Aide to Kamala Harris, 2 others accused of running rogue police force  —  An aide to state Atty. Gen. Kamala D. Harris and two others are accused of operating a rogue police force that claimed to exist for more than 3,000 years and have jurisdiction in 33 states and Mexico, authorities said Tuesday.

Woman's 911 call to order pizza saves her from domestic abuse  —  A quick-thinking Highlands County woman saved herself and her children from possible harm when she ordered an online pizza with a secret message saying she was being held hostage.  —  Highlands County Sheriff's Office investigators …

New Iowa poll: Scott Walker leads, Jeb Bush in 7th place  —  The latest Iowa polling numbers are great news for Scott Walker, and terrible news for Jeb Bush.  —  The Wisconsin governor retains his advantage among Iowa Republican caucus-goers, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday …

Republicans pass a budget, flexing power of majority  —  Congressional Republicans scored a major legislative victory on Tuesday as the Senate adopted the first bicameral GOP budget agreement in a decade.  —  The 51-48 vote capped weeks of work by Republican leaders in the House and Senate …

Bill Clinton concedes role in mass incarceration  —  Bill Clinton addresses foundation donations 01:34  —  (CNN)President Bill Clinton on Wednesday conceded that over-incarceration in the United States stems in part from policies passed under his administration.

Statement from New England Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft on the Wells Report  —  “When I addressed the media at the Super Bowl on January 26 - over 14 weeks ago - I stated that I unconditionally believed that the New England Patriots had done nothing inappropriate in this process …

Joss Whedon Calls “Horsesh*t” On Reports He Left Twitter Because Of Militant Feminists  —  “I just thought, Wait a minute, if I'm going to start writing again, I have to go to the quiet place, and this is the least quiet place I've ever been in my life,” Whedon told BuzzFeed News.

Alberta election 2015 results: NDP wave sweeps across province in historic win  —  Wildrose Party, led by newly elected leader Brian Jean, once again Alberta's Official Opposition  —  It's a massive shock that turns Canadian politics on its head: the NDP has won a majority government in Alberta.

ISIS threatens controversial blogger Pamela Geller in message boasting of ‘71 trained soldiers in 15 different states’  —  ISIS appears to declare war on controversial blogger Pamela Geller on Tuesday in an ominous online message claiming it has fighters across America ready to attack “any target we desire.”

CNN Anchor Says Constitution Doesn't Protect Hate Speech, Try Reading It.  Okay, Let's Do That.  —  Chris Cuomo is co-host of CNN's morning show.  He's also a former law and justice correspondent for ABC News.  He has a law degree from Fordham University and is a licensed attorney.

Six Words: 'My Name Is Jamaal ... I'm White'  —  Listen to the Story  —  NPR continues a series of conversations from The Race Card Project, where thousands of people have submitted their thoughts on race and cultural identity in six words.  —  People make a lot of assumptions based on a name alone.

VIDEO: Gay Couple Bashed With Chair at Chelsea Dallas BBQ  —  MANHATTAN — A gay couple was bashed over the head with a wooden chair, knocked to the ground and kicked by two men hurling anti-gay slurs at the Chelsea Dallas BBQ Tuesday night, in an attack captured on a graphic video, according to police and the victims.

A Response to My Critics—This Is a War  —  Pamela Geller is the President of the American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI) and publisher of PamelaGeller.com.  —  Some are saying I provoked this attack.  But to kowtow to violent intimidation will only encourage more of it.

Obama Administration: Times Square's Iconic Billboards Must Be Removed Or Else  —  NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — You can call it a bureaucratic blunder ... or a Washington blooper.  —  But any way you slice it a move by the federal government to make the city remove Times Square's iconic billboards falls …

Surveillance planes spotted in the sky for days after West Baltimore rioting  —  As Benjamin Shayne settled into his back yard to listen to the Orioles game on the radio Saturday night, he noticed a small plane looping low and tight over West Baltimore — almost exactly above where rioting …

Exclusive: Bill De Blasio plans ‘Contract with America’ for left  —  NYC's mayor will unveil his ‘Progressive Agenda’ next week at the U.S. Capitol.  —  New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, using his muscular perch to try to nudge the national Democratic Party to the left, next week will unveil …

Rand Paul Apparently Paid $100,000 for RandPaul.com  —  The presidential hopeful's campaign recorded a large line-item purchase for a domain name just days before the candidate launched.  —  Days before Paul launched his bid for president, his campaign shelled out more than $100,000 to a domain-buying firm to purchase a “domain name.”

Germanwings crash: Co-pilot Lubitz ‘practised rapid descent’  —  Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz is known to have suffered depression in the past  —  The co-pilot of the Germanwings plane that crashed in the French Alps in March appears to have practised a rapid descent on a previous flight, a report by French investigators says.

Warren met privately with ‘Draft Warren’ supporters  —  The Massachusetts senator recently huddled with progressives affiliated with the campaign urging her to run for president.  Her office insists she was unaware of any connection.  —  Elizabeth Warren says she has no intention of jumping into the 2016 race.

March 2014: 398.10 ppm  —  The graph shows recent monthly mean carbon dioxide globally averaged over marine surface sites.  The Global Monitoring Division of NOAA/Earth System Research Laboratory has measured carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases for several decades at a globally distributed network …

Catholicism Undervalues Women  —  Like a Pringles vendor sounding an alarm about obesity, Pope Francis fashioned himself a feminist last week.  —  You are not reading The Onion.  —  It was an epic mismatch of messenger and message, and I say that as someone who is thankful for this pope …

Democrat: My party didn't cause the problems in Baltimore  —  Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) on Wednesday rejected the idea that Democratic political leaders were responsible for problems in Baltimore.  —  “Chris, come on Chris,” he told CNN's Chris Cuomo on “New Day.”