Exclusive: CIA Files Prove America Helped Saddam as He Gassed Iran  —  The U.S. knew Hussein was launching some of the worst chemical attacks in history — and still gave him a hand.  —  The U.S. government may be considering military action in response to chemical strikes near Damascus.

U.S., Citing ‘Moral Obscenity’ in Syria, Weighs Response  —  Kerry Calls Attacks ‘Undeniable’; U.N. Reaches Attack Site After U.S. Issued Caution Over Mission  —  Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday that the Syrian government's use of chemical weapons against civilians is a …

Controversial rodeo clown speaks out after death threats  —  A rodeo clown's controversial Missouri State Fair antics went viral after wearing a President Barack Obama mask and mocking the nation's leader.  —  It divided people across the country on whether Tuffy Gessling's stunt was disrespectful to Obama.

Boehner aide: Obama must consult with Congress on Syria  —  An aide to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) warned the White House on Monday it must consult with Congressional leaders before taking any military action in Syria.  —  Boehner spokesman Brendan Buck said in a blog post that the president …

Drone crashes into Virginia bull run crowd  —  An aerial drone, a pilotless aircraft of the type that has aroused intense public discussion in recent months, crashed Saturday into the stands at a public event in Virginia that has also aroused heated discourse.

Tea Party Now Covering News for Washington Post  —  The Washington Post's lead Sunday news story is one of the weirdest, and most weirdly biased, news articles I've ever read in my life.  The point of the story — headlined “After six budget showdowns, big government is mostly unchanged” …

TWENTY-FOUR-HOUR PARTY PEOPLE  —  When the news broke—"cleveland kidnapping victims free"—Rachel Maddow wasn't sure she had much to add.  It was the kind of story that cable news loves: three women had been abducted and held hostage for years, until a garrulous local man named Charles Ramsey helped kick …

How America Spies on Europe and the UN  —  President Obama promised that NSA surveillance activities were aimed exclusively at preventing terrorist attacks.  But secret documents from the intelligence agency show that the Americans spy on Europe, the UN and other countries.

Leahy: SJC Will Hold Hearing On Federal And State Marijuana Laws In September  —  WASHINGTON - Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) announced Monday that the Committee will hold a hearing next month on the conflict between state and federal marijuana laws.

Is Obama the worst president ever?  —  “If you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan.”  — President Obama, Aug. 11, 2009  —  So said President Obama again and again through 2009 and 2010 as he sold Obamacare to the country.  He promised.  He put his personal integrity on the line.

The Outsiders: How Can Millennials Change Washington If They Hate It?  —  Young people are eager to serve and to change the world.  They just have no faith that public service or elected office are the way to get it done.  —  Forget what you've read about the “Me, Me, Me Generation.”

Tea party: Obamacare is now ‘BoehnerCare’  —  Tea party activists are planning to rally outside of House Speaker John A. Boehner's Ohio office on Tuesday, telling the Republican speaker that if he doesn't use this year's spending fight to defund the health care law, it will hence be known to them as “BoehnerCare.”

Under Obama, Little Progress on High-Level Jobs for Women  —  WASHINGTON — Behind the roiling conversation over whether President Obama might make Janet L. Yellen the first female leader of the Federal Reserve is an uncomfortable reality for the White House: the administration has named …

ProPublica Joins NSA Chase  —  Broadening the journalistic front on the National Security Agency documents leaked by Edward Snowden.  —  A new National Security Agency facility in Utah.  —  George Frey / Getty Images  —  The nonprofit investigative reporting group ProPublica is among …

GOP 2016 hopefuls slated for NYC event  —  Six of the Republican Party's stars and potential 2016 nominees — including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Sens. Marco Rubio and Rand Paul and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker — will jointly headline a fundraiser for the Republican National Committee in New York next month, POLITICO has learned.

Julian Assange Sang And Danced In A Parody Rap Video For Some Awful Reason  —  The WikiLeaks founder raps and sings and it's really strange.  —  Wikileaks founder Julian Assange guest-starred in a satirical music video (he shows up around 3:30) and parodied an Australian '80s pop hit... while wearing a mullet.

Iowa GOP Not Conservative Enough?  —  At the New York Times yesterday, Jonathan Martin wrote a catch-up piece for those who haven't been paying attention (or reading Political Animal) to the early 2016 GOP skirmishing over and in Iowa.  Long story short: Iowa Republicans are nervous …

Treasury tells Congress nation will breach debt ceiling in mid-October  —  The Treasury Department has told Congress it must raise the $16.7 trillion national debt limit by mid-October.  —  Treasury Secretary Jack Lew in a letter sent Monday to lawmakers said his department would exhaust the …

Report: Snowden stayed at Russian consulate while in Hong Kong  —  MOSCOW — Before American fugitive Edward Snowden arrived in Moscow in June — an arrival that Russian officials have said caught them by surprise — he spent several days living at the Russian Consulate in Hong Kong, a Moscow newspaper reported Monday.

Syria will require more than cruise missiles  —  Eliot A. Cohen teaches at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.  He directed the U.S. Air Force's Gulf War Air Power Survey from 1991 to 1993.  —  In 1994, after directing the U.S. Air Force's official study of the Persian Gulf War …

Openly gay minister ordained in Minneapolis  —  Daniel Vigilante is now the minister of outreach at Trinity Community Church at 28th and Humboldt Avenue.  —  He tried to get ordained 13 years ago, but he had to remove himself from the process because the church wouldn't accept his sexual orientation.

Don't fear talking about race  —  Editor's note: Ruben Navarrette is a CNN contributor and a nationally syndicated columnist with the Washington Post Writers Group.  Follow him on Twitter: @rubennavarrette  —  San Diego, California (CNN) — Americans are told we need to have a national conversation in which we talk about race.