House Republicans Cheer Boehner's Refusal to Negotiate on Cuts  —  WASHINGTON — Speaker John A. Boehner, the man who spent significant portions of the last Congress shuttling to and from the White House for fiscal talks with President Obama that ultimately failed twice to produce a grand bargain …

Lawmaker Makes Lewd Remark to Teenage Girl  —  Connecticut state Rep. Ernest Hewett (D) made an inappropriate remark to a 17 year old girl testifying about a program that helped her overcome her shyness and get over her fear of snakes, the New London Day reports.

A Cheer or Two for Sequestration  —  From left, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, and House Speaker John Boehner speak at a news conference on Tuesday in Washington.  —  A lot of liberals I read are very hot to trot with the idea that Congress should just repeal sequestration tout court.

An Economic Tragedy That Everyone Saw Coming Is Now Unfolding In Europe...  The European economy has been a trainwreck for a long time, but there have been varying stages of it.  —  From 2007 through 2010 or so, the European economy basically went through the same trajectory as the US.

If you might want to insult Harvard down the line, go elsewhere  —  If you think Harvard is a revolutionary communist hotbed, don't apply.  If you think Harvard is full of “pinheaded” professors, don't enroll.  And if you think Harvard pollutes the minds of its students …

Massachusetts official challenges Chief Justice Roberts' claim about voting  —  Galvin rebukes nation's top judge  —  Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. certainly sounded authoritative when he made a striking, though unflattering, declaration about Massachusetts …

Covert Malaysian Campaign Touched A Wide Range Of American Media  —  Outlets from Huffington Post to National Review carried pieces financed by the Malaysian government.  An international campaign against Anwar Ibrahim.  —  Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak (R) talks …

Romney likens 2012 race to ‘roller coaster,’ in exclusive ‘Fox News Sunday’ interview  —  Mitt Romney, in an exclusive interview with “Fox News Sunday,” said the end of the 2012 presidential race was like getting off a roller coaster.  —  “We were on a roller coaster, exciting and thrilling, ups and downs.

Ben Bernanke, Hippie  —  We're just a few weeks away from a milestone I suspect most of Washington would like to forget: the start of the Iraq war.  What I remember from that time is the utter impenetrability of the elite prowar consensus.  If you tried to point out that the Bush administration …

Duke Energy won't be repaid $10 million from DNC  —  Duke Energy won't be repaid the $10 million line of credit it guaranteed for Charlotte to host last year's Democratic National Convention, the company confirmed Thursday.  —  As the credit line came due, Duke made official what it had signaled …

Obama: I Can't Use ‘Jedi Mindmeld’ On Congress To Fix Sequestration  —  Asked why he doesn't just sit down with congressional leaders until a sequestration deal is reached, President Obama said Friday that he can't lock lawmakers in a room.  —  “I am not a dictator, I'm the President,” Obama said.

212 Members Of Congress Ask Court To Strike Down DOMA  —  “DOMA imposes a sweeping and unjustifiable federal disability on married same-sex couples,” the Democratic members of Congress write.  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, left, and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

Man sucked into rubble as sinkhole opens under Seffner home  —  SEFFNER — Hopes for the rescue of a man sucked into a sinkhole were dimming Friday as authorities tried to determine whether the ground nearby was stable enough for a rescue operation.  —  In their efforts to determine the extent …

Harlem shake reaches new heights; FAA not amused  —  Washington (CNN) — It's the dance sensation that's sweeping above the nation — at 30,000 feet.  —  The Harlem shake has gone aloft, breaking out on commercial airline flights, and appearing in dozens of YouTube videos.

Horsemeat scandal: Four new products test positive  —  Nearly 2,000 tests for horsemeat have been carried out by British retailers  —  Four beef products sold by Bird's Eye, Taco Bell and catering supplier Brakes have been found to contain horse DNA, the Food Standards Agency says.

Finland: Parliamentary committee narrowly rejects equal marriage bill  —  The committee narrowly rejected the bill to make marriages gender-neutral  —  The Finnish parliament's Legal Affairs Committee on Wednesday voted narrowly to reject a bill to legalise equal marriage.

Hail Armageddon  —  “The worst-case scenario for us,” a leading anti-budget-cuts lobbyist told The Post, “is the sequester hits and nothing bad really happens.”  —  Think about that.  Worst case?  That a government drowning in debt should cut back by 2.2 percent — and the country survives.

Why Do These People Like Congress?  Somebody's Got to  —  WASHINGTON — On Friday, $85 billion in spending cuts intended to be so painful and stupid that they would never come into effect started to come into effect.  —  There is plenty of blame to go around, but the so-called sequestration looks set …

Chinese TV Special on Executions Stirs Debate  —  In a live television broadcast that was part morality play, part propaganda tour de force, the Chinese government on Friday displayed four foreign drug traffickers, convicted of murdering 13 Chinese sailors two years ago, being led to their executions.