U.S. will never accept a nuclear-armed North Korea: Kerry  —  (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry dismissed as “unacceptable by any standard” weeks of bellicose warnings of impending nuclear war by North Korea and said Washington would never accept the reclusive state becoming a nuclear power.

The Disastrous Collapse Of Kentucky's Least Effective Liberal Group  —  Whatever Progress Kentucky is trying to do, it should probably stop right now.  —  Via: Win McNamee / Getty Images  —  WASHINGTON — It's probably possible for a political group to be worse at accomplishing its core mission …

GOP Congressman Warns Background Checks Will Lead To A Genocide Like In Rwanda  —  Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC) took the fearmongering over gun reform to new levels in a Facebook post on Thursday that compared expanding background checks to the Rwandan genocide.  —  Gun advocates and Republican lawmakers …

Sen. Toomey Offers Full Text Of Public Safety And Second Amendment Rights Protection Act Online  —  Public Will Have Ample Opportunity To Review & Provide Input On Important Measure  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) tonight posted the bill text of The Public Safety …

Prominent social conservative urges activists to withhold GOP donations  —  Los Angeles (CNN) - Prominent social conservative Tony Perkins called on political activists Thursday evening to withhold contributions to Republican campaign committees, as the GOP is embroiled in a debate over social issues.

Strassel: Terry McAuliffe's Solyndra  —  Running for governor of Virginia, the Democrat's main business credential is fast turning into a crony-capitalist embarrassment.  —  Turn over any green-energy rock, and wiggling underneath will be the usual creepy mix of political favoritism and taxpayer-funded handouts.

Newtown families: Victims turn lobbyists  —  When a lobbyist for families of Newtown shooting victims called the office of Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) to set up a meeting, the first response was a standard D.C. offer.  They could get a meeting with her staff, and a quick and simple “hello” from Collins herself, they were told.

Connecticut Sen. pleads with Murdoch: Don't air ‘NRA 500’ race  —  Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy is pleading with Rupert Murdoch, the chairman and CEO of News Corporation, which owns the Fox Sports channel, not to air a National Rifle Association-sponsored NASCAR race scheduled for this weekend.

Retail Sales in U.S. Dropped in March by Most in Nine Months  —  Retail sales in the U.S. unexpectedly fell in March by the most in nine months as employment slowed, showing households ended the first quarter on softer footing.  —  The 0.4 percent decrease, the biggest since June …

President Obama's Weirdest New Taxes  —  President Obama has plenty of big taxes in his budget proposal.  —  To achieve $1.8 trillion in new revenue, the president suggested a few of the policies he's raised while battling Republicans over the past four years: taxing higher incomes …

Apple Agrees to Pay $53M to Settle iPhone Warranty Lawsuit  —  Apple is agreeing to pay $53 million to settle a class action accusing the company of failing to honor warranties on iPhones and iPod Touches, according to an agreement obtained today by Wired.  —  The settlement, (.pdf) …

Never Mind Facebook; Winklevoss Twins Rule in Digital Money  —  The Winklevoss twins, Cameron and Tyler — Olympic rowers, nemeses of Mark Zuckerberg — are laying claim to a new title: bitcoin moguls.  —  The Winklevii, as they are known, have amassed since last summer what appears …

Terrorist video used in ad against McConnell  —  (CNN) - A liberal nonprofit group said Thursday it would begin airing an ad hitting Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell that uses a video produced in 2011 showing an American al Qaeda spokesperson showing how to obtain guns in the U.S.

Elizabeth Warren Tears Into Federal Regulators For Shielding Big Banks  —  Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) embarrassed government regulators during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Thursday morning as she demanded to know why they won't reveal how frequently big banks illegally foreclosed on homeowners.

Organizing for Action banks $4.9 million in first quarter donations  —  The nonprofit group born from President Obama's reelection campaign had 109,582 donors in the first quarter.  —  The nonprofit group born from President Obama's reelection campaign said Friday it had raised …