Senate rejects border security amendment to immigration bill  —  The Senate voted 57-43 on Thursday to table an amendment to the immigration reform bill that would have required increased border security before providing a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.

Supreme Court Rules Human Genes May Not Be Patented  —  WASHINGTON — Human genes may not be patented, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday.  —  The case concerned patents held by Myriad Genetics, a Utah company, on genes that correlate with increased risk of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer.

Bill Clinton splits with Obama on Syria  —  Bill Clinton told Sen. John McCain he agrees that President Barack Obama should act more forcefully to support anti-Assad rebels in Syria, saying the American public elects presidents and members of Congress “to see down the road” and “to win.”

News Corp's Rupert Murdoch Files For Divorce Which Won't Affect News Corp Split  —  EXCLUSIVE 9 AM, 4TH UPDATE 11 AM WRITETHRU (new details): News Corp Chairman/CEO Rupert Murdoch filed for divorce from wife Wendi Deng Murdoch this morning in New York State Supreme Court, Deadline learned at 9 AM.

Officials: Edward Snowden took NSA secrets on thumb drive  —  Edward Snowden, who worked as a contract employee at the National Security Agency.  (The Guardian / Associated Press / June 9, 2013)  —  WASHINGTON — Former National Security Agency contract employee Edward Snowden used …

Americans' Confidence in Congress Falls to Lowest on Record  —  Congress ranks last on list of 16 institutions; military earns top spot again  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans' confidence in Congress as an institution is down to 10%, ranking the legislative body last on a list of 16 societal institutions for the fourth straight year.

IF THE GOP IS THIS STUPID, IT DESERVES TO DIE  —  Democrats terrify Hispanics into thinking they'll be lynched if they vote for Republicans, and then turn around and taunt Republicans for not winning a majority of the Hispanic vote.  —  This line of attack has real resonance with our stupidest Republicans.

AUDIENCE MEMBER CONFRONTS BILL MAHER AFTER COMIC SLAMMED SARAH PALIN'S SPECIAL NEEDS CHILD  —  Conservative Ron Futrell knew to expect plenty of left-of-center jibes when he settled into his seat to see Bill Maher at The Pearl Theater in Las Vegas June 8.  —  Futrell didn't think he'd hear …

Pelosi Can't Explain Difference Between Gosnell Slayings and Late-Term Abortions  —  At a Thursday press conference, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi condemned a bill that would prohibit abortions during the final four months of pregnancy with exceptions for when the life or physical health of the mother was at stake.

A Survey of LGBT Americans  —  Attitudes, Experiences and Values in Changing Times  —  OVERVIEW  —  An overwhelming share of America's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender adults (92%) say society has become more accepting of them in the past decade and an equal number expect it to grow even more accepting in the decade ahead.

NEW TIME POLL: Support for the Leaker—and His Prosecution  —  More than half of Americans approve of a former intelligence contractor's decision to leak classified details of sprawling government surveillance programs, according to the results of a new TIME poll.

Obamacare?  We were just leaving ...  Dozens of lawmakers and aides are so afraid that their health insurance premiums will skyrocket next year thanks to Obamacare that they are thinking about retiring early or just quitting.  —  The fear: Government-subsidized premiums will disappear …

Rare formal review ordered for federal judge  —  Chief Justice John Roberts of the U.S. Supreme Court formally ordered on Wednesday that a rare public judicial misconduct complaint against 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Edith Jones be reviewed by officials in a different circuit — one based in the nation's capital.

Three Signs Republicans Haven't Learned Any Lessons From 2012  —  After last year's drubbing, Republicans vowed to change their ways.  But as 2013 wears on, they're sticking to the script that got them in trouble.  —  To much acclaim, the Republican National Committee released its road map …

Rep. Ralph Hall wanders into LGBT event, enjoys hospitality before realizing he's in wrong place  —  Maybe it's not so hard to teach an old dog new tricks.  —  At least, that's what some were thinking after Texas Rep. Ralph Hall showed up at an LGBT event for the Victory Fund last week …

THE SECRET WAR  —  INFILTRATION.  SABOTAGE.  MAYHEM.  FOR YEARS FOUR-STAR GENERAL KEITH ALEXANDER HAS BEEN BUILDING A SECRET ARMY CAPABLE OF LAUNCHING DEVASTATING CYBERATTACKS.  —  Illustrations by Mark Weaver  —  INSIDE FORT MEADE, Maryland, a top-secret city bustles.

GOP's Jackson discusses past drug use, bankruptcy  —  No. 2 on GOP ticket also acknowledges that he filed for bankruptcy in the past  —  E.W. Jackson, the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor acknowledged Wednesday that he used marijuana and experimented with other controlled substances in his youth.

Obama's Snooping Excludes Mosques, Missed Boston Bombers  —  Homeland Insecurity: The White House assures that tracking our every phone call and keystroke is to stop terrorists, and yet it won't snoop in mosques, where the terrorists are.  —  That's right, the government's sweeping surveillance …

A Chronic Disease  —  Conservatives and Republicans in Washington — activists, strategists, politicians — are increasingly embracing a theory about Obamacare: It's going to collapse of its own weight, and its failure could yield a sharp right turn in the 2014 and 2016 elections.