Romney doesn't back away from ‘birther’ Trump  —  (CNN) - Mitt Romney said Monday he wasn't concerned about Donald Trump's commitment to the “birther” conspiracy, one day before the GOP presidential candidate hosts a fund-raiser alongside the celebrity business magnate.

Romney's pants on fire  —  There are those who tell the truth.  There are those who distort the truth.  And then there's Mitt Romney.  —  Every political campaign exaggerates and dissembles.  This practice may not be admirable — it's surely one reason so many Americans are disenchanted with politics …

Chris Hayes Apologizes For Saying He Feels ‘Uncomfortable’ Calling Killed Soldiers ‘Heroes’ (VIDEO)  —  Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy … FOLLOW:  —  MSNBC, Video, Chris Hayes, Memorial Day, Chris Hayes Heroes, Chris Hayes Soldiers, Chris Hayes Uncomfortable, Media News

A Measure of Change: Obama's Leadership in War on Al Qaeda  —  WASHINGTON — This was the enemy, served up in the latest chart from the intelligence agencies: 15 Qaeda suspects in Yemen with Western ties.  The mug shots and brief biographies resembled a high school yearbook layout.  Several were Americans.

Meet ‘Flame’, The Massive Spy Malware Infiltrating Iranian Computers  —  Map showing the number and geographical location of Flame infections detected by Kaspersky Lab on customer machines.  Courtesy of Kaspersky  —  A massive, highly sophisticated piece of malware has been newly found infecting systems …

Somebody Tell Nina Totenberg Her Buddy Brett Kimberlin Is Making News Again … FROM AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION  —  In the fall of 1988, when convicted terrorist Brett Kimberlin was still locked up in federal prison and claiming to have sold dope to GOP vice presidential candidate Dan Quayle …

Michelle Obama Writes ‘American Grown’  —  Every so often, a flash of Michelle Obama's humor comes through in her otherwise serious book about the White House garden and her campaign against childhood obesity, “American Grown: The Story of the White House Kitchen Garden and Gardens Across America,” which goes on sale Tuesday.

Extended Federal Unemployment Benefits Begin to Wind Down  —  Hundreds of thousands of out-of-work Americans are receiving their final unemployment checks sooner than they expected, even though Congress renewed extended benefits until the end of the year.  —  The checks are stopping …

Saudis Demand Punishment for McDonald's Toy They Say “Insults Muhammed” … Saudi Arabians are angry at a McDonald's toy which they say mocks their prophet Muhammad.  According to a report appearing today (5/27/12) on the Arabic news website, Kermalkom.com, the McDonald's fast food restaurant …

Texas Primary: What to Watch  —  Everything's bigger in Texas, and today's state and presidential primary is no exception.  —  Mitt Romney is expected to reach (and surpass) 1,144 delegates tonight-the magic delegate number needed to officially win the GOP nomination.

US special forces ‘parachuted into North Korea’  —  US and South Korean special forces have been parachuting into North Korea to gather intelligence about underground military installations, according to a senior US officer.  —  US and South Korean forces work closely together

Debt-Ceiling Deja Vu Could Sink Economy  —  Europe is crumbling.  China is slowing.  The Federal Reserve is dithering.  Yet the biggest threat to the emerging U.S. economic recovery may be Congress.  —  John Boehner, the leader of the House Republicans, has promised yet another fight …

Not worth the debt  —  I've been writing for years about a bubble in higher education: too much demand, causing sky-high prices — all because of cheap government money, much like the housing bubble.  Now those warnings have become conventional wisdom — so conventional that they've reached The New York Times and even 60 Minutes.

Mitt Romney to officially clinch Republican nomination Tuesday  —  For so long, he was the putative front-runner, the nominal front-runner, the weak front-runner.  Then he became the all-but-certain nominee.  And by Tuesday night, he'll be able to ditch those modifiers.