COUNTY-BY-COUNTY … THE CANDIDATES  —  held this seat from 1995 to 2001 before serving as the governor of South Carolina from 2003 to 2011.  In 2009 he admitted to lying about having an affair with an Argentinian woman, to whom he is now engaged.  —  Elizabeth Colbert Busch (D) …

Delaware, Continuing a Trend, Becomes the 11th State to Allow Same-Sex Unions  —  Delaware on Tuesday became the 11th state to permit same-sex marriage, the latest in a string of victories for those working to extend marital rights to gay and lesbian couples.

Immigration battle: Marco Rubio vs. Jim DeMint  —  Tea party heavyweights Marco Rubio and Jim DeMint are on opposite sides of the immigration debate - and they're duking it out for the support of the movement.  —  The clash went public Tuesday, when Rubio hosted leaders of tea party groups …

Judge rips Obama's right-wing Plan B stance  —  “You're disadvantaging young people, African-Americans, the poor... that's the policy of the Obama administration?”  —  “It turns out that the same policies that President Bush followed were followed by President Obama,” said District Court Judge Edward Korman …

Reports of sex abuse, beatings inside Cleveland house  —  THREE MISSING CLEVELAND WOMEN FREED  —  Three women who had been held captive for 10 years were found Monday in a Cleveland neighborhood, barely a mile from where they had been abducted.  Amanda Berry was able to escape and alert authorities …

An Open Letter to the Harvard Community  —  Last week I said something stupid about John Maynard Keynes.  Asked to comment on Keynes' famous observation “In the long run we are all dead,” I suggested that Keynes was perhaps indifferent to the long run because he had no children, and that he had no children because he was gay.

Breaking news: Traffic from Syria Disappears from Internet  —  At around 18:45 UTC the OpenDNS resolvers saw a significant drop in traffic from Syria.  On closer inspection, it seems Syria has largely disappeared from the Internet.  —  The graph below shows DNS traffic from and to Syria.

Report: Budget Deficit Shrinks Due To More Tax Revenue  —  The Congressional Budget Office released updated projections today to find that the federal budged deficit is smaller than at this point last year, and smaller than at any time since the 2008 financial crisis.

Biden on Susan Rice: She speaks for the president  —  Washington (CNN) - Vice President Joe Biden praised U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice on the eve of congressional hearings over last year's deadly terror attack against a U.S. diplomatic compound in Libya …

'That's absurd beyond the word absurd'  —  You know Republican state lawmakers in Texas are pursuing a troubling agenda when “birther” legislation starts to move, and it's not the most ridiculous proposal worth watching.  —  Rather, this is (thanks to Anneli Kunze on our Facebook page for the tip).

USAF Vet Willing to Offer National Cemetery Burial Plot to Bombing Suspect  —  US Air Force (USAF) veteran Julie Frein said she is willing to give up her burial plot at Arlington National Cemetery to Tamerlan Tsarnaev - the deceased Boston bombing suspect.  —  The Anne Arundel County woman told Fox45 …

Obama May Back F.B.I. Plan to Wiretap Web Users  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration, resolving years of internal debate, is on the verge of backing a Federal Bureau of Investigation plan for a sweeping overhaul of surveillance laws that would make it easier to wiretap people …

Medicare Provider Charge Data  —  As part of the Obama administration's work to make our health care system more affordable and accountable, data are being released that show significant variation across the country and within communities in what hospitals charge for common inpatient services.

Hagel orders changes to confront military sexual abuse  —  Report comes on the heels of Air Force chief sexual assault prevention officer's arrest for allegedly groping a woman.  —  WASHINGTON — A report showing that sexual assaults in the military jumped by more than one-third since 2010 …

The Fox News Anchor Megyn Kelly Renews Contract  —  Two of the best-known anchors on the Fox News Channel, Greta Van Susteren and Megyn Kelly, have renewed their contracts, possibly foreshadowing the first change to the channel's prime time schedule in over a decade.

Republicans mull wish list on debt limit  —  House Republicans are locked in a debate over what they should demand from President Obama for hiking the $16.4 trillion debt ceiling.  —  The GOP conference will meet May 15 to discuss the idea of linking tax reform to the debt limit …