John McCain: Getting Back To Maverick, With An Eye On Retirement  —  WASHINGTON — Last August, a few minutes before GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan took the stage at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., I was hurrying down a flight of stairs to get to the floor to watch.

Juan Williams' plagiarism problem  —  EXCLUSIVE: Fox News pundit blames researcher for word-for-word similarities.  “Unacceptable,” says Hill editor  —  In a case of apparent plagiarism, Fox News pundit Juan Williams lifted — sometimes word for word — from a Center for American Progress report …

Brennan takes oath on draft Constitution—without Bill of Rights  —  (David Lienemann/Official ...  Oh, dear.  This is probably not the symbolism the White House wanted.  —  Hours after CIA Director John Brennan took the oath of office—behind closed doors, far away from the press …

Exclusive: Elisabeth Hasselbeck Leaving The View After Nine Years, Viewers Found Her “Too Extreme and Right Wing”  —  The people have spoken.  Elisabeth Hasselbeck, one of the five cohorts of ABC's daytime talk show The View, will not be returning to the couch next season …

Priebus: GOP needs new strategy  —  He says party must look beyond early caucuses, primaries.  —  If the GOP is going to win presidential elections, candidates can't compete just in Iowa and the seven other early states, the party's national chairman said during a visit here Thursday.

To praise the February jobs report is to embrace the New Normal economy  —  The headline numbers show a decent month for the US labor market in February.  Nonfarm payrolls rose by 236,000 last month (246,000 in the private sector), the Labor Department said, beating economist expectations of 160,000.

Andrew Breitbart and James O'Keefe Ruined Him, and Now He Gets $100,000  —  Former ACORN employee Juan Carlos Vera sued after being wrongly portrayed as a willing participant in an underage sex-trafficking scheme.  Breitbart still hasn't corrected the item!

Secret supper  —  President Barack Obama has been hosting a lot of high-profile dinner companions lately, but here's one guest list that didn't leak for a week:  —  On March 1st, the president, First Lady Michelle, former President Bill Clinton and outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton enjoyed …

The Market Speaks  —  Four years ago, as a newly elected president began his efforts to rescue the economy and strengthen the social safety net, conservative economic pundits — people who claimed to understand markets and know how to satisfy them — warned of imminent financial disaster.

School Confiscates Cupcakes Decorated with Toy Soldiers  —  A Michigan elementary school is defending its decision to confiscate a third-graders batch of homemade cupcakes because the birthday treats were decorated with plastic green Army soldiers.  —  FOLLOW TODD ON FACEBOOK FOR CULTURE WAR NEWS.

Feinstein: Veterans May Have PTSD And Should Not Be Exempt From Assault Weapons Ban  —  At a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on Thursday, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) opposed an amendment to her Assault Weapons Ban legislation that would allow military veterans to continue to buy the firearms that would be banned.

Dow 36,000 Author: I Was Right!  —  James K. Glassman is an interesting and noble figure on the American right for his willingness to continue to defend the symbols of right-wing economic thought that have been discarded by fellow conservatives because they expose the ridiculousness of the whole project.