U.S. issues travel alert, will close embassies due to al Qaeda threat  —  (CNN) — A State Department travel alert Friday said al Qaeda may launch attacks in the Middle East, North Africa and beyond, as the United States is closing 21 embassies and consulates Sunday as a precaution.

The Attack in Benghazi: Worth Investigating After All  —  CNN reports that dozens of CIA agents were on the ground there — and that they're being pressured to keep quiet.  Why?  —  Suddenly it is imperative that Congress investigate details surrounding the attack that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens.

Charlie Rangel: Tea Party Is ‘Same Group’ Of ‘White Crackers’ Who Fought Civil Rights  —  In an interview with the Daily Beast published Friday, Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) suggested Tea Partiers are the “same group” who fought for segregation during the Civil Rights movement.

Putin's ‘zero-sum’ misstep  —  President Barack Obama can't come close to living up to the fantasies of a showdown stirred by Vladimir Putin's international flip-off.  —  But for all the calls Thursday to reassess the Russia relationship in the wake of Russia's granting temporary asylum to Edward Snowden …

Seattle officials call for ban on ‘potentially offensive’ language  —  Government workers in the city of Seattle have been advised that the terms “citizen” and “brown bag” are potentially offensive and may no longer be used in official documents and discussions.

Hill gets Obamacare fix  —  Lawmakers and staff can breathe easy — their health care tab is not going to soar next year.  —  The Office of Personnel Management, under heavy pressure from Capitol Hill, will issue a ruling that says the government can continue to make a contribution …

The Soft Underbelly of Obama­care  —  For opponents of Obamacare, it almost seems like the law offers too many targets to choose from.  Its effects on premiums and costs look to be highly unpopular, its perverse incentives are already harming employment, its state exchanges will hand …

U.S. Adds 162,000 Jobs as Growth Remains Sluggish  —  America's employers added 162,000 jobs in July, fewer than expected, with the previous two months revised downward slightly as well.  —  The unemployment rate, which comes from a different survey, ticked down to 7.4 percent as people got jobs or dropped out of the labor force.

Coming to an Old Friend's Aid, With an Eye on the Clinton Image  —  Moments before Huma Abedin stood amid a phalanx of television cameras last week and announced to a national audience that she was standing by her embattled husband, Anthony D. Weiner, she made a quick phone call to a trusted colleague.

Ninth woman accuses San Diego mayor Filner of sexual harassment  —  A ninth woman has emerged to accuse San Diego Mayor Bob Filner (D) of sexual harassment.  —  Emily Gilbert, who was hired to sing at a fundraiser days after Filner took office in December, told Fox5 that Filner grabbed her inappropriately at the event.

How fractured is the GOP?  —  Acombination of early presidential maneuvering and internal policy debate is feeding yet another iteration of that media perennial: the great Republican crackup.  This time it's tea party insurgents vs. get-along establishment fogies fighting principally over two things …

Sex, Money and Gravitas  —  Can a woman effectively run the Federal Reserve?  That shouldn't even be a question.  And Janet Yellen, the vice chairwoman of the Fed's Board of Governors, isn't just up to the job; by any objective standard, she's the best-qualified person in America to take over when Ben Bernanke steps down as chairman.

The ‘Straight Talk Express’ is back: McCain on his fears about the future of the GOP  —  Sen. John McCain has a strong warning for Republicans: Falter on immigration reform and the party will lose in 2016.  —  “If we fail on immigration reform, it won't matter who our nominee …

The Neocon Revival  —  They say you can define what kind of conservative a person is by what year they want to go back to.  Some conservatives, apparently including some in Senator Rand Paul's office, want to go back to the 1850s.  They believe that Abraham Lincoln helped put us on the path to the leviathan state.

Gay couple to sue church over gay marriage opt-out  —  Wealthy gay dad, Barrie Drewitt-Barlow, says he and his civil partner Tony will go to court to force churches to host gay weddings.  —  He told the Essex Chronicle that he will take legal action because “I am still not getting what I want”.

Budget Committee Hearing on Poverty Turns Into Nun-Bashing Tournament  —  As the budget strategy of House Republicans began to unravel Wednesday with the withdrawal from the floor of a major spending bill, Paul Ryan (R-WI), chairman of the Committee on the Budget, appeared unfazed.