The New Pope: Bergoglio of Argentina  —  VATICAN CITY — With a puff of white smoke from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel and to the cheers of thousands of rain-soaked faithful, a gathering of Catholic cardinals picked a new pope from among their midst on Wednesday — choosing the cardinal from Argentina …

Florida Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll resigns  —  Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll has resigned.  —  The resignation comes two days after Florida Department of Law Enforcement officers interviewed Carroll about her involvement with Allied Veterans of the World, a non-profit that operates internet cafes in Florida.

Tense meeting between President Obama, House GOP  —  President Barack Obama tangled with House Republicans for more than an hour Wednesday, answering questions on topics ranging from whether the White House spends too much time campaigning to how serious the administration is about slashing the nation's deficit.

North Korea Trolls American Poverty In Greatest Propaganda Video Ever  —  Living in tents.  Drinking coffee made from snow.  This is your life in America, filtered through the incisive prism of North Korean propaganda.  —  The world's most militarized society is shaking its head …

Obama's approval drops as Americans take a dimmer view of his economic policies  —  The afterglow of President Obama's reelection and inauguration appears to have vanished as increasingly negative views among Americans about his stewardship of the economy have forced his public approval rating …

Transcript: President Obama's Exclusive Interview With George Stephanopoulos  —  GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS:  —  Mr. President, thank you for doing this.  —  PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:  —  It's great to be here.  —  GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS:  —  So, you've done all meetings on Capitol Hill …

The Veronica Mars Movie Project  —  Here it is.  Our one shot to see a Veronica Mars movie happen.  Kristen is in.  I'm in.  Let's do it!  —  Almost since Veronica Mars went off the air, there's been talk of making a movie.  In that span, I've taken different tactics in dealing with the question of whether it might happen.

Police ID fatal shooting suspect as Kurt Myers of Mohawk  —  Mohawk police have identified the man suspected of fatally shooting six and wounding two others as 64-year-old Kurt Myers of Mohawk.  —  Police have not yet apprehended Myers.  State police expect to hold a news conference at the Herkimer barracks within the hour.

CPAC muddle mirrors GOP mess  —  It's not hard to make fun of CPAC.  From the presence of Donald Trump to a meaningless straw poll to a cavalcade of fringe-dwelling book merchants, the event has become more carnival than conservative salon.  —  What is more notable about this year's rendition …

Senate Dems Weigh Consequences For GOP Filibusters Of Key Nominees  —  Senate Democratic leaders have engaged in preliminary discussions about how to address Republican procedural obstruction, according to a senior Democratic aide, reflecting an awareness that key administration …

How Bill Clinton Inspired The 47 Percent Filmmaker  —  WASHINGTON — Bill Clinton won the presidential election for Barack Obama.  But it wasn't his masterful Democratic National Convention speech or the advice he offered the president's reelection campaign.

GSA ordered to give job back to executive fired after Las Vegas conference scandal  —  The General Services Administration was ordered this week to reinstate a senior executive who lost his job last year amid revelations of lavish spending at a Las Vegas conference.

NJ MOTHER PRESSURED TO TURN OVER HER GUNS, CHARGED WITH ‘TERRORISTIC THREATS’ AFTER READING THE CONSTITUTION AT TAX DISPUTE ASSEMBLY  —  Key Points:  — Eileen Hart objected to a mandatory re-evaluation of her property value that would drastically increase her tax rates

Why I'm more worried than Paul Krugman about the U.S. debt burden  —  I have been writing recently ([1], [2]) about my paper Crunch Time: Fiscal Crises and the Role of Monetary Policy, co-authored with David Greenlaw (Managing Director and Chief U.S. Fixed Income Economist for Morgan Stanley) …