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) …

Gov. Jindal: Senator Paul Unsuited to Be Commander-in-Chief  —  Today, Governor Jindal released the following statement after Senator Rand Paul commented this morning that ISIS exists because of hawkish foreign policy.  —  Governor Jindal said, “This is a perfect example of why Senator Paul is unsuited to be Commander-in-Chief.

Carly Fiorina, in an Ambush of Hillary Clinton, Gets Defensive  —  COLUMBIA, S.C. — Carly Fiorina spends a lot of her time as a Republican presidential candidate attacking Hillary Rodham Clinton, the leading Democratic candidate, and has earned considerable news coverage for it.

Rick Santorum on Running for President 2016: ‘Ready to Do This Again’ … Rick Santorum, the former Republican senator from Pennsylvania who lost the GOP nomination to Gov. Mitt Romney in 2012, says he's “ready” to run for president in 2016.  —  “I'm ready to do this again,” …

Elizabeth Warren Bought Foreclosed Homes to Make a Quick Profit  —  Before the crash that she blamed on speculators, Senator Elizabeth Warren made a bundle by flipping houses.  —  Nearly two years after Veo Vessels died, her daughter, 70-year-old Mary Frances Hickman, decided to sell the home her mother had left to her.

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.

A tiny string of text can disable iPhone Messages  —  Apple device owners have discovered a string of text characters that, when received on an iPhone in Messages, can lock people out of the app and — reportedly in some cases — crash the phone.  Users who receive the string with Messages open …

CPD cops posed for photo standing over black man dressed in antlers  —  It's a racially charged photo the Chicago Police Department didn't want the public to see: two white cops posing with rifles as they stand over a black man lying on his belly with deer antlers on his head.

Lena Dunham, Amy Schumer and Comedy Actress A-List in Raunchy, R-Rated Roundtable  —  “So, what's your policy on ‘pussy’?” inquires a polite Amy Schumer regarding what can and can't be said during THR's annual gathering of Emmy-contending comedy actresses.  If the ensuing conversation …

L.A. labor leaders seek minimum wage exemption for firms with union workers  —  Labor leaders, who were among the strongest supporters of the citywide minimum wage increase approved last week by the Los Angeles City Council, are advocating last-minute changes to the law that could create …

Barack Obama's water war  —  Industries like agriculture, oil and home-building are lining up to attack a rule aimed at protecting wetlands and waterways.  —  The Obama administration opened its newest offensive in the water wars on Wednesday, championing protections for waterways …

Americans Continue to Shift Left on Key Moral Issues  —  Story Highlights  —  PRINCETON, N.J. — Americans are more likely now than in the early 2000s to find a variety of behaviors morally acceptable, including gay and lesbian relations, having a baby outside of marriage and sex between an unmarried man and woman.

Iowa aide to presidential hopeful Jim Webb resigns  —  The Democratic strategist who was running the Iowa effort for presidential hopeful Jim Webb has resigned, Iowans told The Des Moines Register Wednesday morning.  —  Rania Batrice confirmed the news in an email to the Register.

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.

Ohio Gov. Kasich looks to announce 2016 bid this summer  —  Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who has been actively gauging reactions to a possible campaign for president in 2016, is now moving rapidly to assemble the staff and financial resources for such a bid and is looking to declare his candidacy sometime …

Scott Walker: Mandatory Ultrasounds Are ‘Just A Cool Thing’ For Women  —  Potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) said in an interview on Friday that mandatory ultrasounds for women hoping to get an abortion was “just a cool thing.”

Military bans Big Macs, other treats at Guantánamo legal meetings  —  In this image reviewed by the U.S. military, Guantánamo detainees look out from fenced-in areas as a guard closes a door in Camp Echo detention facility on the U.S. Navy Base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008.

Recruitment, Resumes, Interviews: How the Hiring Process Favors Elites … As income inequality in the U.S. strikes historic highs, many people are starting to feel that the American dream is either dead or out of reach.  Only 64 percent of Americans still believe that it's possible …

Federal Laws and Policies Prohibiting Marijuana Use  —  Recently, several states and the District of Columbia have decriminalized the use of marijuana, allowing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes and/or for limited recreational use.  These changes to state law have raised questions …

A Growth Spurt  —  It's happened again: this dictionary has gotten bigger.  —  As of last week, it's grown by more than 1,700 entries, and existing entries have expanded by more than 700 new senses.  We've added 3,200 examples that provide contextual information, and another 200 entries …

Conservatives ask the Supreme Court to restrict states' rights and overturn precedent.  —  For the second time in a year, the Supreme Court has agreed to wade into an election case at the urging of conservatives.  In both cases it has done so despite the issue appearing to be settled by long-standing precedent.

ExxonMobil CEO mocks renewable energy in shareholder speech  —  The CEO of one of the world's largest oil companies downplayed the effects of climate change at his company's annual meeting Wednesday, telling shareholders his firm hadn't invested in renewable energy because “We choose not to lose money on purpose.”