Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert Indicted On Federal Charges  —  The Justice Department charged the Illinois Republican Thursday for evading reporting requirements and lying to the FBI as part of a scheme to pay off the victim of “prior bad acts.”  —  Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

An Award for Bill Clinton Came With $500,000 for His Foundation  —  To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Petra Nemcova, a Czech model who survived the disaster by clinging to a palm tree, decided to pull out all the stops for the annual fund-raiser of her school-building charity, the Happy Hearts Fund.

Rand Paul's money problem  —  Behind the Kentucky senator's NSA ‘filibuster’ lies a desperate quest for cash.  —  In a presidential campaign defined by billionaire sugar daddy donors, Rand Paul has a problem: He doesn't seem to have one.  —  While his rivals cultivate wealthy backers …

Bernie Sanders distances himself from ‘dumb’ 1972 essay on rape  —  Bernie Sanders wrote about rape fantasies in 1970s 06:17  —  New York (CNN)Bernie Sanders' campaign tried on Thursday to distance the presidential candidate from a 1972 essay in which he wrote — among other things …

Trump stokes 2016 talk, schedules ‘major announcement’  —  Donald Trump will make a “major announcement” on June 16 at New York City's Trump Tower before heading to New Hampshire the next day, according to WMUR-9 in New Hampshire.  —  The schedule adds to the speculation Trump will run …

The fake Clinton scandals are back  —  The right's newest crusade has an old fake villain.  —  Lead image by AP Photo.  —  Has Washington learned nothing from Whitewater?  The Clintons have spent their entire political lives in the capital dogged by one fake scandal after another.

The Insecure American  —  America remains, despite the damage inflicted by the Great Recession and its aftermath, a very rich country.  But many Americans are economically insecure, with little protection from life's risks.  They frequently experience financial hardship …

The reign in Spain is no longer on the wane  —  King Felipe and Queen Letizia, an “in touch” duo that's trying to keep together a weakened kingdom.  —  MADRID — Spain has been magnificent at giving birth to painters and poets, impressive at minting novelists, chefs and soccer players, but thoroughly inept at producing good kings.

Jeb Bush's History of Outsourcing His Campaign So He Can Raise Big Money  —  In 1998, the Republican Party of Florida paid for his TV ads, polling, and campaign staff salaries as he ran for governor  —  As Jeb Bush circa 2015 considers pushing the campaign finance envelope by offloading expenses …

Comer concedes to Matt Bevin, ‘enthusiastically’ supports GOP nominee for governor  —  Significant update: Agriculture Commissioner James Comer conceded to the GOP nominee Matt Bevin Friday morning, solidifying the Bevin-Jack Conway contest to replace outgoing Gov. Steve Beshear.

Americans Choose “Pro-Choice” for First Time in Seven Years  —  Story Highlights  —  PRINCETON, N.J. — Half of Americans consider themselves “pro-choice” on abortion, surpassing the 44% who identify as “pro-life.”  This is the first time since 2008 that the pro-choice position …

Man Threatens Suicide, Police Kill Him  —  Justin Way was in bed with a knife.  His girlfriend called a non-emergency number to try to get him into a hospital.  Minutes later, cops shot him dead.  —  On May 11, Justin Way was drinking and threatening to hurt himself.

Husband, wife sink rare back-to-back aces at same hole  —  When Tony and Janet Blundy go golfing, their competitive streaks can come out.  —  But on Sunday, the husband and wife from Portland was celebrating one another's success.  They achieved an extremely rare feat, with holes-in-one on consecutive shots at the same hole.

Filthy snow piles remain, even as temperatures climb  —  They're unsightly, filled with garbage and debris, and serve as a daily reminder of just how awful the winter really was — and they're not going anywhere anytime soon.  —  Lingering snow piles from the historic New England winter continue …

The Note: Welcome To The Martin O'Malley Moment … NOTABLES  —COULD MARTIN O'MALLEY BE THE CLINTON SLAYER?  Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley is expected to launch his 2016 White House bid tomorrow in Baltimore injecting another dose of competition into the Democratic nominating contest that heavily favors Hillary Clinton.

Christie: Dump Common Core education standards  —  PEMBERTON — Navigating New Jersey interests and a likely presidential campaign, Gov. Chris Christie on Thursday proposed dropping national Common Core education standards he once supported but have since become a lighting rod issue for Republican voters.

Move to delay Ohio's 2016 primary could aid Kasich  —  ' class="> Enlarge Image  —  Ohio lawmakers set the table for Gov. John Kasich to potentially take all of the Buckeye State's GOP presidential delegates in one swoop next year.  —  By moving the state's 2016 primary election back a week …

Whoops!  A creationist museum supporter stumbled upon a major fossil find.  —  Canadian Edgar Nernberg isn't into the whole evolution thing.  In fact, he's on the board of directors of Big Valley's Creation Science Museum, a place meant to rival local scientific institutions.

Hawks of a Feather  —  The Republican candidates and foreign policy.  —  Oklahoma City  —  The Republican candidates in the crowded and growing presidential field may each be trying to break out of the pack, but there's one policy area where debate is scarce.