“I'm a 34-year-old NBA center.  I'm black.  And I'm gay,” says Jason Collins.  —  I'm a 34-year-old NBA center.  I'm black.  And I'm gay.  —  I didn't set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport.  But since I am, I'm happy to start the conversation.

More backlash against Senators on gun vote  —  New PPP polls in Alaska, Arizona, Nevada, and Ohio find serious backlash against the 5 Senators who voted against background checks in those states.  Each of them has seen their approval numbers decline, and voters say they're less likely …

Antiabortion group releases videos of clinic workers discussing live births  —  An antiabortion group that mounted a six-month undercover investigation has released videos this week that raise questions about what might happen to a baby as a result of an unsuccessful abortion.

O'Connor worries Supreme Court was wrong to rule in Bush v. Gore  —  Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said in an interview published this weekend that she is no longer certain that the Supreme Court should have taken Bush v. Gore, the controversial case that ended …

House Republicans Eyeing New Hostage Opportunity  —  If you don't submit, I will destroy your puny world with this HAMMER OF THOR.  —  The House Republicans are contemplating a new budget-hostage strategy, the the Washington Post reports in a story that is both highly useful and inadvertently Onion-esque.

‘Misha’ Speaks: An Interview with the Alleged Boston Bomber's ‘Svengali’  —  As the investigation of the Boston Marathon bombings continues, one of the more clouded aspects is the tale of “Misha,” a mysterious US-based Islamist who has been accused by members of the Tsarnaev family …

If Hillary is running for prez, I'm out  —  Cuomo quietly ‘concedes’ 2016 race  —  Gov. Cuomo has quietly told associates that he is resigned to the fact that he can't run for president in 2016 if Hillary Rodham Clinton enters the race, as is widely expected, sources told The Post.

Dem resolution warns climate change could push women to ‘transactional sex’  —  Several House Democrats are calling on Congress to recognize that climate change is hurting women more than men, and could even drive poor women to “transactional sex” for survival.

‘You Son Of A B*tch’: Furious Boston Man Confronts ‘A**hole’ Alex Jones Reporter Over ‘False Flag’ Allegations  —  An InfoWars.com reporter found himself the subject of verbal scorn last week when he appeared in Boston with press badge and camera in tow.  An irate Boston resident confronted …

Ron Paul slams Boston ‘occupation’  —  Former Rep. Ron Paul said the police response to the Boston Marathon bombings was scarier than the bombing itself, which killed three and wounded more than 250.  —  “The Boston bombing provided the opportunity for the government to turn …

Austerity is hurting our health, say researchers  —  (Reuters) - Austerity is having a devastating effect on health in Europe and North America, driving suicide, depression and infectious diseases and reducing access to medicines and care, researchers said on Monday.

Rare Exclusive: JEB BUSH: Conservatives are winning ... in the states  —  The conventional wisdom coming from the 2012 election was the Republican Party is in decline.  We lost on messaging, tone and policies that alienated growing minority communities.  What that narrative misses …

Cruz Breaks With Senate Tradition While Criticizing Colleagues  —  In his short time at the Capitol, Senator Ted Cruz, a freshman Republican from Texas, has shown little regard for long-standing rules of decorum.  But on Friday, he publicly discussed the closed-door dealings …

C.I.A. Delivers Cash to Afghan Leader's Office  —  KABUL, Afghanistan — For more than a decade, wads of American dollars packed into suitcases, backpacks and, on occasion, plastic shopping bags have been dropped off every month or so at the offices of Afghanistan's president — courtesy of the Central Intelligence Agency.

Black pols stymied in Obama era  —  More than five years after Barack Obama won the Iowa caucuses and demolished the notion that white voters wouldn't support a black presidential candidate, progress for other African-American politicians remains elusive.  Even as the country elected and reelected Obama …

The Story of Our Time  —  Those of us who have spent years arguing against premature fiscal austerity have just had a good two weeks.  Academic studies that supposedly justified austerity have lost credibility; hard-liners in the European Commission and elsewhere have softened their rhetoric.