Are Reform Conservatives Serious?  —  After Lyndon B. Johnson's landslide victory in 1964 and during the rush of progressive legislation that followed, Republicans decided they needed to respond with some proposals of their own.  It was the high tide of Great Society liberalism …

Mr. Shinseki Takes the Fall  —  The resignation of Secretary Eric Shinseki from the Veterans Affairs Department was probably unavoidable, under the principle that a leader should accept full responsibility for a great scandal.  But the department's problem was not Mr. Shinseki.  It has been broken for years.

Laverne Cox Is Not a Woman  —  The world is abuzz with news that actor Laverne Cox has become the first transgender person to appear on the cover of Time magazine.  If I understand the current state of the ever-shifting ethic and rhetoric of transgenderism, that is not quite true …

Mark Zuckerberg and Dr. Priscilla Chan: Why we're committing $120 million to Bay Area schools  —  Mark Zuckerberg and Dr. Priscilla Chan for the Bay Area News Group  —  Helping improve the quality of public education in this country is something we both really care about.

Chuck Hagel: China territorial claims destabilize region  —  SINGAPORE — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel warned an international security conference Saturday that the U.S. “will not look the other way” when nations such as China try to restrict navigation or ignore international rules and standards.

Ban lifted on Medicare coverage for sex change surgery  —  The Obama administration on Friday ended a 33-year ban on Medicare coverage for gender reassignment surgery — a major victory for transgender rights and a decision that is likely to put pressure on more insurers to provide coverage for such services.

Letter of 200 Concerned Black Men calling for the Inclusion of Women and Girls in “My Brothers Keeper”  —  Posted here is the Letter of 200 Concerned Black Men Calling for the Inclusion of Women and Girls to the President's “My Brother's Keeper” Initiative.  The open letter questions …

Suicide Bomber Is Identified as a Florida Man  —  WASHINGTON — An American who blew himself up in an attack in Syria on Sunday has been identified by law enforcement officials as Moner Mohammad Abusalha, a man in his early 20s who grew up in Florida and traveled to Syria late last year.

Hillary Clinton's Legacy at State Dept.: A Hawk With Clipped Wings  —  As secretary of state, Clinton was more hawkish than the White House, and at key moments was ineffectual at swinging policy her way.

FBI, SEC probe trading of Carl Icahn, Billy Walters and Phil Mickelson  —  Federal investigators are pursuing an insider-trading probe into whether golfer Phil Mickelson and Las Vegas sports bettor William “Billy” Walters traded on nonpublic information from Carl Icahn.

War Nerd: What's happening in Eastern Ukraine is very simple, rational, and straightforward … What's happening in Eastern Ukraine is very simple, rational, and straightforward.  —  Russia has what it wanted—Crimea, a Russian-majority peninsula with better beaches than the rest of Russia put together …

Police didn't search database showing Calif. shooter had bought guns  —  SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — With the toughest gun-control regulations in the country, California has a unique, centralized database of gun purchases that law enforcement officers can easily search.