Firm disowns lobbyist selling anti-gay bill  —  A K Street lobbying giant joined a brewing battle over gay and lesbian rights Tuesday when it disowned a former employee who is hawking legislation to bar gays from the National Football League (NFL).  —  In an unusual public rebuke …

Obesity Rate for Young Children Plummets 43% in a Decade  —  Federal health authorities on Tuesday reported a stunning 43 percent drop in the obesity rate among 2- to 5-year-old children over the past decade, the first broad decline in an epidemic that often leads to lifelong struggles …

Issa, House GOP to recall Lois Lerner  —  House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) is hauling Lois Lerner back to Congress.  —  Issa told Lerner's attorney in a Tuesday letter that he expected the retired IRS official to appear before his committee on March 5.

Obama: OFA volunteers doing 'God's work'  —  Touting the latest White House Obamacare benchmark, President Barack Obama told his political base not to be discouraged by partisan attacks and stressed that their cause is divine.  —  About 4 million people have signed up for private health care plans under …

Tommy Christopher out at Mediaite  —  Mediaite and its illustrious White House Correspondent Tommy Christopher have parted ways, The Mirror has learned.  And it wasn't voluntary.  We're told Christopher was fired.  Details are still forthcoming.  —  In the past year there were murmurings …

Biden: ‘I May Be a White Boy, But I Can Jump’  —  During a celebration of African-American History Month, Vice President Joe Biden said, “I may be a white boy, but I can jump.”  The comments were made at Biden's home, the Naval Observatory.  —  Via the pool report:

Boehner's Favorability Returns to Pre-Shutdown Levels  —  Thirty-two percent view speaker favorably, 50% unfavorably  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — After suffering record-low favorability for his tenure as House speaker in October, John Boehner's image among Americans has rebounded to pre-shutdown levels.

Oops: GOP Bill Would Strip 1 Million Workers Of Health Coverage  —  A Republican-led bill designed to “save American workers” would cause 1 million workers to lose their health care coverage and increase the deficit by $74 billion, according to Congress' official scorekeeper.

Lacking votes, Reid stalling action on minimum wage hike legislation  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Tuesday delayed action on legislation raising the minimum wage, the centerpiece of the Democrats' 2014 agenda.  —  The Nevada Democrat made the surprising move amid escalating Democratic resistance …

Businessmen a boon or bust for Senate Republicans' chances?  —  Republicans are banking on businessmen to help them retake the Senate in 2014.  —  A half-dozen top GOP candidates boast records as wealthy businessmen and entrepreneurs.  If voters decide they're successful job creators on Election Day …

House slaps IRS on targeting, transparency  —  The House voted Tuesday to stop the IRS from asking intrusive political questions, and to block it from sharing taxpayer data without telling taxpayers.  —  Members passed the two Republican bills after brief debate that heard some Democratic complaints …

Obama Should End America's Stupidest Foreign Policy: Isolating Cuba  —  What rational basis is there for punishing the Castro regime when the U.S. will trade with China, talk to Iran, or deal with Vietnam?  It's time to end the cold war that outlasted the Cold War.

The Clinton library's secret files  —  A trove of Clinton White House records long processed for release remains hidden from public view at the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock — even though the legal basis initially used to withhold them expired more than a year ago.

Mt.Gox site disappears, Bitcoin future in doubt  —  What was once the world's largest trading platform for bitcoins is now a blank page.  —  The Bitcoin-trading website Mt.Gox was taken offline late Monday, putting at risk millions of dollars put there by investors who gambled on the digital currency.

CPAC reverses decision, will not allow atheist group at conservative conference  —  Washington - Organizers for the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference will not allow American Atheists to have an exhibition booth at the conservative conference, the group's spokeswoman said Tuesday.