Is the prosecution of Dinesh d'Souza politically motivated?  —  “It is not clear from the court documents what led investigators to Mr. D'Souza in a fund-raising case involving relatively small donations, in a race that ended in a blowout win for Ms. Gillibrand.  Ms. Long raised about $785,000 in the race.”

Boehner on ‘Tonight Show’: Shutdown was a ‘predictable disaster’  —  House Speaker John A. Boehner speaks with Jay Leno on “The Tonight Show.”  (Paul Drinkwater / NBC / January 23, 2014)  —  House Speaker John A. Boehner called last fall's government shutdown a “very predictable disaster” …

Just What the Political Doctor Ordered: John Bolton!  —  So if the potential 2016 Republican presidential field is looking a bit thinner with all of Chris Christie's problems, have no fear, GOPers: an old friend may be coming to your assistance, per WSJ's Neil King:

Mike Huckabee Raises Specter of Holocaust In Warning Tea Party To Back Off Purity Tests  —  WASHINGTON — Whether or not Mike Huckabee is at all serious when he says he's thinking about another presidential run in 2016, what he says still matters to the conservative evangelical wing of the Republican party.

Planet Hillary  —  Hillary Clinton was nodding solemnly to the mother of a 9/11 victim when Huma Abedin, standing across the room, called out, “Let's load!” to the staff members and bodyguards.  The former secretary of state had yet to pick up her award from the Voices of September 11th …

Exclusive: Federal Probe into New Jersey Sen. Menendez Is Widening  —  The Justice Department is investigating Menendez's efforts on behalf of two businessmen from Ecuador  —  The federal criminal investigation into New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez is broader than previously known, NBC 4 New York has learned.

RNC moves toward 2016 changes despite conservative outrage  —  A Republican National Committee meeting to compress the 2016 primary schedule grew heated Thursday, as supporters of rule changes beat back repeated attempts by a handful of conservative activists to torpedo them.

Moody's: Uncertain healthcare landscape leads to negative outlook for US health insurers  —  Moody's changed the outlook for US health insurers to negative from stable, as implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)continues to create uncertainty for the industry, says Moody's Investors Service …

U.S. Willing to Hold Talks if Snowden Pleads Guilty  —  WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said Thursday that the United States was willing to discuss how the criminal case against Edward J. Snowden would be handled, but only if Mr. Snowden pleaded guilty first.

Watch what happens when Obama picks a top donor as ambassador  —  This is why a future president might finally do away with the practice of nominating a top political donor to be an ambassador.  —  Here's how the White House described wealthy executive George Tsunis when President Barack Obama nominated …

The Populist Imperative  —  “The outstanding faults of the economic society in which we live are its failure to provide for full employment and its arbitrary and inequitable distribution of wealth and incomes.”  —  John Maynard Keynes wrote that in 1936, but it applies to our own time, too.

Industry Awakens to Threat of Climate Change  —  WASHINGTON — Coca-Cola has always been more focused on its economic bottom line than on global warming, but when the company lost a lucrative operating license in India because of a serious water shortage there in 2004, things began to change.

Dem Congressional Candidate ‘Likes’ Graphic With N-Word and ‘Ching Chong’ on Facebook  —  Erin Bilbray, a Democratic congressional candidate in Nevada, uses Facebook to connect with friends and supporters alike.  She also uses it to express support for musicians (Amy Winehouse, Dave Matthews) and, well, other not-so-wholesome things.

Too old to be given cancer treatment: NHS is ‘writing off’ patients who are over 75  — Young lung cancer sufferers are only 10 per cent more likely to die within five years than their continental counterparts  —  Pensioners with cancer are being written off as too old to treat, campaigners said yesterday.