Trayvon Martin And The Irony Of American Justice  —  In trying to assess the the killing of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman, two seemingly conflicted truths emerge for me.  The first is that is that based on the case presented by the state, and based on Florida law, George Zimmerman …

Reid digs in as Senate nears nuclear option showdown  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid isn't backing down from the “nuclear option” as Democrats and Republicans clash ahead of a rare meeting in the Old Senate Chamber.  —  The nuclear option — which would allow Reid to end filibusters …

Senate Control in 2014 Increasingly Looks Like a Tossup  —  This weekend's announcement by the former governor of Montana, Brian Schweitzer, that he would not seek that state's Democratic nomination for Senate represents the latest in a series of favorable developments for Republicans as they seek control of the chamber.

Teens chase kidnapping suspect on bikes, save 5-year-old girl  —  (CNN) — Two teenage boys are being hailed as heroes after they chased a car carrying a kidnapped girl — on their bicycles.  —  Five-year-old Jocelyn Rojas was playing in her front yard in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, when she vanished Thursday afternoon.

MSNBC crushed in Zimmerman ratings race  —  MSNBC's ratings woes came into sharp relief on Monday with the release of the preliminary numbers for the Zimmerman verdict.  —  In the 10-11 p.m. hour on Saturday night, when the verdict in, Fox News had 3,682,000 total viewers …

Wendy Davis Raises Nearly $1 Million … State Sen. Wendy Davis, the new star of the Texas Democratic Party, raised nearly $1 million in the final two weeks of June, much of it from small donors who sent her money after she launched her famous filibuster of a restrictive abortion bill, her campaign will reveal Monday.

House GOP's endgame on immigration: Do nothing? … This is why the critical question remains: Is there anything that can get a majority of House Republicans to support a path to citizenship under any circumstances?  If there isn't, then there is no percentage for those House Republicans …

Ex-Fiancee Urges Filner To Submit Resignation  —  Says Sexually Explicit Messages To Other Women Led To Separation  —  The ex-fiancee of beleaguered San Diego Mayor Bob Filner says she ended her relationship with him because he became increasingly abusive toward her and began sending sexually …

McDonalds Tells Workers To Budget By Getting A Second Job And Turning Off Their Heat  —  McDonalds has partnered with Visa to launch a website to help its low-wage workers making an average $8.25 an hour to budget.  But while the site is clearly meant to illustrate that McDonalds workers …

And they're off: 2016 has already started  —  The shorter campaign cycle is dead.  Long live 2016.  —  Barely eight months removed from the 2012 presidential saga, super PACs are sprouting to buck up Hillary Clinton, and GOP hopefuls are already hitting the early-state circuit — and attempting to woo donors.

George HW Bush to Visit White House  —  A commitment to volunteerism is bringing together presidents past and present.  —  Former President George H.W. Bush is coming to the White House on Monday for a ceremony President Barack Obama is holding to recognize the 5,000th Daily Point of Light Award.

U.S. Repeals Propaganda Ban, Spreads Government-Made News To Americans  —  For decades, a so-called anti-propaganda law prevented the U.S. government's mammoth broadcasting arm from delivering programming to American audiences.  But on July 2, that came silently to an end with the implementation of a new reform passed in January.

Restaurant Shift: Sorry, Just Part-Time  —  More Restaurants Replace Full-Timers, Concerned About Insurance  —  Ken Adams has been turning to more part-time workers at his 10 Subway sandwich shops in Michigan to avoid possibly incurring higher health-care costs under the new federal insurance law.

Russia's Putin: signs Snowden is shifting on the U.S.  —  (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday he saw signs that Edward Snowden, the former U.S. spy agency contractor turned fugitive secrets leaker, was shifting towards stopping “political activity” directed against the United States.