Robert Gates, former defense secretary, offers harsh critique of Obama's leadership in ‘Duty’  —  In a new memoir, former defense secretary Robert Gates unleashes harsh judgments about President Obama's leadership and his commitment to the Afghanistan war, writing that by early 2010 …

In surprise, unemployment benefits advance  —  In a surprise, several Senate Republicans on Tuesday morning joined with Democrats to break the filibuster of a bill to extend unemployment benefits for three months.  —  By 60-37, Senate Democrats secured the votes needed to advance the bill …

Rush Limbaugh's Polar Vortex ‘Hoax’ Comments Knocked Down By Weatherman (VIDEO)  —  Rush Limbaugh made headlines Monday when he called the “polar vortex” of dangerously cold conditions sweeping across the Midwest a “hoax,” but now an actual weatherman is saying otherwise.

Trey Radel returns to Capitol Hill after cocaine bust, treatment  —  (CNN) - U.S. Rep. Trey Radel, R-Florida, returned to work on Capitol Hill Tuesday for the first time after pleading guilty to cocaine possession last November.  —  He repeatedly apologized for his actions and insisted he's …

Angry Dennis Rodman defends North Korea basketball game  —  (CNN) — Dennis Rodman defended his visit to North Korea with a team of fellow former NBA players in a combative exchange Tuesday, saying the trip was a “great idea for the world.”  —  In an exclusive interview with Chris Cuomo of CNN's …

Daisy Coleman hospitalized in Kansas City after suicide attempt  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Maryville Mo., teenager, who has been at the center of a rape case which made national headlines, was in a Kansas City hospital on Monday night after attempting to take her own life.

Burglars Who Took On F.B.I. Abandon Shadows  —  Stealing J. Edgar Hoover's Secrets: One night in 1971, files were stolen from an F.B.I. office near Philadelphia.  They proved that the bureau was spying on thousands of Americans.  The case was unsolved, until now.

Navy mistakenly sends FOIA plans to reporter  —  The Unites States Navy inadvertently sent a memo to a local NBC News reporter this week detailing how it intended to try and deter requests he had filed under the Freedom Of Information Act.  —  Scott MacFarlane, a reporter for NBC 4 in Washington …

Obamacare ads to hit the Olympic slopes  —  The Obama administration is planning an Olympic-size ad blitz to push health coverage during the Winter Games next month.  —  The Department of Health and Human Services confirmed Tuesday that it has bought advertising time in markets with high rates …

How value judgments cloud social thought.  —  City Journal's Kay Hymowitz weighed in over the holidays with a response to our Dec. 16 column, in which we faulted the premise of her earlier article titled “Boy Trouble.”  She maintains that the main body of the article (which we described as …

What happened to US life expectancy?  —  Here's another chart from the JAMA study “The Anatomy of Health Care in the United States”:  —  Why did the US fall behind the OECD median in the mid-1980s for men and the early 1990s for women?  Note, the answer need not point to the health system.

Surprise!  Walmart health plan is cheaper, offers more coverage than Obamacare  —  WATCHDOG OBAMACARE HEALTH CARE ACCOUNTABILITY WALMART  —  New Obamacare health insurance enrollees may feel a pang of envy when they eye the coverage plans offered by Walmart to its employees.

How the NSA Threatens National Security  —  Our choice isn't between a digital world where the agency can eavesdrop and one where it cannot; our choice is between a digital world that is vulnerable to any attacker and one that is secure for all users.  —  Secret NSA eavesdropping is still in the news.

Six-Year Itch Plagues Presidents in Midterms  —  History shows that midterm elections are usually bad for the president's party.  —  Second-term blues: Fatigue erodes a president's relationship with the electorate.  (Kent Nishimura-Pool/Getty Images)  —  It is as certain as the sun coming up in the morning.