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Nine FIFA Officials and Five Corporate Executives Indicted for Racketeering Conspiracy and Corruption — The Defendants Include Two Current FIFA Vice Presidents and the Current and Former Presidents of the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) …
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FIFA Officials Are Arrested on Corruption Charges; Sepp Blatter Isn't Among Them — ZURICH — Swiss authorities conducted an extraordinary early-morning operation here Wednesday to arrest several top soccer officials and extradite them to the United States on federal corruption charges.


Obama suffers another defeat on immigration in federal court — A federal appeals court dealt President Obama a defeat on Tuesday when it declined to lift a judge's order blocking the president's sweeping executive action on immigration. — The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals sided …
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Supreme Court Agrees to Settle Meaning of ‘One Person One Vote’
Discussion:
Hot Air, Election Law Blog, Outside the Beltway, Althouse, The Week, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Washington Monthly and Balloon Juice

President Obama's legacy is increasingly in legal jeopardy
Discussion:
The PJ Tatler


Supreme Court to hear Texas redistricting case
Discussion:
susiemadrak.com and USA Today

Major test on voter equality set for review
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Talking Points Memo, Balloon Juice, Off the Kuff, Obsidian Wings and Instapundit


Chris Christie attacks Rand Paul for ‘siding with’ Edward Snowden — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on Wednesday slammed fellow Republicans in the Senate for blocking the renewal of the PATRIOT Act, calling out Utah Sen. Mike Lee and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul in particular.
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business and Hit & Run
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The decline of Rand Paul — Rand Paul took a left turn on his journey to the Republican nomination, and now his hopes seem to be headed south. — The libertarian Kentucky senator's new book, “Taking a Stand,” came out Tuesday, and it is chock-full of lines that would position Paul well …
Discussion:
McClatchy Washington Bureau, RealClearPolitics Videos, Red Alert Politics, Guardian, Prairie Weather and CBS News


Rand Paul blames ‘hawks in our party’ for Islamic State's rise
Discussion:
The Week

How to Fix an Unfair Presidential Debate System
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo, Bloomberg Business, The Week and Fox News


How Obama could hijack tax reform — If congressional Republicans offered the president a deal that would make the tax code markedly more progressive, raise more revenue and also fund several of his second-term priorities, would he agree to such a thing? — The answer the White House …
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Breach at IRS Exposes Tax Returns
Discussion:
The Verge and Daily Caller News Foundation

Get Transcript … You can get a transcript online or by mail …
Discussion:
Hit & Run and VentureBeat

APNewsBreak: IRS Says Thieves Stole Tax Info From 100,000
Discussion:
CNNMoney, Hot Air, Engadget, Scared Monkeys, Mediaite, The PJ Tatler and Associated Press

Have Democrats Pulled Too Far Left? — AMONG liberals, it's almost universally assumed that of the two major parties, it's the Republicans who have become more extreme over the years. That's a self-flattering but false narrative. — This is not to say the Republican Party hasn't become a more conservative party.
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog and Betsy's Page


It's not your everyday Americans at Bernie Sanders' kickoff rally — The long-shot presidential contender launches campaign from the People's Republic of Burlington. — BURLINGTON, Vt. — These weren't your everyday Americans who came out to support Bernie Sanders on Tuesday.
Discussion:
Yahoo Politics and ABC News
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Read Bernie Sanders's populist, policy-heavy speech kicking off his campaign
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Associated Press, Firedoglake, Esquire, New York Times, Mother Jones and Raw Story


The White Protestant Roots of American Racism — he Apotheosis of Washington," painted in 1865 by Constantino Brumidi, is a fresco of the first president of the United States ascending to the heavens. The goddesses of Victory and Liberty, along with 13 maidens who represent America's original colonies …
Discussion:
Progress Pond


Vox Media Adds ReCode to Its Stable of Websites — ReCode, the news website led by the veteran journalists Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher, is being acquired by Vox Media, a deal that reflects the turmoil among digital organizations focused on covering the tech industry.
Discussion:
Re/code, TechCrunch, Business Insider, Politico, Washington Post and Poynter., more at Mediagazer »
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A Note to Our Readers
Discussion:
Business Insider, The Verge, Bloomberg View, Poynter., Mashable, Boing Boing, Forbes, The Week, VentureBeat and The Huffington Post, more at Mediagazer »


The Note: Rick Santorum's Second Chance … NOTABLES —EXCLUSIVE — GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS SITS DOWN WITH SANTORUM: Today, as former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum gets ready to make a “major announcement,” ABC's GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS will sit down for an exclusive interview with the former …
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Reigning 2012 Iowa caucus victor and former Sen. Rick Santorum …
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business, Philadelphia Magazine and Salon


GOP senators call for over-the-counter birth control — Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) is leading a new push to allow women to buy birth control without a prescription, hoping to deliver on one of the biggest promises of his freshman Senate campaign last year.
Discussion:
John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Instapundit


Give the ‘bigot’ bomb a break — Reducing human beings to their worst idea or comment diminishes us all. — A lesbian couple purchased engagement rings from a Christian jeweler.They were so pleased with the service, they referred a friend to the shop to purchase a ring for his girlfriend.


Democrats hope for Hillary Clinton coattails — Candidates expect her presence would affect their fates as well. — Her campaign is still in its infancy. The presidential election is nearly 18 months away. But Democrats are already banking on a “Hillary effect,” an anticipated wave …

University officials withdraw KDR fraternity recognition for three years — UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State's Kappa Delta Rho fraternity has lost its recognition on the University Park campus due to “a persistent series of deeply troubling activities,” according to University leaders …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Philly.com, The Huffington Post, New York Times, NPR, Washington Post and NBC News

State Department proposes Hillary Clinton email releases every 2 months — The State Department is proposing to release batches of former Secretary of State and current Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's emails every 60 days beginning next month.
Discussion:
Bloomberg Business, The Week, The Daily Caller and Hot Air
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Bill Clinton company shows complexity of family finances
Discussion:
Washington Post