The Voting Rights Act, stuck in the past  —  Progressives are remarkably uninterested in progress.  Social Security is 78 years old, and myriad social improvements have added 17 years to life expectancy since 1935, yet progressives insist the program remain frozen, like a fly in amber.

California GOP leader steps into rape pregnancy controversy  —  Bay Area News Group  —  SACRAMENTO — A California Republican leader may have inadvertently revived the controversial subject of rape and pregnancy.  —  Before arriving at the state GOP's spring convention here …

Obama blames Republicans for failing to stop sequester  —  In his weekly address on Saturday, Obama said the $85 billion sequester went into effect late Friday because congressional Republicans refused to compromise.  —  “These cuts are not smart,” Obama said.  —  “They will hurt our economy and cost us jobs.

Why the ‘threat’ on Bob Woodward matters  —  To the world beyond the Beltway, it might not mean much that Bob Woodward of the famed Watergate duo went public with his recent White House run-in.  —  This would be an oversight.  —  It also may not mean much that the White House press corps got teed off …

Popular Standard Shotgun Could Be Banned Under Proposed Bill  —  DENVER (CBS4) - A popular hunting shotgun could be banned under one of the bills moving through the state Capitol.  —  A pump or semi-automatic shotgun is the gun most hunters in Colorado use.

Rachel Maddow Busted Using Multiple Fake Twitter Accounts To Boost Mentions Of Her Show  —  A poster on Twitter, upon seeing what he thought were very similar posts referencing MSNBC host Rachel Maddow's show, did some searching and found out that Maddow has been using phony twitter accounts to boost her …

U.S. Capitol official: Obama wrong on janitors' pay cut  —  During his news conference to announce that he and congressional leaders failed to avert the sequester cuts going into effect tonight, President Obama gave several examples of people who will be directly affected by the cuts.

Kansas Bill To Drug Test Welfare Recipients Passes Senate With Amendment To Test Lawmakers, Too  —  A Kansas bill to drug test recipients of welfare and unemployment benefits is advancing, but not without an attempt to equalize the burden the invasive tests impose.

Sources: NBC Discussing Jay Leno Exit Plan  —  With Jimmy Kimmel attracting younger viewers, Jimmy Fallon seems a logical choice to move into the coveted 11:35 time slot in 2014.  —  Is NBC preparing to announce Jay Leno's departure from The Tonight Show?  —  The network says categorically no …

Will Smith among new additions to Obama campaign bundlers  —  Several big-name fundraisers stepped forward late in President Obama's reelection campaign, new campaign records show.  —  The Obama-Biden campaign released an updated list of bundlers from the fourth quarter of the 2012 campaign on Saturday.

Iraqi forces attack FSA positions inside Syria  —  For the first time, Iraqi forces opened fire on Syria shelling the positions of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) days after Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki warned that a victory of the Syrian opposition would spread chaos in the region.

Mass illegal immigrant release could be headache for Obama, tricky for GOP  —  The release of hundreds of illegal immigrants into a federal monitoring system this week may be an ongoing headache for the Obama administration, as Republicans focus their scrutiny on uncovering potential missteps.

CPAC's Exclusion Of Conservative Gay Group Sparks A Schism On The Right  —  Conservative speakers and organizers will flock to Washington, DC next week for the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).  But GOProud, an extreme right-wing gay organization, won't be invited this year …

The Holocaust Just Got More Shocking  —  THIRTEEN years ago, researchers at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum began the grim task of documenting all the ghettos, slave labor sites, concentration camps and killing factories that the Nazis set up throughout Europe.

Al Qaeda issues English-language advice magazine for militants  —  (Reuters) - Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the Islamist movement's most active branch, has released an English-language magazine advising would-be militants on how to torch parked cars and cause traffic accidents.

Four Islamic terrorists planned attack on British soil with guns and home-made bombs  —  Four Islamic extremists admitted plotting a terrorist attack on British soil armed with guns and home-made bombs.  —  The men were caught after in a massive multi-million pound surveillance operation by police and the security services.