Family Research Council shooting leaves security guard wounded  —  A security guard at a conservative Christian lobbying group housed in a busy downtown Washington office building was shot and injured late Wednesday morning, police say.  —  The shooting took place either near or at the offices …

Boehner holds call to calm House GOP  —  Jolted by concerns over the wave of Medicare-themed Democratic attacks sparked by Paul Ryan's vice presidential nomination, House Speaker John Boehner held a Tuesday evening conference call aimed at soothing jittery Republican members, POLITICO has learned.

Biden: 'Folks, Where's it Written We Cannot Lead the World in the 20th Century in Making Automobiles?'  —  In a speech today in Virginia, Vice President Joe Biden seemed to forget we're in the 21st century:  —  'Folks, where's it written we cannot lead the world in the 20th century in making automobiles?," said Biden.

A Romney first: over 40% of youth vote back him … More Photos  —  Popular in Politics  —  For the first time since he began running for president, Republican Mitt Romney has the support of over 40 percent of America's youth vote, a troubling sign for President Obama who built his 2008 victory …

Judge won't halt Pa. voter identification law  —  HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania judge on Wednesday refused to stop a tough new voter identification law from going into effect, which Democrats say will suppress votes among President Barack Obama's supporters.

Special ops group attacks Obama over bin Laden bragging, leaks  —  (Reuters) - A group of former U.S. intelligence and Special Forces operatives is set to launch a media campaign, including TV ads, that scolds President Barack Obama for taking credit for the killing of Osama bin Laden and argues …

Ann Romney talks family, finances in exclusive interview: 'There's nothing we're hiding'  —  LLANGYNWD, Wales - About two hundred miles away from the Greenwich, England, arena where her purebred horse Rafalca competed in the London Olympics, Ann Romney stroked the nose of Magic, a Welsh pony.

I wish my mother had aborted me |  Lynn Beisner  —  This is no 'I wish I'd never been born' howl of angst.  I love my mother, and having an abortion would have given her a better life  —  If there is one thing that anti-choice activists do that makes me see red, it is when they parade …

Fiery protester outside General Mills dies days later on family errand  —  A Twin Cities man who staged a fiery protest outside General Mills headquarters in Golden Valley last week died several days later while running an errand, his family's minister said Wednesday.

When Cruelty Is Cute  —  I'd been wondering how long it would take Republicans to realize that Paul Ryan is their guy.  —  He's the cutest package that cruelty ever came in.  He has a winning air of sad cheerfulness.  He's affable, clean-cut and really cut, with the Irish altar-boy widow's peak …

Unlikely/Unregistered Voter Poll with USA TODAY  —  Political opinion polls usually confine themselves to seeking out registered, likely voters.  But what about the millions of adult U.S. citizens who are eligible to vote and choose not to?  —  The Suffolk University Political Research Center …

In Harvard essay, young Michelle Obama argued for race-based faculty hiring  —  During her third and final year at Harvard Law School, first lady Michelle Obama — then named Michelle Robinson — penned an article for the newsletter of Harvard's Black Law Students Association (BLSA) …