Harry Reid: “I'm not personally, at this stage, ready to get rid of the 60-vote threshold”  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have come to a deal on filibuster reform.  The deal is this: The filibuster will not be reformed.

Statement by the President on the Opening of Combat Units to Women  —  Today, by moving to open more military positions—including ground combat units—to women, our armed forces have taken another historic step toward harnessing the talents and skills of all our citizens.

Tancredo vows to smoke pot, in promo for film about Colorado's successful legalization effort  —  FILE: Nov. 12, 2007: Former presidential candidate and Congressman Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., at a press conference at the Marriot Hotel in Des Moines, Iowa.REUTERS  —  Tokin' Tom Tancredo?  Not exactly.

New York Post Goes After Hillary Clinton With Blatantly Sexist Cover  —  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is taking flack from conservatives over her angry outburst during a Senate committee hearing on the Benghazi terror attacks.  When pressed by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) …

Republican Electoral College Plan Would Undermine Democracy  —  Republicans are struggling to right their ship after the defeat of 2012.  The unfavorable demographic trends for the GOP that we describe in our new book, Barack Obama and the New America, have sunk in, and the party knows it must do something.

New Mexico Bill Would Criminalize Abortions After Rape As ‘Tampering With Evidence’  —  FOLLOW:  —  Video, Abortion Tampering With Evidence, Cathrynn Brown Abortion Bill, New Mexico Abortion Bill, New Mexico Abortion Evidence, New Mexico Abortion Law, New Mexico Rape Abortion, Politics News

Feinstein calls for banning more than 150 types of firearms during dramatic press conference  —  WASHINGTON — California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein staged a dramatic press conference Thursday on Capitol Hill with 10 weapons at her side and unveiled legislation instituting a government ban …

UN opens probe into US armed drone strikes  —  The United Nations has begun an investigation into the use of armed aerial drone strikes by the United States and others to see if those attacks violate international human-rights laws.  —  The investigation will be led by Ben Emmerson …

J.J. Abrams Set to Direct Next ‘Star Wars’ Film (Exclusive)  —  J.J. Abrams will direct the next “Star Wars” film for Disney, taking stewardship of one of Hollywood's most iconic and lucrative film franchises, an individual with knowledge of the production told TheWrap.

Bobby Jindal: GOP a ‘populist party’  —  CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Watch out, Washington: Bobby Jindal called Thursday on Republicans to take an axe to the federal government.  —  The Louisiana governor suggested “re-thinking nearly every social program in Washington” in a speech to members of the Republican National Committee gathered here.

Release: Gross Domestic Product: Preliminary Estimate, Q4 2012  — GDP was estimated to have decreased by 0.3% in Q4 2012 compared with Q3 2012.  — Output of the production industries was estimated to have decreased by 1.8% in Q4 2012 compared with Q3 2012, following an increase of 0.7% between Q2 2012 and Q3 2012.

Real movement: Joe Manchin, NRA darling, comes out for universal background checks  —  I reported earlier today that Senator Joe Manchin's office won't say whether he is open to legislative action to achieve universal background checks.  Boy was I wrong.  It turns out that Manchin …

‘Rise of the Drones’ Is Mostly a PBS Infomercial for the Military Defense Industry  —  Screenshot from preview of Nova's “Rise of the Drones”  —  The widely-acclaimed PBS program, NOVA, premiered a documentary on unmanned aerial vehicles or drones.  The documentary, “Rise of the Drones,” …

Obama's Inaugural Address 'One Of The Hardest Speeches I've Written,' Jon Favreau Says  —  FOLLOW:  —  WASHINGTON — It is surprisingly difficult to write speeches for President Barack Obama, one of the most gifted orators in recent political history.  —  Yes, written words tend to sound better when he's reciting them.