Yahoo webcam images from millions of users intercepted by GCHQ  —  • Optic Nerve program collected Yahoo webcam images in bulk  —  • 1.8m users targeted by UK agency in six-month period alone  —  • Yahoo: ‘A whole new level of violation of our users’ privacy'

GWB Scandal: Release of previously redacted messages reveals new information  —  The private messages that linked Governor Christie's office to lane closures at the George Washington Bridge also contain jokes about causing “traffic problems” at the home of a New Jersey rabbi associated …

Bradley A. Smith: Connecting the Dots in the IRS Scandal  —  The ‘smoking gun’ in the targeting of conservative groups has been hiding in plain sight.  —  The mainstream press has justified its lack of coverage over the Internal Revenue Service targeting of conservative groups because there's been no …

Now on your restaurant bill: Obamacare fee  —  Several restaurants in a Florida chain are asking customers to help foot the bill for Obamacare.  —  Diners at eight Gator's Dockside casual eateries are finding a 1% Affordable Care Act surcharge on their tabs, which comes to 15 cents on a typical $15 lunch tab.

Gay marriages recognized in Kentucky for now  —  At least for now, Kentucky must recognize same-sex marrriages performed in states where it is legal.  —  U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn today made final a ruling issued earlier this month in which he found that Kentucky's marriage amendment …

Boehner says Republicans will lead, but backs away from votes  —  Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Thursday defended the House GOP's go-slow approach on immigration, tax reform and replacing ObamaCare, saying the party wanted to avoid repeating mistakes Democrats made and had to face the “reality” of its limited power in Washington.

Brewer's Foolish Veto  —  In addition to the federal government, 18 states have such statutes and about a dozen other states interpret their state constitutions as extending the same protections, according to the letter.  The statutes, the scholars write, “say that before government can burden …

New F.D.A. Nutrition Labels Would Make ‘Serving Sizes’ Reflect Actual Servings  —  WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration for the first time in two decades will propose major changes to nutrition labels on food packages, putting calorie counts in large type and adjusting portion sizes to reflect how much Americans actually eat.

Mississippi Anti-Gay Discrimination Bill Gutted By House Committee  —  A Mississippi “religious freedom” bill, similar to the one vetoed by Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer Wednesday, has had its most controversial provision stripped out by a legislative committee.  —  The Mississippi Business Journal reported …

The Mammoth Cometh  —  The first time Ben Novak saw a passenger pigeon, he fell to his knees and remained in that position, speechless, for 20 minutes.  He was 16.  At 13, Novak vowed to devote his life to resurrecting extinct animals.  At 14, he saw a photograph of a passenger pigeon in an Audubon Society book and “fell in love.”

Harlem pastor makes bizarre homophobic claim about president on church sign: ‘Obama has released the homo demons on the black man’  —  Pastor James David Manning's homophobic sign was unveiled Sunday in front of the ATLAH World Missionary Church near the corner of W. 123rd St and Lenox Ave.

Generic Ballot Model Shows Senate Control at Tipping Point  —  Look for more partisan conflict and polarization in new Senate  —  Crystal Ball Senior Columnist Alan Abramowitz's discussion of his Senate elections model not only confirms how close we expect the 2014 Senate campaign will be …

Michelle Obama to Appear on ‘Parks and Recreation’  —  UPDATED: The first lady will make a cameo on the one-hour season-six finale.  —  Michelle Obama is heading to Pawnee.  —  The first lady will guest star on the season finale of Parks and Recreation, NBC announced Thursday.

How to fight the war on voting rights: truth, justice and not the Biden way  —  Don't tell the conservative believers of the ‘voter fraud’ myth they're racist or full of hate.  Tell 'em they're afraid - and wrong  —  Biden, and the rest of us, shouldn't make ‘white boy’ jokes.

Gunmen seize government buildings in Ukraine's Crimea, raise Russian flag  —  Kiev, Ukraine (CNN) — Dozens of armed men seized the regional government administration building and parliament in Ukraine's southern Crimea region Thursday and raised the Russian flag in a challenge to the Eastern European country's new leaders.

Obamacare's Failed State Exchanges  —  The federal government spent more than $1.2 billion on state-based online insurance portals that remain broken.  —  The federal government spent more on broken state-run exchanges than it did on its own troubled system.

Paula Deen Compares Her Struggles to ‘That Black’ Openly Gay NFL Prospect Michael Sam  —  The celebrity chef also expressed a newfound “empathy” for other controversial public figures such as “Duck Dynasty” star Phil Robertson  —  Paula Deen's $100 million empire crumbled last year …

Biden to Democrats: Don't Apologize in 2014  —  Vice President Joe Biden says his central message to Democrats is not to apologize for the party's policies heading into the 2014 midterm election.  —  Biden is addressing state party chairmen at a Democratic National Committee summit.

Not safe to display American flag in American high school  —  Today's Dariano v. Morgan Hill Unified School Dist.  (9th Cir. Feb. 27, 2014) upholds a California high school's decision to forbid students from wearing American flag T-shirts on Cinco de Mayo.  (See here and here for more on this case.)