pressure cookers, backpacks and quinoa, oh my!  —  It was a confluence of magnificent proportions that led six agents from the joint terrorism task force to knock on my door Wednesday morning.  Little did we know our seemingly innocent, if curious to a fault, Googling of certain things …

Exclusive: Dozens of CIA operatives on the ground during Benghazi attack  —  CNN has uncovered exclusive new information about what is allegedly happening at the CIA, in the wake of the deadly  —  Benghazi terror attack.  —  Four Americans, including Ambassador Christopher Stevens …

Poll: Kentucky Voters Want McConnell Out  —  New poll numbers released Thursday suggested that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is entering his reelection campaign next year facing two perilous obstacles: an electorate that wants him out of office and a viable Democratic challenger.

Free Press editor Drew Johnson has been terminated after placing a headline on an editorial outside of normal editing procedures.  —  Johnson's headline, “Take your jobs plan and shove it, Mr. President: Your policies have harmed Chattanooga enough,” appeared on the Free Press page Tuesday …

Statement on Snowden's Successful Russian Asylum Bid  —  Today, Thursday 1st August at 15:50 MSK, Edward Snowden was granted temporary asylum in Russia.  He left Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow with WikiLeaks staffer and legal advisor Sarah Harrison who has accompanied him during his 39 …

Ohio: Health premiums to soar  —  The fight over Obamacare premiums has a new home base: Ohio.  —  Customers in the key swing state can expect to pay 41 percent more on average for individual health insurance coverage next year because of Obamacare, according to projections released …

Hacker Forces Colin Powell To Deny Affair  —  Ex-Secretary of State told foreign diplomat to delete her e-mails  —  As a notorious hacker seeks to distribute “very personal” e-mails sent to Colin Powell by a female Romanian diplomat, the retired general is denying that he engaged …

Russian Sports Minister Says Anti-LGBT Law Will Be Enforced During Olympics  —  “The opinion of the Russian government is now perfectly clear: if you're gay and you come to Russia for the Olympics, you will be in harm's way,” an advocate says.  The sports minister's comments contradict …

Armed agents raid animal shelter for baby deer  —  WISN 12 News investigates an operation raising questions about the use of government resources and the state policy that meant a death sentence for a fawn.  —  “It was like a SWAT team,” shelter employee Ray Schulze said.

Why Americans All Believe They Are ‘Middle Class’  —  A taxonomy of how we talk about class and wealth in the United States today  —  Last week, President Obama went on the road promoting an economic agenda for the middle class.  As expected, John Boehner and other Republicans fired …

Chris Christie finds a reason to visit Las Vegas in the dead of summer  —  New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie plans to visit Las Vegas today for a private fundraiser hosted by Sheldon and Miriam Adelson at the Palazzo.  —  The event is technically for Christie's gubernatorial re-election campaign this year …

The “anti-God” party  —  You can't be a Christian and a Democrat at the same time, Virginia's GOP candidate for Lieutenant Governor says  —  In a local radio interview this morning, Virginia Republican lieutenant governor nominee E.W. Jackson said the Democratic Party is “anti-God” and that Christians should leave it.

The Presidency's Political Price  —  Is politics a zero-sum game?  —  Imagine, for a moment, if Sen. John McCain (R) had somehow won the presidency in 2008.  How might the country be different?  —  We would not have the Affordable Care Act.  Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan would not be on the Supreme Court.

Teamsters Ordered to Stop Picketing Funeral Homes  —  A judge ordered one of Chicago's most politically powerful labor unions to suspend picketing against 16 funeral homes last week after receiving reports that striking Teamsters had, among other things, disturbed a child's funeral.

WHY DEFUNDING OBAMACARE MATTERS, WIN OR LOSE  —  As conservative Senators Mike Lee (R-UT), Ted Cruz (R-TX), and others attempt to build support for a plan to defund Obamacare in this fall's forthcoming budget battles, they have faced criticism from fellow conservatives on two grounds: first …

Informal ‘White Student Union’ started at Georgia State  —  Fall semester won't start for several weeks, but Georgia State University has already received a handful of complaints about a new student club — the White Student Union.  —  Freshman Patrick Sharp said he started the club …

Former Goldman Trader Is Found Liable in Mortgage Deal  —  Fabrice Tourre, the former Goldman Sachs trader at the center of a toxic mortgage deal sold to investors on the eve of the financial crisis, was found liable on Thursday for civil securities fraud.  —  Five years after the crisis …

Jobless Claims in U.S. Fall to Lowest Level in Five Years  —  U.S. Jobless Claims Fall to Lowest Level in 5 Years  —  Claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly dropped to the lowest level in more than five years, extending swings typical for the month of July.

House GOP drafting new food stamp bill with $40B in cuts  —  House Republicans are drafting legislation that would cut $40 billion from the federal food stamp program over 10 years.  —  That's nearly double the $20.5 billion in cuts that were included in the farm bill legislation that failed on the House floor in June.

2016 presidential race: Cory Booker rules out run  —  No, there will not be a 2016 campaign for Cory Booker.  —  The Newark mayor and runaway frontrunner in the special election for the seat of late Sen. Frank Lautenberg's ruled out a presidential run or serving on the ticket of another candidate in the next national campaign.