Boston bombing suspect cites U.S. wars as motivation, officials say  —  The 19-year-old suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings has told interrogators that the American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan motivated him and his brother to carry out the attack, according to U.S. officials familiar with the interviews.

Boston Bombing Suspect Shootout Pictures  —  On Thursday night [Friday morning] at 12:45am EST. I was in my living room working on my computer when I heard multiple “pops” coming from outside.  At that point, I had no idea that I was about to become an eye witness to the biggest news story in the country.

Bush is back  —  It took less than 4 1/2 years of the Obama presidency for President George W. Bush to mount his comeback.  While doing absolutely nothing on his own behalf (he's been the most silent ex-president in my lifetime), his approval is up to 47 percent according to The Post/ABC poll.

Baucus to retire rather than seek reelection in 2014, strategists say  —  View Photo Gallery —The 2014 midterm elections are just around the corner.  These are the races to watch.  —  Baucus, 71, first elected in 1978,has been the top Democrat on the powerful committee since 2001.

Nevada Senate Votes To Repeal Ban On Same-Sex Couples' Marriages  —  During the course of the debate, Nevada Sen. Kelvin Atkinson told his colleagues — and the world — that he is gay.  Monday's vote was the first step in a long process.  —  WASHINGTON — Late Monday …

Judge tosses three murder counts against Kermit Gosnell  —  After hearing impassioned arguments from attorneys on both sides of the Kermit Gosnell capital-murder trial Tuesday, a Philadelphia judge threw out three of the seven first-degree murder charges Gosnell faced for allegedly killing fetuses born alive at his abortion clinic.

Mississippi man released after arrest in ricin-letter probe  —  The Mississippi man charged with sending ricin-laced letters to President Obama has been released, the U.S. Marshals Service said Tuesday.  —  Jeff Woodfin, chief deputy with the U.S. Marshals Service in Oxford, Miss. …

Reid will try to replace sequester with war savings from Afghan drawdown  —  The cuts went into effect on March 1 after the White House and Congress could not agree on a replacement.  The White House insisted on using some tax increases while Republicans refused.

Mitt Romney's all-star retreat in June will include David Axelrod, Chris Christie, Paul Ryan  —  WASHINGTON — Mitt Romney this morning announced a series of high-profile speakers who will address a retreat that the former Republican presidential nominee is putting together in June.

In Gun Bill Defeat, a President's Distaste for Twisting Arms  —  WASHINGTON — Senator Mark Begich, Democrat of Alaska, asked President Obama's administration for a little favor last month.  Send your new interior secretary this spring to discuss a long-simmering dispute over construction …

UN Official Justifies Boston Bombings as ‘Retribution’, Blames America & ‘Tel Aviv’  —  Richard Falk warns of “worse blowbacks,” says “Those to whom evil is done, do evil in return”  —  In a letter sent today to UN chief Ban Ki-moon and U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice (see below) …

Most Expect ‘Occasional Acts of Terrorism’ in the Future  —  Six-in-Ten Say Post-9/11 Steps Have Made Country Safer  —  OVERVIEW  —  Last week's bombings at the Boston Marathon attracted broad public interest: 63% of Americans say they followed the story very closely, among the highest interest in any news story in the past decade.

Why the FBI Didn't Make Much of Russia's Request to Probe Boston Bomber  —  The FBI had good reason not to make too much of their Russian counterpart's 2011 request to check out Tamerlan Tsarnaev, U.S. officials tell Eli Lake.  —  On the surface, it looks like another failure to connect the dots.

EXCLUSIVE: Chinese carjack victim of Boston bombers only escaped when they stopped for Red Bull... and they didn't kill him because he 'wasn't American'  — Man carjacked by Boston bombing suspects says he was able to escape after Dzhokhar Tsarnaev went into a store for Red Bull and chocolate bars