Rand Paul launches talking filibuster against CIA nominee  —  Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is staging a talking filibuster against the nomination of John Brennan to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).  —  “I'm here to filibuster John Brennan's nomination to be director of CIA,” Paul said on the Senate floor Wednesday.

‘A Big New Power’  —  Years from now, when the Supreme Court has come to its senses, justices then sitting will look back on the spring of 2013 in bewilderment.  On what basis, they will wonder, did five conservative justices, professed believers in judicial restraint, reach out to grab …

Cops: Perp Had Loaded Revolver In Her Vagina  —  Handgun was found inside Oklahoman during strip search  —  An Oklahoma woman arrested Monday on drug charges had a loaded handgun hidden in her vagina, according to police.  —  The weapon was discovered during a search of Christie Dawn Harris …

Boehner Wants Budget Deals ‘Out in the Open’  —  Supervising Producer for “The Kudlow Report”  —  House Speaker John Boehner told CNBC's Larry Kudlow on Wednesday that a long-term deal on entitlements is possible, and there's no good reason for the Obama team to have shut down the White House tour.

Chief White House Calligrapher Gets Paid $96,725 Per Year  —  With the White House closing its doors to public tour groups in order to save money for the sequester, it's worth remembering some of the other costs the White House incurs annually.  —  Like the “Chief Calligrapher,” …

Republicans emerge from dinner optimistic about deficit deal  —  Senate Republicans are more optimistic about the prospect of a grand bargain on the deficit after an intimate dinner with President Obama Wednesday evening in downtown Washington.  —  Obama and a dozen Republicans discussed …

Alvin Lee Is Going Home: ‘Ten Years After’ Guitarist Dies … Guitarist Alvin Lee, whose incendiary performance with the British band Ten Years After was one of the highlights of the 1969 Woodstock festival, has died. … He was 68.  Lee's website says he “passed away early this morning …

Exclusive Excerpt: Roger Ailes Off Camera  —  Roger Ailes is one of the most powerful—and controversial—characters in television media, pilloried by critics and many in the mainstream media and lionized by conservative viewers who can't get enough of his posse of charismatic hosts.

Michelle Obama and John Kerry to Honor Anti-Semite and 9/11 Fan  —  On Friday March 8, Michelle Obama will join John Kerry at a special ceremony at the State Department to present ten women the Secretary of State's International Women of Courage Award.  The award, says the press release …

Arkansas Adopts Strictest Abortion Law in the U.S.  —  In the sharpest challenge yet to Roe v. Wade, Arkansas adopted Wednesday what is by far the country's most restrictive ban on abortion, at 12 weeks of pregnancy, around the time that a fetal heartbeat can be detected by abdominal ultrasound.

Virginia Republican: It Can Be Better To Be Uninsured Than On Medicaid … Wealthy investor and Republican candidate for Virginia Lt. Governor Pete Snyder released a new campaign ad Wednesday criticizing bipartisan efforts to expand Medicaid under Obamacare.

Cut government spending?  Sure....in theory.  —  Americans broadly support an across-the-board cut in spending for a government often seen as wasteful, but there is wide opposition to blanket cuts to the military, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Over $8B of the Money You Spent Rebuilding Iraq Was Wasted Outright  —  The never-completed Khan Bani Sa'ad Prison in Diyala, Iraq.  Ultimately, the U.S. spent $40 million on the aborted project.  Photo courtesy of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction

When the facts change, should I change my mind?  —  The long economic stagnation of post-crisis Britain.  —  The British economy is still operating at levels around or below those before the 2008 financial crisis and roughly 15 per cent below an albeit unsustainable pre-crisis trend.

Cruz: Spending bill must defund Obama healthcare law  —  Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said Wednesday that he will object to a government spending bill if it does not cut off funds for President Obama's signature healthcare law.  —  Cruz, a staunchly conservative freshman, said he will offer …

Report: Mitt Romney takes job at son Tagg's investment firm  —  Former GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney will be returning to work, joining his son Tagg's investment firm.  —  Romney will serve as chairman of the executive committee for Solamere Capital, where he'll work for one week …