Mitt Romney Meets With Conservative Media Off The Record … REACT:  —  FOLLOW:  —  Elections 2012, Mitt Romney, Elections 2012, Video, Ann Romney, Daily Caller, National Review, Washington Examiner, Conservative Media, Media News, Mitt Romney 2012, Powerline, Reince Priebus, Right Wing News …

Activist Chen Guangcheng: Let Me Leave China on Hillary Clinton's Plane  —  In an exclusive interview with The Daily Beast's Melinda Liu, blind dissident Chen Guangcheng says he's been abandoned by American officials at a Chinese hospital and begs to leave the country on Hillary Clinton's plane.

Barry's Imaginary Girlfriend  —  There has been a lot of hilarity today over the revelation that the “New York girlfriend” who plays a significant role in Barack Obama's autobiography Dreams From My Father did not, strictly speaking, exist.  Rather, she was a composite or “compression” …

Video: The freaky quadruple deaky “tanning mom” clip  —  It's come to this.  —  Via Mediaite, I've been looking around all day for a palate cleanser.  And now, at last, I've found it.  Trust me: Whatever you have on your news palate right now, this'll clean it right out.  Doesn't matter how important it is.

Gilbert mass killing: Border militia leader identified as shooter  —  A border militia leader on Wednesday shot and killed four people at a Gilbert home, including a toddler, before committing suicide, sources said.  —  Sources identified the shooter as Jason “J.T.” Ready …

Behind Richard Grenell's Departure, a Right-Wing Storm  —  It was the biggest moment yet for Mitt Romney's foreign policy team: a conference call last Thursday, dialed into by dozens of news outlets from around the globe, to dissect and denounce President's Obama record on national security.

FRIENDLY FIRE: OCCUPIER HITS OCCUPIER WITH BRICK TO FACE  —  Yesterday afternoon, San Francisco protesters returned to 888 Turk Street, a vacant building they briefly occupied last month.  After re-occupying the vacant building Tuesday, some members of the group climbed onto the roof …

OWS bums are a big joke  —  MELEE: A cop, facing a threat from behind him, wields his club at OWS protesters in Greenwich Village yesterday amid rallies that were far from crippling.  —  Occupy Wall Street's call for May Day mayhem largely fizzled yesterday — but at least provided a good laugh …

Senators urge Village Voice to pull online sex ads  —  A group of senators has introduced a resolution urging Village Voice Media to take down the “adult entertainment” section of its classified-ads site, Backpage.com.  —  In a statement released Wednesday, Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) …

GOP seeks to portray President Obama as nation's divider-in-chief  —  Republicans are seeking to portray President Obama as the divider-in-chief, arguing the presidential candidate who trumpeted hope and change four years ago is now running an increasingly negative campaign.

Treasury: Tax receipts not changing deadline on $16.4T debt limit  —  Lawmakers will not have to re-fight their epic battle over raising the debt ceiling until after the November elections, according to the Treasury Department.  —  April tax receipts have not moved Treasury's debt-ceiling target date …

Spike that football, Dogeater-in-Chief.  Spike it as hard as you can.  —  Neil Munro reports: … Well, yeah, but other than that.  —  And why was Obama in Afghanistan?  To remind everybody that one year ago today, he climbed through Osama Bin Laden's window with a knife between his teeth and took the bastard out personally.

MAY DAY PROTESTORS CANNOT EXPLAIN THEIR SIGNS OR THEIR CAUSE  —  Yesterday at Chicago's Union Park for the May Day march, I found group of protesters from the Asociación de Vendedores Ambulantes (Street Vendors Association) holding signs from the Chicago Community and Workers' Rights.

RNC looks to bracket Obama re-election kickoff with ‘hype and blame’ messaging  —  After a week where the one-year anniversary of the killing of Osama bin Laden effectively dominated the political news arena, Republicans are looking to shift the message back to a critical examination of President Obama's economic record.

The state both parties want  —  The verdict is in: Barack Obama's 2008 victory in Virginia was not a fluke.  For the once reliably Republican state, competitive presidential elections are the new normal.  —  Just look at the candidates' schedules.  President Obama will make Richmond …

Newt Gingrich drops out: ‘Truly wild ride’ is over  —  ARLINGTON, Va. — Newt Gingrich finally called it quits.  —  For all intents and purposes, his campaign was over months ago.  —  In a crowded hotel ballroom steps from a Washington, D.C.-area subway stop Wednesday afternoon …