Ray Rice — ELEVATOR KNOCKOUT ... Fiancee Takes Crushing Punch (Video)  —  ELEVATOR KNOCKOUT  —  Fiancee Takes Crushing Punch (Video)  —  EXCLUSIVE  —  This is what a two game suspension looks like — Ray Rice delivering a vicious punch to his fiancee's face, knocking her out cold ... and TMZ Sports has the shocking video.

Scots, What the Heck?  —  Next week Scotland will hold a referendum on whether to leave the United Kingdom.  And polling suggests that support for independence has surged over the past few months, largely because pro-independence campaigners have managed to reduce the “fear factor” …

The threat to American democracy  —  We are at a pivotal moment in American history.  —  Building the United States of America has been long, arduous and rife with setbacks.  But throughout the years, we have undoubtedly moved toward a more inclusive democracy.  We expanded the right to vote.

Presidential Leadership Scholars  —  A partnership between the presidential centers of George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Lyndon B. Johnson that brings together a select group of leaders who share a desire to solve complex challenges and create positive change.

Destroying ISIS May Take Years, U.S. Officials Say  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is preparing to carry out a phased campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria that may take three years to eventually destroy the terrorist army — requiring a sustained effort that could last until …

Facing Dem attacks, could new GOP strategy end birth control wars?  —  BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL HEALTH CARE 2014 ELECTIONS CAMPAIGNS BOBBY JINDAL CONTRACEPTION THOM TILLIS CORY GARDNER  —  Remember the 2012 Republican presidential debate in which ABC's George Stephanopoulos, seemingly out of nowhere …

Royal baby: Prince William and Kate expecting second child  —  The Duchess of Cambridge is pregnant with her second child.  —  Kensington Palace said that - as when the duchess was pregnant with Prince George - she was suffering from “very acute morning sickness” and was being treated by doctors at the palace.

Harry Reid Rewrites the First Amendment  —  When politicians seek to restrict speech, they are invariably trying to protect their own incumbency.

As Two Men Go Free, a Dogged Ex-Prosecutor Digs In  —  LUMBERTON, N.C. — The most memorable moment of the trial that put Henry McCollum and Leon Brown behind bars for three decades for a hideous 1983 rape and murder was a display of brilliant courtroom theatrics.

WOW: NASTYGRAM FROM THE BROWN CAMPAIGN  —  I received this nastygram (PDF) by email today from Scott Brown's campaign manager — cc-ing my boss, the provost and president.  —  I take it Mr. Reed's outrage is triggered by the Senate's regulations of what constitutes being a “lobbyist” for purposes of the Senate rules.

Congressman Says Everyone Should Be Free To Smoke And Fire Gay People  —  CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA—At a recent town hall in Charlotte's suburbs, North Carolina House Republican Robert Pittenger compared the right to fire LGBT workers to the right to smoke cigarettes on private property.

Why Are Republicans Suddenly Leaning Left?  —  Several Republican candidates in the year's most competitive Senate races have begun their fall sprint to Election Day, not by embracing Tea Party-fueled conservatism but by defensively tacking leftward.  —  Let's start in Colorado, site of a strategic GOP retreat in the “War on Women.”

Polls Show Path Of Least Resistance To GOP Majority  —  Pollsters are picking up the pace after a slow start in this midterm election season.  Sunday featured the release of a trio of NBC News/Marist polls of the Senate races in Arkansas, Kentucky and Colorado, while the online polling firm …

Chuck Todd Begins as Host of NBC's ‘Meet the Press’  —  Chuck Todd was an imperfect host of “Meet the Press” on Sunday.  And that's perfect.  —  Sunday talk shows, and most particularly NBC's “Meet the Press,” defy the normal rules of television news: spit-shine good looks and slick urbanity are unwelcome.