Why the Tea Party Is Folding on the Debt Limit  —  They were never irrational, just delusional  —  “You've got to know when to hold them and when to fold them”—thus spake Michele Bachmann in an interview with The Washington Post last week.  Bachmann is, of course, the high priestess of not knowing when to fold them.

Why I'm Getting Sick of Defending Obamacare  —  Incompetence, politics, and delays frustrate advocates of health care reform.  —  It's getting difficult and slinking toward impossible to defend the Affordable Care Act.  The latest blow to Democratic candidates, liberal activists …

The Hillary Clinton Papers: Not Much There  —  In February of 1998, in the midst of the Monica Lewinsky scandal, I interviewed Diane Blair about her dear friend Hillary Clinton.  —  Blair was ill then, suffering from cancer, but she was vehement about two things: that Hillary was a dynamite friend-smart …

Shirley Temple Black, Screen Darling, Dies at 85  —  Shirley Temple Black, who as a dimpled, precocious and determined little girl in the 1930s sang and tap-danced her way to a height of Hollywood stardom and worldwide fame that no other child has reached, died on Monday night at her home in Woodside, Calif. She was 85.

BREAKING: Pipe Break At Coal Facility Contaminates West Virginia Waterway  —  A West Virginia coal slurry impoundment that collapsed in 2012.  —  CREDIT: AP Photo/W.Va. Department of Environmental Protection  —  A coal preparation facility spilled an unknown quantity of coal slurry …

The Left Fights Back  —  This weekend's massive protest in North Carolina shows that the GOP doesn't own morality.  —  I spent most of this past weekend answering two questions: “Why are you so interested in what happens in North Carolina?”  (Posed mainly by people not from North Carolina.)

Bevin, McConnell and TARP  —  Matt Bevin, who is challenging Sen. Mitch McConnell in a Republican primary, calls the 2008 federal bailout of banks and Wall Street giants “irresponsible” and says he would have opposed it as a senator.  —  Yet back in 2008, as an investment fund president …

Clarence Thomas: Society is overly sensitive about race  —  Americans today are too sensitive about race, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas told a gathering of college students in Florida on Tuesday.  —  Speaking at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Fla., Thomas …

American Lugers Annoyed by Group's Gay Rights Video  —  KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia — There was a ripple of discontent over a gay rights issue at the Sochi Games on Tuesday, but it had nothing to do with Russia.  —  Several American doubles lugers said they were irritated …

Karl Rove hits Rand Paul for Bill Clinton bashing  —  Karl Rove took a shot at Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul on Tuesday for attacking Bill Clinton over his “predatory” behavior toward Monica Lewinsky, saying that it's not good strategy for running for president.  —  “Frankly, Rand Paul spending …

Holder Urges States to Repeal Bans on Felons' Voting  —  WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on Tuesday urged states to repeal laws that prohibit felons from voting, a move that would restore the right to vote to millions of people.  —  The call was mostly symbolic …

What AOL's Tim Armstrong Got Right  —  Wonder why it's so hard to “bend the cost curve” in health care?  Look no further than the universal freakout over AOL Inc. chief executive officer Tim Armstrong's recent remarks.  —  For those who haven't been following along at home, a recap …

Florida County Eliminates Minority-Heavy Polling Places  —  Manatee County Supervisor of Elections Mike Bennett (R)  —  On a party-line vote, a Florida county's Republican majority Board of County Commissioners voted Tuesday to eliminate almost one-third of Manatee County's voting sites.

Inslee halts executions in state while he is governor  —  Gov. Jay Inslee this morning announced a moratorium on executions while he is in office: “During my term we will not be executing people.”  —  Gov. Jay Inslee is calling a moratorium on executions while he is governor.

Anti-abortion arsonist sought; accused of groping girl at store  —  Curtis Anton Beseda, who once served 12 years in federal prison for setting fire to abortion clinics in Western Washington, is accused of groping an 11-year-old girl at a Snohomish store.  —  The tips started coming in shortly …

Store Owner: Employee Wore Banana Suit To Look ‘Less Alarming’ While Carrying AK-47  —  The owner of a Beaumont, Tex. gun shop on Tuesday explained why his employee was wearing a banana suit and an AK-47 to promote the store's grand opening this weekend.  —  “To help people know where the new spot is …

The American Precariat  —  When foreign visitors used to describe American culture, they generally settled on different versions of one trait: energy.  Whether driven by crass motivations or spiritual ones, Americans, visitors agreed, worked more frantically, moved more and switched jobs more than just about anybody else on earth.