What Putin Has to Say to Americans About Syria  —  MOSCOW — RECENT events surrounding Syria have prompted me to speak directly to the American people and their political leaders.  It is important to do so at a time of insufficient communication between our societies.

Dems Getting Ready to Roll Over on Budget Yet Again  —  Since House Republicans have steadfastly refused to pass a FY2014 budget—mostly on the peculiar grounds that if they did, it would force them to open negotiations with the Senate and run the risk of, um, negotiating …

Ted Cruz: “We Need 100 More Like Jesse Helms”  —  Texas Sen. Ted Cruz started off his Wednesday speech on foreign policy at the conservative Heritage Foundation with a confession: His first political contribution was a $10 contribution to the late Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.), when he was 10.

Montana Lt. Gov. “Accidentally” Liked Picture Of Breasts On Facebook — Then Quickly Scrubbed His Account  —  “Breasts.Proof men can multitask2” reads the image's caption that was liked by a top-tier Democratic recruit for U.S. Senate.  “This was spam,” a Montana Democrat says.

Exclusive: The Koch brothers' secret bank  —  An Arlington, Va.-based conservative group, whose existence until now was unknown to almost everyone in politics, raised and spent $250 million in 2012 to shape political and policy debate nationwide.  —  The group, Freedom Partners …

Pastor Terry Jones arrested with thousands of kerosene-soaked Qurans, deputies say  —  Controversial Gainesville Pastor Terry Jones, known for his plans to publicly burn copies of the Muslim holy book, was arrested Wednesday with thousands of kerosene-soaked Qurans, authorities said.

CBS 2 Investigation: Underground — And Illegal — NYC Dinner Parties  —  NEW YORK (CBS 2) — As you sit down to dinner, this story illustrates eating out like you have never experienced before.  We are talking about super-secret, illegal dining experiences hosted in homes.

D.C. executive linked to secret 2008 aid to Hillary Clinton  —  The D.C. businessman at the center of an ongoing city corruption investigation secretly spent more than a half-million dollars on get-out-the-vote efforts for Hillary Rodham Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign, according to interviews and court documents filed Wednesday.

Biden scraps trip to Panama amid Syria crisis  —  The vice president still plans to visit Savannah, Ga., Charleston, S.C., and Mexico later this mont, the White House said.  —  In Panama, the vice president had planned to meet with President Ricardo Martinelli to discuss accelerating regional economic growth.

So, you want a job in policy?  —  I haven't worked a “real job” since being an undergrad.  However, I often get asked by undergrads for advice about preparations for real world policy jobs.  I recently asked my former PhD student, Kate Kidder, a research associate at the Center for a New American Security …

Lois Lerner's Own Words  —  Emails undercut the official IRS story on political targeting.  —  Congress's investigation into the IRS targeting of conservatives has been continuing out of the Syria headlines, and it's turning up news.  Emails unearthed by the House Ways …

Reid: ‘Anarchists have taken over’ in Congress (Video)  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Thursday said “anarchists” have taken over Congress.  —  Reid (D-Nev.) said Tea Party Republicans are preventing progress on an energy efficiency bill by offering amendments on ObamaCare and other unrelated issues.