Cover Story: John Cuneo's “Carlos Danger”  —  “With a topic like Anthony Weiner, how can you find anything broad or funny that he hasn't already personally breached?” says John Cuneo, the artist who painted next week's cover.  He continues: “Free association made me think of the Empire State Building …

Drop the Disastrous Plan to Defund Obamacare  —  Conservatives on Capitol Hill think they have a chance to strike a mortal blow against President Barack Obama's health-care overhaul this fall.  If their plan goes forward, however, it will backfire.  —  The plan is to oppose any bill to fund …

Chris Christie: Rand Paul ‘dangerous’  —  New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is ripping libertarians - including Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.). - for challenging government surveillance programs and failing to understand the dangers of terrorism.  —  “This strain of libertarianism that's …

Four More Women Accuse Filner … Four prominent San Diego women came forth today accusing Mayor Bob Filner of unwanted sexual advances.  They related specific incidents in an exclusive interview with KPBS News.  —  The latest accusers —a retired Navy rear-admiral, a dean at San Diego State University …

EXCLUSIVE: Fed-up Silda Spitzer plans to divorce Eliot after election  —  Silda Spitzer is privately telling friends she plans to divorce her hooker-loving husband, Eliot Spitzer, Page Six can exclusively reveal.  —  Multiple sources tell us long-suffering Silda — who, he last night admitted …

Taiwan trip center of Peter Roskam investigation  —  The Office of Congressional Ethics is calling for a full investigation into a Oct. 2011 trip by Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) and his wife to Taiwan, claiming the trip was improperly funded by the Taiwanese government.

And the Shenanigans Begin  —  After Shelby County v. Holder, the big question was how different things would really be.  After all, plenty of places, including states with highly contentious fights about election procedures and redistricting such as Ohio and Pennsylvania, have never been covered anyway.

U.S. Assures Russia Snowden Will Not Face Death Penalty  —  WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said in a letter sent to the Russian minister of justice this week that the United States would not seek the death penalty against Edward J. Snowden, and would issue him a passport immediately …

McCrory Signs State Budget, Says He Will Sign Abortion Bill & Voter ID Law  —  Governor Pat McCrory on Friday signed the new state budget, two days after state lawmakers approved the $20.6 billion spending plan.  —  Lawmakers finished their session this morning, passing a flurry of bills.

Cop Who Pepper-Sprayed Students At Occupy Protest Wants Worker's Compensation For ‘Psychiatric Injury’  —  DAVIS, Calif. (AP) — The former police officer who pepper-sprayed students during an Occupy protest at the University of California, Davis is appealing for worker's compensation …

Fiscal Armageddon could remake Hill in 2014 elections  —  Not again.  —  That's the message several national GOP strategists and some lawmakers have for Republicans hell bent on waging another fiscal fight this fall.  —  The 2014 midterm season is about to heat up - and President Barack Obama …

Uh Ho: Obama Says Vietnamese Dictator Inspired by Founding Fathers  —  “...we discussed the fact that Ho Chi Minh was actually inspired by the U.S. Declaration of Independence and Constitution, and the words of Thomas Jefferson.”  —  It may come as some unwelcome news to the families …

Lincoln Memorial vandalized with splashes of green paint  —  The Lincoln Memorial was shut down Friday morning after vandals splashed the statue of the nation's 16th president and the marble floor around it with green paint, U.S. Park Police said.  —  Police are reviewing surveillance footage …

Bank Reposseses Wrong House, Refuses To Compensate Victim  —  Katie Barnett, a resident of MacArthur, OH, claims that a bank she doesn't belong to  —  Barnett says she has since presented the president of the bank with an $18,000 estimate to compensate her for the loss, but he has refused to pay her.

Come See Detroit, America's Future  —  DETROIT — I KNOW an old woman who hasn't opened her windows in a decade, afraid that what's outside will climb inside.  Inside, there is the stale odor of dead air.  —  I know another woman who called me about a corpse lying outside her window for six and a half hours.

Roberts's Picks Reshaping Secret Surveillance Court  —  WASHINGTON — The recent leaks about government spying programs have focused attention on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and its role in deciding how intrusive the government can be in the name of national security.

IRS employee union: We don't want Obamacare  —  IRS employees have a prominent role in Obamacare, but their union wants no part of the law.  —  National Taxpayer Employee Union officials are urging members to write their congressional representatives in opposition to receiving coverage through President Obama's health care law.

Steve King Says He Has Personally Caught Undocumented Drug Mules With Cantaloupe Calves  —  Rep. Steve King (R-IA) defended his claim that undocumented youths are drug mules with cantaloupe-sized calves on Friday, telling The Laura Ingraham Show that he would not apologize for the remarks.

Student Drought Hits Smaller Universities  —  By - CAMERON MCWHIRTER and - DOUGLAS BELKIN -  —  Loyola University New Orleans faces a $9.5 million budget gap caused by 25% fewer freshmen this fall than it had expected.  —  As Loyola University New Orleans gears up for fall classes next month …

Trump Heads to Iowa, Plots a 2016 Run  —  Donald Trump has long resisted calls for him to run for president.  But now, at age 67, he tells me he's considering a bid.  —  “I'm looking,” Trump says.  “I have a large following of people who are tired of seeing this country ripped off …

Unions ask Obama for Detroit bailout  —  Union leaders are calling on Congress and President Obama to provide a federal bailout to the city of Detroit.  —  The executive council of the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor federation, called for an “immediate infusion of federal assistance for Detroit” …