Frail Pope Breaks Tradition and Resigns  —  VATICAN CITY — Citing advanced years and infirmity, but showing characteristic tough-mindedness and unpredictability, Pope Benedict XVI shocked Roman Catholics on Monday by saying that he would resign on Feb. 28, becoming the first pope to do so in six centuries.

The Man Who Killed Osama bin Laden... Is Screwed  —  For the first time, the Navy SEAL who killed Osama bin Laden tells his story — speaking not just about the raid and the three shots that changed history, but about the personal aftermath for himself and his family.

Obama's State of the Union: Aggressive  —  President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech will be less a presidential olive branch than a congressional cattle prod.  —  Emboldened by electoral victory and convinced the GOP is unwilling to cut deals, Obama plans to use his big prime …

Ted Nugent to be guest at State of the Union  —  While other members of Congress are hosting gun-control advocates for Tuesday's State of the Union address, Rep. Steve Stockman has given one of his visitor's gallery tickets to Ted Nugent, the conservative gun-rights supporter.

Don't Believe the Hype  —  Let's just say it: Marco Rubio is the Wes Clark of 2013.  Only with many fewer accomplishments.  —  It pains me to say this because I'm an admirer of Gen. Wesley Clark.  I think he would have made a good president.  He was an extremely accomplished career military officer.

Study Confirms Tea Party Was Created by Big Tobacco and Billionaires  —  A new academic study confirms that front groups with longstanding ties to the tobacco industry and the billionaire Koch brothers planned the formation of the Tea Party movement more than a decade before it exploded onto the U.S. political scene.

Justice Ginsburg: The Senate Is ‘Destroying The United States’ Reputation... As A Beacon of Democracy'  —  Two years ago, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg lamented that if she were nominated today to her current job on the Supreme Court, her “ACLU connection would probably disqualify” her from being confirmed.

New Winger Conspiracy Theory Takes Flight  —  In the wake of news that Sen. Lindsey Graham is threatening to block the nominations of Hagel and Brennan, there's a whole new conspiracy theory bubbling up on the right.  From ground zero of Obama era conspiracy theories comes the conspiracy theory …

Quietly Killing a Consumer Watchdog  —  If you'd like to know why Republicans are trying to shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, take a look at three things the agency has already accomplished in its first 18 months:  —  ¶  It called a halt to predatory practices by mortgage lenders …

Sen. Inhofe threatens filibuster to block Hagel  —  Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) on Sunday threatened to filibuster former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.)'s nomination for Defense secretary, if necessary to prevent his confirmation.  —  “I want a 60-vote margin and you don't have to filibuster to get that …

New Rove Group Could Backfire on G.O.P.  —  The strategist Karl Rove and his allies last week announced the formation of Conservative Victory Project, a new “super PAC” designed to lend support to what they see as more electable candidates in Republican Senate primaries.

Is Congress really going to miss its free lunch on infrastructure?  —  Since the election, there have been hints that we could be entering a period with some actual productive, bipartisan dealmaking, most explicitly on immigration reform.  But the Republican reaction to Obama's expected proposals …

The Curse of the State of the Union Aisle Seat  —  Lawmakers wait for hours to get one of these coveted seats, but at what cost?  —  Some members wait for hours just for a chance to be in this picture.  (Richard A. Bloom/Photo illustration)  —  It was supposed to be one of the best seats in the House.

Biden: We're counting on ‘legitimate media’ for successful gun control effort … During a press conference on gun safety in Philadelphia, Vice President Joe Biden said that any reports that suggest that he was trying to take weapons away from gun owners was a “bunch of malarkey.”

Virginia Cuts State Employees' Hours To Avoid Providing Obamacare Coverage  —  As part of his state's new budget, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) and his administration are trying to force potentially tens of thousands of public sector employees in the state to work fewer hours so that the government …

“We're Not Going to Be Pushed Around by the Antis”  —  Julie Burkhart is working to bring abortion care back to Wichita.  —  Wichita, Kansas, has been without a local abortion provider since an anti-abortion extremist murdered Dr. George Tiller in his church in May 2009.

The Absentee Commander in Chief  —  The Defense secretary told the president that Americans in Benghazi were under attack.  Then: nothing.  —  We've both had the honor to work in the White House.  We've seen presidents, vice presidents, chiefs of staff and national security advisers during moments of international crisis.

A Call for Drastic Changes in Educating New Lawyers  —  DALLAS — Faced with profound and seemingly irreversible shifts, the legal profession is contemplating radical changes to its educational system, including cutting the curriculum, requiring far more on-the-ground training and licensing technicians who are not full lawyers.

W.H.: We have a spending problem  —  White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday that Washington does have a spending problem and the main driver of that problem is health-care costs.  —  The remarks followed a statement by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi on Sunday that …