NRA airs new TV ad criticizing Obama on eve of White House gun announcement  —  Washington (CNN) - The National Rifle Association released a new television commercial Tuesday night charging President Barack Obama of hypocrisy for being “skeptical” about placing armed guards at schools …

Another GOP Senator recognizes the inevitable  —  Reality seems to be enjoying a sudden burst of momentum this afternoon, as more Republicans and conservatives are coming out and acknowledging the debt ceiling will have to be raised.  The latest: GOP Senator Susan Collins.  —  Collins spokesman Kevin Kelley emails me:

This man helped save six children, is now getting harassed for it  —  Gene Rosen sheltered six kids during the Sandy Hook massacre.  Now he's become a target of conspiracy theorists  —  “I don't know what to do,” sighed Gene Rosen.  “I'm getting hang-up calls, I'm getting some calls …

Impeachmentum: Reagan AG Says Obama Can Be Impeached Over Guns  —  Former Reagan Attorney General Edwin Meese, now a prominent emeritus official at the Heritage Foundation, became the latest conservative to warn that President Obama could risk impeachment if he takes executive action …

Mark Sanford: I'm Running for Congress  —  A conversation with the former South Carolina governor  —  Mark Sanford, the three-term congressman and two-term South Carolina governor, is preparing his political comeback, running for the House in the district recently represented by Tim Scott.

New York Assembly Passes Gun Legislation  —  ALBANY — The State Assembly, which opened its legislative session this year with a moment of silence for the victims of the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., on Tuesday approved a package of gun measures that would significantly expand the state's ban on assault weapons.

House passes $50 billion-plus Sandy aid package  —  Washington (CNN) - Lawmakers in the House of Representatives approved measures Tuesday to send more than $50 billion in aid to the Northeastern states ravaged by Superstorm Sandy last fall, though some conservatives in the House were pushing …

House Republicans Can't Find Any Co-Sponsors For Their Latest Obamacare Repeal Bills  —  Earlier this month, Tea Party darling Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) admitted that his plan to introduce yet another Obamacare repeal bill would be unlikely to pass in the wake of President Obama's decisive re-election.

Former Aide: Michele Bachmann Had “Unnatural Relationship” With Debate Coach  —  Peter Waldron alleges “Rasputin-like” control over the candidate.  “The story is completely false,” says O'Donnell.  —  O'Donnell looking at Bachmann.  —  Image by AP / AP  —  Michele Bachmann's high-profile …

Louisiana Governor's New Plan Would Raise Taxes On Bottom 80 Percent Of Residents  —  Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal (R) recently rolled out a plan to replace his state's personal income and corporate taxes with an increased sales tax.  Such a move would shift taxes from the rich to the poor …

Politics as usual  —  Here is my nomination for the lowest moment of the “fiscal cliff” debate.  Right before Christmas, President Obama met with House Speaker John Boehner in the Oval Office.  “He told Mr. Boehner,” according to the Wall Street Journal, “that if the sides didn't reach agreement …

Planet Earth Abandons Death Star Project In Face Of Superior Galactic Imperial Power  —  IMPERIAL CENTER, CORUSCANT - The overwhelming military superiority of the Galactic Empire has been confirmed once again by the recent announcement by the President of the United States that his nation …

As inauguration approaches, Obama's most virulent foes want the celebration stopped  —  Eldon Bell, a retired Air Force officer and physician, is making no plans to see Barack Obama's second inauguration, in part because Bell considers the president arrogant and dishonest …

18 human heads found at O'Hare on last leg of final journey  —  The 18 human heads that arrived at O'Hare International Airport just before Christmas — and remained there until this week — now appear to be on the last leg of their final journey.  —  The medical specimens had been in limbo since …

Obama agrees to ‘taxation without representation’ plates on presidential limo  —  President Obama, after a push by the D.C. Council, has agreed to affix license plates to his limo with the phrase “taxation without representation.”  —  The new plates will be in place beginning this weekend …

First on CNN: Obama picks D.C. Episcopal priest to deliver inauguration benediction  —  Washington (CNN) - The president has picked a neighbor to deliver the closing prayer at the inauguration.  —  The Rev. Luis León told CNN on Tuesday the White House and the Presidential Inaugural Committee invited …

New Video Game Allows Players to Murder NRA President  —  A new online video game is taking political discourse to a whole new level.  We already reported the death threats being received by NRA executives and now, a video game which allows users to shoot NRA President David Keene in the head, has been released.

Exclusive: Secret State Department cable: Chemical weapons used in Syria  —  A secret State Department cable has concluded that the Syrian military likely used chemical weapons against its own people in a deadly attack last month, The Cable has learned.

United States Shouldn't Hand Over Battery Technology to China  —  The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States must review the acquisition of U.S. battery technology by China's Wanxiang Group  —  Ike Skelton was a Democratic member of Congress and chairman of the U.S. House Armed …

This Metamorphosis Will Require a Permit  —  Sandy wrecked our house, but bureaucrats are keeping it broken.  —  “What sort of people were these?  What were they talking about?  What office did they belong to?  K. was living in a free country, after all, everywhere was at peace …