Janet Napolitano, Homeland Security chief, to head UC  —  U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is being named the next president of the 10-campus UC system.  (Alex Wong / Getty Images / July 18, 2012)  —  Janet Napolitano, the U.S. secretary of Homeland Security and former governor of Arizona …

This, Courtesy of MSNBC, Is Trayvon Martin's Dead Body.  Get Angry.  —  A reader of mine sent me this photo last night.  As the murder trial of George Zimmerman wheezes to its conclusion, the TV networks dutifully pipe in live pool video from the courtroom, as if it is force-fed …

Statement by Edward Snowden to human rights groups at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport  —  Edward Joseph Snowden delivered a statement to human rights organizations and individuals at Sheremetyevo airport at 5pm Moscow time today, Friday 12th July.  The meeting lasted 45 minutes.

Pass the Bill!  —  It's beginning to look as though we're not going to get an immigration reform law this year.  House Republicans are moving in a direction that will probably be unacceptable to the Senate majority and the White House.  Conservative commentators like my friends Bill Kristol …

Why I Think the GOP Will Have Control in 2017  —  My assertion that there's a 70% chance that the GOP controls White House, Senate, and House in 2017 has attracted a lot of pushback.  And it's certainly possible that I'm wrong!  Here's my thinking, for what it's worth:

Holder to Tighten Rules for Obtaining Reporters' Data  —  WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., who has been criticized for the Justice Department's aggressive tactics in secretly obtaining phone logs and e-mails of reporters as part of leak investigations, is expected to issue …

Iowa Supreme Court: It's OK To Fire A Woman For Being Too Attractive  —  Joseph Diebold is an intern with ThinkProgress.  —  Standing by a December decision, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday that a male dentist who fired a female assistant because she was too attractive and threatened his marriage did not commit sex discrimination.

Concerning “Libertarian Populism”  —  Like any political tradition associated with the defense of privilege, American conservatism has been the object of many efforts to give it a popularizing makeover.  There was the “Modern Republicanism” of the Eisenhower era, which was a useful device …

Coming to Do Good, Staying to Do Well  —  For 20 years, since the weekend of Bill Clinton's first inauguration, I have rented against all financial prudence an apartment in Washington, D.C. even though I really live in Manhattan.  So, at least in a real-estate sense, I can rightfully claim …

Bob McDonnell's stunning fall from grace  —  In 2010, the political world pegged Bob McDonnell as a president in the making.  Last year, they put him on every VP list.  As recently as May, they called the popular Virginia governor a political model for his would-be successors in Richmond, Democrat and Republican alike.

Another IRS Scandal Waiting to Happen  —  Federal Elections Commissioner Donald McGahn wants to rein in the bureaucracy of this sensitive agency.  The political left is furious.  —  The Obama administration claims it wants to ensure that the rank political abuse perpetrated by the Internal Revenue Service is never repeated.

Organizing for Action raises $8.2M in second quarter  —  Organizing for Action (OFA), the group spun off of President Obama's reelection campaign, raised $8.2 million in the last three months, the group announced Friday afternoon.  —  That represents an uptick in donations from earlier in the year.

Zimmerman Lawyers Were Once Supporters Of Judge Who Has Knocked Them About Florida Courtroom  —  Years before they would endure a televised pummeling in the Florida courtroom of Judge Debra Nelson, the two lawyers representing accused murderer George Zimmerman actually donated money …