WATCH: Rand Paul Says Jimmy Carter Was Better on the Budget Than Ronald Reagan  —  The Kentucky senator has been hailing Reagan lately.  But a few years ago, Paul routinely knocked the Republican icon as a fiscal failure.  —  As Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) ponders a presidential bid …

An Orwellian dissent from a muddled ruling.  —  You might have heard that the Supreme Court ruled 6-2 today that states have the right to ban racial preferences, euphemistically known as “affirmative action,” in public-university admission, but that's not quite right.

Poll Shows Tight Senate Races in Four Southern States  —  Four Senate races in the South that will most likely determine control of Congress appear very close, with Republicans benefiting from more partisan intensity but a Democratic incumbent, once seen as highly vulnerable, holding a surprising edge …

Pornography Victims Get Partial Compensation, Court Says  —  People convicted of possessing child pornography must pay victims a share of the economic losses they endured, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a decision that tossed out a $3.4 million award and drew dissents from both directions.

How Lindsey Graham outmaneuvered the tea party  —  Part of an occasional series on the hottest races of the 2014 midterm election.  —  SUMMERVILLE, S.C. — Sen. Lindsey Graham recognized the threat years before it had a chance to form — and knew immediately what he had to do.

Jihadists Now Control Secretive U.S. Base in Libya  —  A camp on the Libyan coastline meant to train terror-hunters has instead become a haven for terrorists and al Qaeda.  —  A key jihadist leader and longtime member of al Qaeda has taken control of a secretive training facility set …

D'Souza Case Is Political, Lawyer Says  —  When the conservative author and filmmaker Dinesh D'Souza was charged in January with illegally using straw donors to contribute to a 2012 New York Republican Senate campaign, his lawyer denied that he had acted with any corrupt or criminal intent.

Attitudes About Mandated Coverage of Birth Control Medication and Other Health Benefits in a US National Sample  —  FREE ONLINE FIRST  —  Michelle H. Moniz, MD1; Matthew M. Davis, MD, MAPP2; Tammy Chang, MD, MPH, MS3  —  JAMA.  —  Tables  —  References

Thomas Piketty Is Right  —  Everything you need to know about ‘Capital in the Twenty-First Century’  —  Capital in the Twenty-First Century by Thomas Piketty, translated by Arthur Goldhammer (Belknap Press)  —  Income inequality in the United States and elsewhere has been worsening since the 1970s.

CBO Finds Health Reform's Medicaid Expansion Is an Even Better Deal for States  —  Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates released last week show that health reform's Medicaid expansion, which many opponents wrongly claim will cripple state budgets, is an even better deal for states than previously thought.

IRS gave bonuses to employees who owed back taxes.  And that's not all.  —  So, where do you work?  That's a question Internal Revenue Service employees must dread.  Besides the fact that nobody like paying taxes, the agency's reputation has suffered in the past year because of accusations …

Jeb Bush: I'm ‘thinking about’ 2016 run  —  Jeb Bush on Wednesday was the most vocal he's been about considering a run for the White House in 2016.  —  The Republican told a crowd of about 200 people at a Catholic Charities fundraiser in New York that he is “thinking about running for president,” according to an attendee.

Amid Politics, Obama Drifted Away From Kin  —  BOSTON — After Zeituni Onyango, the woman President Obama once called Auntie, died in a South Boston nursing home this month, her closest relatives gathered her belongings at her nearby apartment.  There, framed photographs of her with the president covered the wall.

Up in Arms: Georgia Governor To Sign Controversial Gun Bill Wednesday  —  Opponents, like Stephanie Stone of Atlanta, argue the law misinterprets the Second Amendment and will promote a culture of guns.  —  “I think this bill is reckless,” she said.  “I think it's dangerous and irresponsible.”

DOJ announces clemency overhaul, allows release for some after 10 years  —  The Justice Department moved Wednesday to significantly expand the number of people eligible for clemency, issuing new guidelines allowing certain prisoners who already have served at least 10 years behind bars to apply for release.