Confidence in Obama reaches new low, Washington Post-ABC News poll finds  —  Public confidence in President Obama has hit a new low, according to the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll.  Four months before midterm elections that will define the second half of his term …

Obama strategy against Palin, or other GOP foes?  Run against Bush  —  White House spokesman Robert Gibbs didn't talk about Sarah Palin specifically yesterday, but he did address any Republican who is thinking about challenging President Obama in 2012.  —  The bottom line …

Dems, AARP want to make IRA enrollment automatic  —  The White House and congressional Democrats, with the backing of the AARP, will soon put forth a plan to automatically enroll new private-sector employees in investment retirement accounts (IRAs).  —  The measure will apply to new workers …

A Congressman, Held Accountable  —  If you don't think voters are up in arms about the discriminatory policies of Barack Obama's Department of Justice, check out this video of a town hall meeting held by Democratic Congressman Brad Sherman, CA-27.  A constituent asks him about DOJ's dismissal …

Profiling's enabler: High court ruling underpins Arizona immigration law  —  In its challenge to Arizona's controversial immigration law last week, the Justice Department argues that the state law conflicts with federal law, intruding on federal power and ability to regulate immigration.

Beyond Guns: N.R.A. Expands Agenda  —  WASHINGTON — Fresh off a string of victories in the courts and Congress, the National Rifle Association is flexing political muscle outside its normal domain, with both Democrats and Republicans courting its favor and avoiding its wrath on issues that sometimes seem to have little to do with guns.

Tea party groups choose to stand mute on same-sex marriage ruling  —  While many conservative organizations immediately decried a federal judge's decision last week to invalidate the federal ban on recognizing gay marriages, tea party groups have been conspicuously silent on the issue.

Media Maven  —  The strategic genius of Sarah Palin.  —  Like most great women of mystery, Sarah Palin is at once everywhere and nowhere.  On any given evening, you might see the former Alaska governor-turned-conservative- icon on Fox News, chatting up like-minded travelers about the political buzz du jour.

4 missionaries charged in Dearborn festival proselytizing  —  Dearborn — Four Christian missionaries were arraigned today on misdemeanor charges of disturbing the peace following their June 18 arrest at the Arab International Festival.  —  Negeen Mayel, 18, of California; Nabeel Qureshi …

Ben Nelson Leaves Dems One Vote Shy Of Wall Street Reform  —  Democrats in Washington might want to nudge West Virginia governor Joe Manchin to name a replacement for Sen. Robert Byrd already.  —  The good news for Dems is that tonight, in a statement to reporters, Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) hopped aboard the Wall Street reform train.

Mort Zuckerman Admits He Helped Write One Of Obama's Speeches  —  Media mogul Mort Zuckerman tells FOX News he helped write one of Obama's speeches.

George Steinbrenner, owner of New York Yankees, has died in Tampa at age of 80  —  George Steinbrenner, a towering and intimidating figure who dominated the New York sports scene for 35 years, winning 11 American League pennants and seven world championships as owner of the Yankees …

N.Y. Congressman Calls for Inquiry Into Funding of Mosque Near Ground Zero  —  May 25: Community members both for and against the plan to build a mosque and cultural center near Ground Zero in Lower Manhattan speak during board meeting.  —  NEW YORK — The ranking Republican …

Andrew Napolitano: Bush and Cheney Should Have Been Indicted for Torturing, for Spying and Arresting Without Warrants  —  Well, this is something you don't see every day.  Ralph Nader hosted this interview segment with Fox News' Judge Andrew Napolitano and discussed his book, Lies the Government Told You.

Is Google Making Us Stupid?  —  What the Internet is doing to our brains  —  “Dave, stop.  Stop, will you?  Stop, Dave.  Will you stop, Dave?”  So the supercomputer HAL pleads with the implacable astronaut Dave Bowman in a famous and weirdly poignant scene toward the end of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.

JON KYL DOUBLES DOWN.... Over the weekend, Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) was asked on Fox News how he'd pay for extending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy, at a cost of $678 billion.  After initially dodging the question, Kyl said what he really believed: “You do need to offset …

Taranis: The £143million unmanned stealth jet that will hit targets in another continent  —  Looming ominously like a space ship from Star Wars, this is the future of unmanned flight.  —  Defence firm BAE Systems today officially unveiled its first ever high-tech unmanned stealth jet.

Huck ramps up S.C. presence - DGA takes blowtorch to Bill Brady - Conservative group on air against Murray - NRCC makes Ganley a ‘Young Gun’ - Poll: Bachmann's race competitive  —  By Alexander Burns (@aburnspolitico, aburns@politico.com)  —  SCORE EXCLUSIVE — HUCK TOUCHES DOWN …

Castellani next PhRMA president  —  John J. Castellani, head of the Business Roundtable, is the new president and CEO of PhRMA, one of Washington's most influential lobbying organizations.  —  He replaces former Billy Tauzin, the backslapping former Louisiana congressman who stepped down from his post in June.

Farrakhan Demands Reparations from Jews  —  Louis Farrakhan recently sent a three-page letter along with two books to the heads of 16 Jewish organizations.  —  Dated June 24, 2010, the letter is resplendent with a crescent-and-moon flag and Farrakhan's impressive-sounding title …

The Coming Birth Control Battle  —  Health-care reform raised the possibility that birth control could soon be free for most women.  But not if conservative activists have their way.  Dana Goldstein reports.  —  Could prescription birth control—whether the pill, an IUD, or a diaphragm …

Kagan and ObamaCare  —  The Senate should press her to recuse herself from the state lawsuit.  —  Elena Kagan breezed through her recent confirmation hearings, but there's some crucial unfinished business the Senate should insist on before voting on her nomination to the Supreme Court.

Did BP play role in bomber's release?  —  (CNN) — A group of U.S. lawmakers have called for an investigation into whether BP may have played a role in lobbying for the release of Abdelbaset al Megrahi to secure an oil contract with the Libyan government.  —  Megrahi, now 58 …

Mocking war hero Nick Popaditch: A teachable moment  —  On Sunday night, several readers e-mailed to let me know about a cartoon in the Imperial Valley (CA) Press that upset them immensely.  —  Reader Marty sent the jpeg.  It shows two young skateboarder punks looking up at a campaign poster.

Automated Debt-Collection Lawsuits Engulf Courts  —  As millions of Americans have fallen behind on paying their bills, debt collection law firms have been clogging courtrooms with lawsuits seeking repayment.  —  Few have been as prolific as Cohen & Slamowitz, a Woodbury, N.Y. …

Neil Reynolds  —  Democracies produced Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, fulfilling the expectation of Socrates and Machiavelli that democracies end in tyranny.  Now democracies are fulfilling the complementary expectation of Nobel laureate economist Milton Friedman that democracies end in bankruptcy.