Boehner: The Nation Will Be On ‘The Path’ To Default If Obama Doesn't Accept GOP Demands  —  House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) said the nation would default on its debt later this month if President Obama does not agree to GOP's demands to cut spending and change parts of the Affordable Care Act.

GOP congressman: We stumbled into war over Obamacare  —  BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL OBAMACARE REPUBLICAN PARTY HARRY REID JOHN BOEHNER  —  On Thursday afternoon, as the government shutdown entered its third day, a Republican member of the House sat down with a group of reporters in an office building not far from the Capitol.

A Federal Budget Crisis Months in the Planning  —  WASHINGTON — Shortly after President Obama started his second term, a loose-knit coalition of conservative activists led by former Attorney General Edwin Meese III gathered in the capital to plot strategy.  Their push to repeal …

CBS Host Takes Apart GOP's Shutdown Argument  —  Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn (R-TX) was unable to explain why Republicans needed to threaten economic disaster to try to get their way on Obamacare during an interview on CBS's Face The Nation on Sunday.  —  Bob Schieffer, Face the Nation's host …

Cuccinelli shuns Cruz limelight  —  RICHMOND, Va.— That was awkward.  —  In the clearest sign yet of the potent effect of the government shutdown on the Virginia governor's race, Republican Ken Cuccinelli avoided being photographed with Ted Cruz at a gala they headlined here Saturday night …

U.S. forces strike in Libya, Somalia, capture al Qaeda operative  —  (CNN) — In two operations in Africa nearly 3,000 miles apart, U.S. military forces went after two high-value targets over the weekend.  —  One operation took place early Saturday in the Libyan capital of Tripoli …

Where's sense of crisis in a 17% government shutdown?  —  BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL CONGRESS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN  —  Everyone knows the phrase “government shutdown” doesn't mean the entire U.S. government is shut down.  So in a partial government shutdown, like the one underway at the moment …

Getting Older, Growing Poorer  —  The basic outlines of poverty in America are sadly familiar.  At last count, 46.5 million people were poor — 15 percent of the population.  Women and children, especially in single-mother families, were, as always, hit hardest.

Shutdown Crisis: We Need a Hostage Negotiator  —  With Washington held hostage by the far-right, the shutdown crisis is stuck in stalemate.  John Avlon talks to a former FBI hostage negotiator about how to break the deadlock.  Yes, it's come to this.  —  With the government shutdown entering …

The rise of the New Confederacy  —  It took on new force with fears of the federal government in Washington interfering with their cherished way of life.  It gathered steam with the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860.  And it all came into full flower when shore batteries fired on Fort Sumter.