Did Jonathan Gruber Just Endorse the Anti-Obamacare Lawsuit?  —  Obamacare architect offers an explanation for his 2012 quote  —  Did the people who designed Obamacare intend to deprive millions of people of health insurance, just because officials in their states decided not to operate their own insurance marketplaces?

CNN/ORC Poll: Majority say no to impeachment and lawsuit  —  Washington (CNN) - There's not a lot of public appetite for a Republican push to sue President Barack Obama, or for calls by some conservatives to impeach him, according to a new national survey.  —  A CNN/ORC International poll …

Paul Ryan's Anti-Poverty Plan Is Paternalistic  —  It's also a thoughtful, compassionate blueprint for a better social safety net.  —  Paul Ryan has just released a new anti-poverty plan, and it's a doozy.  Though the plan is very much a work in progress—Ryan's team calls it a …

More Plagiarism From “One Of The Web's Deeply Original Writers”  —  Yesterday, this blog posted an article about serial plagiarism by Buzzfeed's Benny Johnson that came after said reporter called out another publication for plagiarizing his own work.  Gawker's J.K. Trotter eventually managed …

Left Coast Rising  —  The states, Justice Brandeis famously pointed out, are the laboratories of democracy.  And it's still true.  For example, one reason we knew or should have known that Obamacare was workable was the post-2006 success of Romneycare in Massachusetts.

The Moment of Truth on Corporate Welfare  —  It seems like decades since Republicans have been able to permanently zero out a government program of any size.  The tea-party base often doesn't take seriously the GOP's commitment to shrinking government and has accused the GOP of ladling out benefits to the elite and well connected.

Kerry Proposes Weeklong Halt to Fighting in Gaza Strip  —  CAIRO — Secretary of State John Kerry has proposed a two-stage plan to halt the fighting in the Gaza Strip that would first impose a weeklong truce starting Sunday, an official involved in the negotiations said on Friday.

Joan Rivers — GOES OFF on Epic Israel/Palestine Rant  —  GOES OFF ON EPIC  —  Israel/Palestine Rant  —  EXCLUSIVE  —  Joan Rivers jettisoned comedy for politics ... unleashing an impassioned defense of Israel that included an awesome New York/New Jersey analogy.

Ben Carson Sold More Books Than Hillary Clinton Last Week  —  For many book buyers last week, choosing whether to buy Ben Carson's new book or Hillary Clinton's new memoir was not a hard choice.  —  According to Nielsen Bookscan numbers provided to The Daily Caller, Carson's ""One Nation" …

Americans' Reaction to Middle East Situation Similar to Past  —  Divided on whether Israel's actions against Hamas justified  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Americans are divided in their views of whether Israel's actions against the Palestinian group Hamas is “mostly justified” or “mostly unjustified …

Rejected atheist booth in city hall draws lawsuit  —  WARREN, Mich. (AP) — The American Civil Liberties Union in Michigan and two other groups filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday seeking an injunction against a Michigan city's ban on an atheist booth in a municipal building.