Chris Christie blasts gay-marriage ruling  —  New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie slammed the Supreme Court decision on DOMA as “wrong” and an example of “judicial supremacy.”  —  Christie, a former federal prosecutor, made the remarks on his “Ask the Governor” radio show, hours …

Scalia: ‘High-Handed’ Kennedy Has Declared Us ‘Enemies of the Human Race’  —  Dissenting from this morning's opinion on the Defense of Marriage Act, Justice Antonin Scalia - as expected - holds nothing back.  —  In a ripping dissent, Scalia says that Justice Anthony Kennedy and his colleagues …

Wendy and the Boys  —  There is an old saying that Texas is “heaven for men and dogs, but hell for women and oxen.”  But the state's history is chock-full of stories of female role models.  Barbara Jordan.  Ann Richards.  In downtown Austin, there's a statue of Angelina Eberly …

Treasury IG: Liberal groups weren't targeted by IRS like Tea Party  —  Liberal groups seeking tax-exempt status faced less IRS scrutiny than Tea Party groups, according to the Treasury inspector general.  —  Russell George, Treasury's inspector general for tax administration, told Rep. Sandy Levin …

Snowden's Exit Path Stirs Questions  —  Travel Documents, Transit Points Pose Questions  —  By - JOSÉ DE CÓRDOBA in Mexico City and - JACK NICAS  —  Questions swirled Wednesday over whether fugitive Edward Snowden, the admitted leaker of U.S. secrets, has a clear path to asylum in Ecuador.

Same-Sex Marriage Availability Set to Double in One-Year Span  —  The Supreme Court's rulings on a pair of landmark cases on Wednesday, which overturned the federal Defense of Marriage Act and effectively legalized same-sex marriage in California, are the latest in a recent series of legal …

Kimberly McCarthy Executed: Texas Carries Out 500th Execution  —  HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — Texas marked a solemn moment in criminal justice Wednesday evening, executing its 500th inmate since it resumed carrying out capital punishment in 1982.  —  Kimberly McCarthy, who was put to death …

Timing of legalization becomes key to immigration reform chances  —  The timing of when to grant legal status to the nation's estimated 11 million illegal immigrants has emerged as the key point of dispute between the House and the Senate, which is poised to approve its immigration bill as soon as Thursday.

Obama Begins Africa Tour in Senegal  —  DAKAR, Senegal — President Obama prepared on Thursday to plunge into a visit to Africa likely to highlight the continent's strivings for democracy and well-being as much as it is overshadowed by the fate of Nelson Mandela in South Africa, the second stage of the president's three-nation foray.

Pro-Hillary group meeting with top Democratic donors  —  (CNN) - While Hillary Clinton considers another run for the White House, some of her most ardent supporters are moving to channel the intense political buzz and speculation surrounding a possible 2016 bid by the former secretary of state.

CIA report refutes Senate panel's criticism of agency's harsh interrogation methods  —  The CIA has completed a report that challenges the findings of a Senate investigation of the agency's interrogation program, according to U.S. officials who said the response cites errors in the congressional probe …

Was the Unabomber correct about the horrors of technology combined with government?  —  Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, was rightly imprisoned for life in 1998 for sending bombs that maimed and killed three people and injured 23 more, from 1978 to 1992.  No one can excuse his terrorism.