Robert McDonnell guilty of 11 corruption counts  —  RICHMOND — A federal jury Thursday found former Virginia governor Robert F. McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, guilty of public corruption — sending a message that they believed the couple sold the office once occupied by Patrick Henry …

National G.O.P. Moves to Take Over Campaign of a Kansas Senator  —  WASHINGTON — National Republicans on Thursday moved to take control of the campaign of Senator Pat Roberts of Kansas by sending a longtime party strategist to the state to advise him, a day after his hopes for re-election …

Hacker Breached HealthCare.gov Insurance Site  —  A hacker broke into the HealthCare.gov insurance enrollment website in July and uploaded malicious software, but there was no evidence consumers' personal data was taken.

The need for a mighty U.S. military  —  The writer is the former governor of Massachusetts.  In 2012, the Republican Party nominated him for president of the United States.  —  Russia invades, China bullies, Iran spins centrifuges, the Islamic State (a terrorist threat “beyond anything that we've seen …

Apple CEO Denies a Lax Attitude Toward Security Allowed Hackers to Post Nude Photos of Celebrities  —  Apple Inc. said it plans additional steps to keep hackers out of user accounts but denied that a lax attitude toward security had allowed intruders to post nude photos of celebrities on the Internet.

Obamacare Lawsuits Just Suffered a Big Setback  —  What it means and how the legal challenge could play out  —  The latest big legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act—the one that could potentially deprive millions of people of subsidies, making it impossible for them to get insurance …

Survey of Consumer Finances  —  2013 Survey of Consumer Finances  —  The 2013 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) is the most recent survey conducted.  Below are links to the bulletin article, historical bulletin tables, full public dataset, extract dataset, replicate weight files, and documentation.

Early Voting in Ohio, Despite Republican Objections  —  A federal judge's decision this morning to allow early voting in Ohio is a big victory for those who think voting should be easier and more accessible.  It was also a remarkable decision in purely human terms, showing …

Joan Rivers, a Comedic Stiletto, Dies at 81  —  Joan Rivers, the raspy loudmouth who pounced on America's obsessions with flab, face-lifts, body hair and other blemishes of neurotic life, including her own, in five decades of caustic comedy that propelled her from nightclubs to television …

America's confused foreign policy in the post-Soviet sphere  —  As the tragedy of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 showed, one needs to look no further than the pro-Russian Ukrainian separatists' own Facebook pages to identify the culprits of these murders and the supporters empowering them.

Blood cotton  —  The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism.  By Edward Baptist.  Basic Books; 498 pages; $35.  Buy from Amazon.com, Amazon.com  —  “FOR sale: a coloured girl, of very superior qualifications...a bright mulatto, fine figure, straight …

Holder: Civil rights probe into Trayvon Martin shooting still active  —  Attorney General Eric Holder said Thursday that the federal civil rights investigation into the 2012 killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin remains active, noting “recent developments” in the case.

How to save the lives of troubled vets  —  After more than a decade of war, there are many American heroes who served in the military with valor and distinction who are now bravely facing the challenges of post-traumatic stress disorder when they return home.

DNC chief walks back Scott Walker ‘words’  —  Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz says she used words she “shouldn't have” in her attack against Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, in which she said he “has given women the back of his hand.”

Pursuing ISIS to the Gates of Hell  —  Over the past two weeks, the American foreign-policy debate has dramatically changed.  The key to understanding why lies in a book.  —  The book is called Special Providence.  Published 13 years ago by Walter Russell Mead, it remains, for my money …