore” in his support for Israel and another “ignorant.”