Detroit Files for Bankruptcy  —  By MONICA DAVEY and MARY WILLIAMS WALSH  —  DETROIT — Detroit, the cradle of America's automobile industry and once the nation's fourth-most-populous city, has filed for bankruptcy, an official said Thursday afternoon, the largest American city ever to take such a course.

The Real Face of Terror: Behind the Scenes Photos of the Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Manhunt  —  In response to the controversial Rolling Stone cover, new photos of Tsarnaev's capture emerge.  —  The Rolling Stone cover featuring the suspected Boston Marathon bomber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has, of course …

The Media Doesn't Have a Pure Heart on Race  —  The Latest Politics, News & Election Videos  —  Charles Barkley On Zimmerman Trial: “I Agree With The Verdict”  —  CHARLES BARKLEY: Well, I agreed with the verdict.  I feel sorry that young kid got killed.  But they didn't have enough evidence to charge him.

House Republicans Cave On Marriage Fight  —  “[T]he House now seeks leave to withdraw as a party defendant.”  House Republicans stop defending statutes similar to the Defense of Marriage Act that ban recognition of same-sex couples' marriages.  —  Via: J. Scott Applewhite / AP

Justice Department places ‘hold’ on Trayvon Martin trial evidence, including George Zimmerman's gun - which Florida law says must be returned to him  —  The U.S. Department of Justice, overseen by Attorney General Eric Holder, has ordered the Sanford, Florida police department to keep possession …

Russian opposition leader freed on bail after protests  —  (Reuters) - Russia unexpectedly freed opposition leader Alexei Navalny on bail on Friday, bending to the will of thousands of protesters who denounced his five-year jail sentence as a crude attempt by President Vladimir Putin to silence him.

On the health-care mandate, Obama reaches beyond the law  —  Ronald D. Rotunda is a professor of jurisprudence at Chapman University and co-author of a six-volume treatise on constitutional law.  He was assistant majority counsel to the Senate Watergate Committee from April 1973 to July 1974.

A Bombshell in the IRS Scandal  —  A higher office is implicated.  —  The IRS scandal was connected this week not just to the Washington office—that had been established—but to the office of the chief counsel.  —  That is a bombshell—such a big one that it managed to emerge in spite of an unfocused …

GOP lawmaker: The Obamas use Air Force One as ‘personal toy’  —  Rep. Howard Coble (R-N.C.) said Thursday morning that President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama are using Air Force One and other official aircraft as their “personal toys.”  —  “I'm not suggesting …

Brian Schweitzer's challenge: Montana Democrats  —  Or he could make political life difficult for his fellow Democrats, particularly for Baucus during the health care debate when the governor endorsed a more liberal insurance option as the senator was being demonized by the left for deal-cutting.

Hitting China's Wall  —  All economic data are best viewed as a peculiarly boring genre of science fiction, but Chinese data are even more fictional than most.  Add a secretive government, a controlled press, and the sheer size of the country, and it's harder to figure out what's really happening …

Obama vows to ‘blow through’ GOP criticism of ObamaCare  —  President Obama said Thursday his administration will “blow through” GOP criticism to implement his signature healthcare law.  —  “I recognize there's still a lot of folks in this town who are rooting for this law to fail …

Sens. John Morse, Angela Giron recall elections set for Sept. 10  —  A Denver judge on Thursday ruled petitions submitted to oust a pair of Democratic senators from office are valid, a pivotal ruling that sets in motion Colorado's first-ever recall election of state lawmakers.

Exclusive: Hacking cover-up scandal as police refuse to name ‘blue-chip’ companies who used corrupt private investigators  —  The Serious Organised Crime Agency has refused to disclose the names of blue-chip companies who commissioned corrupt private investigators who broke the law because revealing …

Darrell Issa clarifies Elijah Cummings ‘boy’ comment  —  Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar?  Not Rep. Elijah Cummings, according to Rep. Darrell Issa.  —  The California Republican and chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee awkwardly put his foot in his mouth …

Former editor of Rand Paul's Neo-Confederate staffer talks about the Southern Avenger  —  Jack Hunter asked me to delete columns  —  Long before last's week Washington Free Beacon story kicked up a two-day media storm, Jack Hunter knew that the Republican establishment was working …