Obama the pariah  —  Democrats in tough reelection races have a blunt message for President Obama: Keep away.  —  Obama's approval ratings are in the basement and show no signs of improving, so Democrats are keeping their distance.  On the stump, in campaign ads and at fundraisers, Obama's absence is increasingly conspicuous.

Rick Perry Is Dead Wrong  —  There are many things I like about Texas Gov. Rick Perry, including his stance on the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.  But apparently his new glasses haven't altered his perception of the world, or allowed him to see it any more clearly.

Endless wave of illegal immigrants floods Rio Grande valley  —  McALLEN, Texas — Life jackets of all sizes and the occasional punctured raft are strewn along the banks of the Rio Grande, just south of Mission, Texas, where a relentless onslaught of illegal immigrants eagerly surrender …

DOJ investigates Nebraska parade float critical of Obama  —  The U.S. Department of Justice has sent a member of its Community Relations Service team to investigate a Nebraska parade float that criticized President Obama.  —  A Fourth of July parade float featured at the annual Independence …

Bergdahl Is Set to Resume Life on Active Duty  —  WASHINGTON — Six weeks after being released from five years in Taliban captivity, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is expected to return to life as a regular Army soldier as early as Monday, Defense Department officials said late Sunday.

CNBC Reporter Torches Rick Santelli: Nothing You've Predicted Has Ever Come True  —  If you're at all familiar with CNBC's Rick Santelli, you know he almost never appears on the network without a shoutfest ensuing.  —  The financial commentator — long considered the godfather …

‘Archie’ Will Die Saving Gay Friend In Comic Book  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) — Archie Andrews will die taking a bullet for his gay best friend.  —  The famous freckle-faced comic book icon is meeting his demise in Wednesday's installment of “Life with Archie” when he intervenes in an assassination attempt …

The Strange Leak of the New Exposé ‘Clinton, Inc.’  —  Sure, hotly anticipated books leak all the time.  But 10 days early?  And by a tipster who seems to be posing as a Tea Partier—but who one source suspects is affiliated with the Clintons?  —  The marketing and publicity folks …

Kansas' Ruinous Tax Cuts  —  There was a windstorm of hasty excuses in recent weeks after Kansas reported that it took in $338 million less than expected in the 2014 fiscal year and would have to dip heavily into a reserve fund.  Spending wasn't cut enough, said conservatives.

Exclusive poll: Karen Lewis could give Rahm run for his money  —  For the past couple of weeks, Karen Lewis has been saying she is “seriously” considering running for mayor.  —  It turns out voters are taking the fiery Chicago Teachers Union president's potential candidacy seriously as well.

The False Statement Of Fact That Forms The Backbone Of John Boehner's Anti-Obama Lawsuit  —  Last January, the two lawyers behind Speaker John Boehner's lawsuit claiming that President Obama is not implementing Obamacare fast enough authored an article in Politico Magazine laying out the legal theory behind this litigation.

Americans' Approval of the Supreme Court Remains Divided  —  Approval among Republicans up 21 percentage points from 2013  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans remain divided in their assessments of the U.S. Supreme Court, with 47% approving of the job it is doing, and 46% disapproving.

Hacking Online Polls and Other Ways British Spies Seek to Control the Internet  —  The secretive British spy agency GCHQ has developed covert tools to seed the internet with false information, including the ability to manipulate the results of online polls, artificially inflate pageview counts on web sites …

Needed: A new team of rivals  —  Maybe it is time for a shake-up.  —  President Obama's second-term staffing was always going to be a risk.  He abandoned his first term's team of rivals for a closer-knit team of loyalists.  The bet was that he was assured enough in the job to no longer need …

Memo to Congress: Please don't scuttle the recovery.  Thanks.  —  In recent days there's been a bit of a debate in Beltway circles over whether Dems should refrain from talking about the recovery, because touting it too aggressively could backfire, given that widespread economic suffering continues.

Israel Intercepts Drone Sent From Gaza  —  JERUSALEM — Israel intercepted a drone sent from Gaza on Monday as it flew just off the shore of the port city of Ashdod, about 14 miles north of the Palestinian enclave, adding a new element to a week-old conflict.