The Minority Maker  —  Ted Cruz hurts his party by forcing a meaningless debt-ceiling vote.

Chris Christie's Entire Career Reeks  —  It's not just the bridge  —  Has there ever been a political reversal of fortune as rapid and as absolute as the one just experienced by Chris Christie?  At warp speed, the governor of New Jersey has gone from the most popular politician in the country …

Latest Obamacare Delay Is Probably Illegal  —  The Barack Obama administration recently announced that it is going to delay the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's employer mandate for medium-size companies and reduce the requirements for larger businesses.  Again?  What does it all mean?!

Sad fake “millennial” anti-debt group completely broke and confused  —  The Can Kicks Back is confronting both funding and identity crises  —  Everyone is having a bit of a laugh today at the expense of “The Can Kicks Back,” the youth-oriented affiliate of the group known as “Fix the Debt …

Bobby Jindal to warn of ‘silent war’ on religion  —  In a Thursday night speech at Ronald Reagan's presidential library, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal will warn of a “silent war” on religious liberty in America and urge states to pass laws designed to block overreach by the Obama administration.

Another senior House Republican announces retirement  —  Washington (CNN) - Republican Rep. Doc Hastings of Washington state announced Thursday that he'll retire at the end of this year rather than run for re-election in November.  —  Hastings, who currently serves as the chairman …

Facebook goes beyond ‘male’ and ‘female’ with new gender options  —  (CNN) — You don't have to be strictly a man or a woman on Facebook anymore.  —  In a nod to the “it's complicated” sexual identities of many of its users, the social network on Thursday added a third “custom” gender option for people's profiles.

U.S. senator drops bombshell during VW plant union vote  —  (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee said on Wednesday he has been “assured” that if workers at the Volkswagen AG plant in his hometown of Chattanooga reject United Auto Worker representation, the company will reward the plant with a new product to build.

How Comcast Buying Time Warner Cable Could Impact You — And The Entire Entertainment Industry  —  Comcast Cable President and CEO Neil Smit.  —  CREDIT: AP Images/Evan Agostini  —  Today, Comcast, already the country's largest provider of cable television, announced that it would spend $45 billion …

Ninth Circuit holds Second Amendment secures a right to carry a gun  —  So holds today's Peruta v. County of San Diego (9th Cir. Feb. 13, 2014) (2-1 vote).  The court concludes that California's broad limits on both open and concealed carry of loaded guns — with no “shall-issue” …

Some snow is on the ground at the highest elevations of the Big Island of Hawaii.  —  Snow is on the ground in 49 out of the 50 states — only the Sunshine State of Florida is completely snow-free, according to a map produced Thursday morning by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Thomas Speaks ... Blindly About Race  —  Associate Justice Clarence Thomas doesn't often speak during oral arguments before the Supreme Court.  —  But often what he says outside the chamber is eyebrow-raising.  Such was the case Tuesday when Thomas told an audience at Palm Beach Atlantic University:

Is opposing gay marriage the same as being a racist?  —  Conservative opposition to same sex marriage is deeply rooted in religious belief  —  W  —  riting at The New Republic, Isaac Chotiner doesn't much appreciate my argument about the growing cockiness of secular liberals.

Wednesday Was Full of Good News for Obamacare.  Here Are the Charts That Prove It.  —  More Americans enrolled in Obamacare plans in January than expected, according to data released Wednesday by the Obama administration.  The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had expected to sign up 1,059,900 people last month.

Exclusive: Snowden Swiped Password From NSA Coworker - NBC News  —  A civilian NSA employee recently resigned after being stripped of his security clearance for allowing former agency contractor Edward Snowden to use his pers...

Rand Paul and Ken Cuccinelli accused of stealing NSA lawsuit  —  Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has been caught using purloined passages in several of his speeches.  Now the aspiring presidential candidate stands accused of filing a lawsuit stolen from its author.  —  Since December …

Why the Republican Push for Black Voters Is (Mostly) Doomed to Fail  —  As long as the GOP is pushing voter-ID laws that make it harder for African Americans to vote, the party's appeal to identity politics will come up short.  —  The GOP has a new strategy for turning African Americans into Republicans.

Progressive Values in Action?  —  New York's city council has some strange priorities.  —  At her January inauguration, New York city council speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito told her colleagues, “Now is the time to embrace our progressive moment and put our values into action.”