The joke was that Obama wasn't joking  —  The White House Correspondents' Dinner has become a strange event.  It is, ostensibly, an evening when the president and the press can come together to share a few lighthearted laughs.  But it's evolved into a recital of brutal truths — albeit one neither side ever really admits happened.

I am shaken to my bones by the e-mails, texts, postings and phone calls of the past few days.  I made a terrible mistake.  I was ignorant, naive and much too quick in accepting a request to co-host a dinner with Cruz at my home without taking the time to completely understand all of his positions on gay rights.

Are Democratic Insiders Starting to Panic about Hillary?  —  Washington, D.C. — The annual White House Correspondent's Dinner is indeed — as President Obama put it last night — “where Washington celebrates itself.”  Little real news is ever made, but Beltway media, politicians …

George W. Bush Bashes Obama on Middle East  —  In a closed-door meeting with Jewish Donors Saturday night, former President George W. Bush delivered his harshest public criticisms to date against his successor on foreign policy, saying that President Barack Obama is being naïve about Iran …

Six PEN Members Decline Gala After Award for Charlie Hebdo  —  The decision by PEN American Center to give its annual Freedom of Expression Courage award to the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo has prompted six writers to withdraw as literary hosts at the group's annual gala on May 5 …

Never before have so many people with so much money run for president  —  The 2016 Republican presidential contest, designed to be a tidy affair, is instead shaping up to be a chaotic, drawn-out slog, thanks largely to an expanding pool of rich patrons raining money on a broad field of candidates.

Race to rescue climbers trapped on Everest  —  Shares -  —  First the earth heaved and shook, then a huge avalanche thundered toward the sprawling Mount Everest base camp.  —  German climber Jost Kobusch and his companions managed to take cover, capturing the harrowing incident on video, but at least 17 others died.

The Virtual Candidate  —  Elizabeth Warren isn't running, but she's Hillary Clinton's biggest Democratic threat. … “Might I suggest a full-bodied white?”  —  BUY THE PRINT » … “This seems like a lot of work for one lost contact.”  —  BUY THE PRINT »

Let ‘free range’ kids roam home: Our view  —  In Maryland, it's hard to tell exactly where the law stops and parenting begins.  —  Two Sundays ago, Danielle and Alexander Meitiv of Montgomery County, Md., got a call from Child Protective Services.  Police had taken their two children …

De Blasio: New Yorkers are too mean to me at baseball games  —  Hey Bill, there's a reason it's called a “Bronx cheer.”  —  Mayor Bill de Blasio whined to a crowd of hayseeds in the Midwest about how New Yorkers are too mean to him at baseball games — and said he was jealous of how well his Milwaukee counterpart is greeted by fans.

Last Slide  —  When I came to Iowa, I wanted to do something a little different.  No big speeches or rallies.  Just talking directly with everyday Iowans.  Because this campaign isn't going to be about me, it's going to be about Iowans and people across our country who are ready for a better future.