Republican takeover of Senate appears more and more assured  —  The decision by Sen. John Walsh (D-Mont.) not to seek election in November in the wake of a plagiarism scandal is the latest piece of good news for Republicans as they strive to take control of the Senate in 85 days.

Iraq crisis: ‘It is death valley.  Up to 70 per cent of them are dead’  —  On board Iraqi army helicopter delivering aid to the trapped Yazidis, Jonathan Krohn sees a hellish sight  —  By Jonathan Krohn, aboard an Iraqi Army helicopter on Mount Sinjar  —  Mount Sinjar stinks of death.

The New Racism  —  This is how the civil rights movement ends  —  Long before he became the most powerful man in the Alabama Senate, before he controlled billions of dollars in state money and had lobbyists, governors, and future presidents seeking his favor, Hank Sanders used newspapers and magazines as bathroom tissue.

“Liberal” Is Just A Synonym For “Smug”  —  SHARES  —  It's astonishing that an ideology which such an unbroken track record of failure has adherents who are so incredibly pleased with themselves.  It's like a soda pop executive whose proudest achievement was thinking up New Coke.

Cuomo's Slow-Mo Disaster  —  The New York governor is in deeper legal trouble than he realizes.  —  Andrew Cuomo is in serious trouble.  Preet Bharara, the hard-charging U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, has turned up the heat on his administration's alleged interference …

Carrying a gun way worse than beating your wife: Column  —  This is the loopy view of one New Jersey judge and prosecutor.  —  When Ray Rice beat his wife unconscious in an elevator, New Jersey Superior Court Judge Michael Donio and New Jersey District Attorney Jim McClain agreed to put …

50 Million New Reasons BuzzFeed Wants to Take Its Content Far Beyond Lists  —  Here are three completely crazy insights about BuzzFeed, the viral content start-up:  —  1. BuzzFeed is a web traffic sensation that draws 150 million average monthly viewers.  —  2. Numbered lists, like this one …

Feinstein squares off with Obama  —  Sen. Dianne Feinstein is squaring off with President Obama again, this time over a long-awaited Senate report on the Central Intelligence Agency's harsh interrogation practices.  —  Feinstein, the senior senator from California and chairwoman …

The Libertarian Fantasy  —  In the latest Times Magazine, Robert Draper profiled youngish libertarians — roughly speaking, people who combine free-market economics with permissive social views — and asked whether we might be heading for a “libertarian moment.”  Well, probably not.

Violence breaks out near site of vigil for teen killed by police  —  Updated at 3:50 a.m. with comments from police and shop owners.  —  FERGUSON  • A day of protests and vigils Sunday for an unarmed black teenager who was shot to death by a Ferguson police officer erupted Sunday night with confrontations, looting and gunshots.

Democrats' 2014 strategy: Run like a Republican  —  It's one thing for Democrats running in red parts of the country to sound like Republicans on the campaign trail.  It's another when Democrats running in purple or even blue territory try to do so.  —  Yet that's what's happening in race after race this season.

Iraqi troops and tanks surge into Baghdad amid political turmoil  —  (CNN) — Iraqi troops, security forces and tanks surged into Baghdad on Sunday as political turmoil deepened over who should lead the country.  —  Military tanks were deployed to several neighborhoods in central Baghdad, two Iraqi police officials told CNN.

Obama's ‘lid’ theory of conflict in Iraq  —  BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL BARACK OBAMA IRAQ  —  There's one word President Obama uses a lot in his argument for tightly limiting U.S. military action in Iraq.  The word is “lid.”  —  “Our military is so effective that we can keep a lid on problems wherever we are …