Escort says Menendez prostitution claims were made up  —  View Photo Gallery — Sen. Robert Menendez: Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) has been embroiled in a controversy involving his relations with a Miami campaign contributor and the awarding of a security contract at a port in the Dominican Republic.

Theatrical Slut Shaming: Daily Caller Attacks Ashley Judd For Nude Scenes  —  It's a sign of how anxious the right wing is about the possibility that Ashley Judd might run for Senate against Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that the attacks on her have geared up before she's even formally entered the race.

Jeb Bush's Immigration Flip Flop Stuns Reformers  —  After years of building a reputation as the “good” Republican on immigration, Jeb Bush shocked the reform community on Monday by ruling out a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, a position solidly to the right of prominent GOPers like Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL).

Chairman Rogers Introduces Continuing Resolution to Prevent Government Shutdown, Protect National Defense and Veterans  —  House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers today introduced a Continuing Resolution (CR) to prevent a government shutdown and continue government operations until the end …

Obama job approval tumbles  —  President Obama's job approval rating took a hit over the weekend, falling to its lowest level in the Gallup three-day average since his reelection.  —  His approval rating was 46 percent between Feb 29 and March 2, down from 53 percent a week earlier.

Pundits blowing it on sequester debate  —  Republicans are waving around a column by the New York Times' Bill Keller that pins the blame for the sequester on the President.  The title is “Obama's fault,” and Keller's effort is reminiscent of plenty of other punditry we've seen that adopts …

“In the real world we were kidding ourselves”  —  Newt Gingrich talks to Salon about why he and his party were so wrong about the election and the future of the GOP  —  There was a popular theory for much of the 2012 Republican presidential campaign that Newt Gingrich wasn't actually running …

The Bi-Sexual T**d in the Gay Wedding Punchbowl  —  The next time you're at a “gay ' wedding with political, media or other important pro-gay-marriage celebrities, and one of them gets up with a glass of wedding punch to toast Partner A and Partner B for their courage to “be themselves,” …

Apple's Planned ‘IWatch’ Could Be More Profitable Than TV  —  While Tim Cook has dropped hints that Apple Inc. (AAPL) is hard at work on a television to drive the next era of growth, the company's wristwatch-style device, still in development, may prove more profitable.

Obama's Thirteen Words  —  Remember George W. Bush's famous “16 words”?  They came from Bush's 2003 State of the Union speech, where Bush said: “The British Government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.”

GOP Congresswoman: I Opposed Domestic Violence Bill Because It Protected Too Many Groups  —  Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on Monday openly admitted that she opposed the latest reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) because it included protections for LGBT, Native American, and undocumented victims of domestic violence.

Michelle Obama: American Dogs need balanced diets, exercise too … During her Google Hangout today, First Lady Michelle Obama reminded the audience that dogs need a proper diet and exercise, just like children do.  —  The First Lady admitted that President Obama liked to tease their own dog …

The White House Agrees: It's Time to Legalize Cell Phone Unlocking  —  Two weeks ago, a petition asking the White House to act on a recent Library of Congress decision that restricted consumer use of cell phones reached the required threshold for a response.

Bill Cosby Slams Republicans Who Sat Through SOTU: As Bad As Civil Rights-Era Segregationists  —  One of the key issues currently being decided by the Supreme Court is whether or not racism has ended sufficiently to gut the Voting Rights Act, or as conservative hero Justice Antonin Scalia calls it, “racial entitlement.”

One study explains why it's tough to pass liberal laws  —  Last year, a group of political scientists took a random sample of state legislators and asked them a slew of questions, most of which boiled down to: “What do your constituents think about policy?”  Do they support gay marriage?

Florida Medicaid expansion suffers legislative setback  —  (Reuters) - Florida Governor Rick Scott's plan to expand Medicaid coverage to cover about 1 million more poor people suffered a setback on Monday when the proposal failed to make it out of a key state legislative committee hearing.

The Reverse-Joads of California  —  Low- and middle-income residents are fleeing the state.  Sacramento's liberal policies may bear much of the blame.  —  During the Great Depression, some 1.3 million Americans—epitomized by the Joad family in John Steinbeck's “The Grapes of Wrath”—flocked to California from the heartland.

Gov. Chris Christie fumes over sequester  —  New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on Monday ripped Washington, D.C., for failing to get a deal to avert the sequester, charging “real leadership” was AWOL.  —  “I don't understand it, I don't understand why they haven't fixed it already.

Urk, Charlie Rose Edition  —  Well, we'll see how it comes out after editing, but I feel that I just had my Denver debate moment: I was tired, cranky, and unready for the blizzard of misleading factoids and diversionary stuff (In 1997 you said that the aging population was a big problem!

Olbermann Angling for Return to ESPN  —  Keith Olbermann was in Los Angeles on Friday being deposed for a reported $70 million lawsuit he filed against his most recent employer, Current TV, with the trial expected to begin in May.  Whether the court rules in favor of Olbermann or the network …

‘Batman’ brings in suspect to Bradford police  —  Police said the costumed man did not reveal his identity  —  A man dressed as the caped crusader Batman has handed over a wanted man at a Bradford police station before disappearing into the night.  —  Police said the costumed crime-fighter marched …

Napolitano promises to release more illegals  —  WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano promised to release more illegal immigrants into the United States, saying the budget sequester has left her no choice.  —  Several hundred detainees have already released because of the sequester, she insisted.

Florida Imam Convicted in Pakistani Taliban Case  —  MIAMI (AP) — An elderly Muslim cleric was convicted Monday of funneling thousands of dollars to support the Pakistani Taliban terror organization, which is blamed for suicide bombings and other attacks that have killed both Americans and Pakistanis.