Good Riddance to Brotherhood's Fake Democrats  —  A few months ago, King Abdullah II of Jordan told me about his meetings with Mohamed Mursi, the now-deposed president of Egypt.  The king wasn't fond of Mursi, both because the Egyptian was a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, and because Abdullah found Mursi exceedingly stupid.

Obamacare Strikes: Part-Time Jobs Surge To All Time High; Full-Time Jobs Plunge By 240,000  —  As a reminder: jobs have quantity and quality components.  The quantity component was good enough to convince the 10 Year the taper is imminent (if not stocks, which continue to trade dislocated from any and all fundamentals).

Reversing denial, State says Kerry was briefly on boat  —  Secretary of State John Kerry was on his boat briefly on Wednesday, contrary to an earlier denial by the State Department, but was there only briefly and did not conduct official business while on board.

Russia increasingly impatient over Snowden's airport stay  —  (Reuters) - Edward Snowden should find another country to seek refuge in, a Russian official said on Thursday, signaling Moscow's growing impatience over the former U.S. spy agency contractor's stay at a Moscow airport.

I.R.S. Scrutiny Went Beyond the Political  —  WASHINGTON — In 2010, a tiny Palestinian-rights group called Minnesota Break the Bonds applied to the Internal Revenue Service for tax-exempt status.  Two years and a lot of prodding later, the I.R.S. sent the group's leaders a series of questions …

McCain, House Republicans headed for clash on immigration reform  —  Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is on a collision course with House conservatives over immigration reform.  —  Throughout his Senate career, McCain has clashed with House Republican lawmakers over high-profile issues …

In U.S., 64% Want Their Child to Avoid Career in Politics  —  Little change over time in percentage favoring political career  —  PRINCETON, NJ — By a 2-to-1 margin, 64% to 31%, Americans would not like their child to go into politics as a career.  The results are the same whether …

George W. Bush expected to talk about immigration reform Wednesday at Bush Institute  —  Ex-President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama converse during this week's trip to Tanzania.  ((Doug Mills/The New York Times))  —  A president named Obama may be most linked to overhauling immigration policy.

Ways to praise Valerie Jarrett in ‘This Town’  —  A 33-point memo detailing ways to praise top White House aide Valerie Jarrett was sent out to staffers shortly after an unflattering profile of the adviser was published in the New York Times last year, the new book “This Town” by Mark Mark Leibovich says.

Pope Francis issues first ‘joint’ encyclical  —  Pope Francis has paid tribute to his predecessor Benedict XVI in his first letter to clergy, acknowledging that most of it was written by Benedict.  —  The encyclical to Roman Catholic bishops, called Light of Faith ("Lumen Fidei" in Latin) …

How free are we on this July Fourth?  —  How are we doing, safeguarding those “unalienable Rights” with which we are “endowed by our Creator” — in support of which 56 patriots solemnly pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor, 237 years ago?  —  We remain free by many measures.