Missouri Votes Against Health Law  —  Missouri voters on Tuesday easily approved a measure aimed at nullifying the new federal health care law, becoming the first state in the nation where ordinary people made known their dismay over the issue at the ballot box.

Michael Bloomberg delivers stirring defense of mosque  —  Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has emerged as the unlikely but passionate defender of the planned Muslim community center near ground zero, today traveled to Governors Island off the tip of Lower Manhattan to deliver a stirring plea …

U.S. Finds Most Oil From Spill Poses Little Additional Risk  —  WASHINGTON — The government is expected to announce on Wednesday that three-quarters of the oil from the Deepwater Horizon leak has already evaporated, dispersed, been captured or otherwise eliminated — and that much of the rest …

Bristol Palin to Levi Johnston: 'It's Over'  —  And just like that, they were off again.  “It's over.  I broke up with him,” Bristol Palin tells PEOPLE exclusively of her second try at an engagement to Levi Johnston, father of her 19-month-old son Tripp.  —  Palin, 19, says the relationship soured …

EXPLOSIVE: New Video of Couric Mocking Palin on the Day She was Named as McCain's Running Mate!  —  The following video was sent to C4P's tips account.  —  As you can see, the video shows Katie Couric preparing to go on the air on the day John McCain announced Governor Palin as his running mate.

UNIFIL official: IDF did not enter Lebanon prior to border clash  —  Milos Strugar tells Army Radio that the UN force receives reports of provocations by Lebanon soldiers against IDF units on a daily basis.  —  Israel Defense Forces did not cross the border with Lebanon …

Kagan avoids drama on way to court  —  The fight over Kagan's nomination has produced relatively few fireworks, judicial activists agree.  AP  —  Senate floor debate on Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan kicked off Tuesday, beginning the final chapter in what has proved to be a low-drama process well-suited to a hot Washington summer.

Maxine Waters wants charges made public  —  Rep. Maxine Waters will make two demands of the House ethics committee Wednesday, according to a source close to her: Release the full document charging her with breaking House rules and finish her trial before the November elections.

GOP puzzled as Michael Steele courts diplomats  —  The Republican National Committee is trying to set up meetings between Chairman Michael Steele and foreign ambassadors to the United States, according to an email obtained by POLITICO - an effort that has puzzled diplomats as well as fellow Republicans.

Moran bests Tiahrt in GOP Senate primary  —  Rep. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) narrowly defeated fellow Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.) Tuesday in a Senate primary that went down to the wire.  —  The AP called the race for Moran with 86 percent of precincts reporting.  Moran was ahead of Tiahrt 49 percent to 45 percent.

Stimulus Projects that Created No Jobs  —  Republican Senators John McCain and Tom Coburn Issue Report Detailing Wasted Money  —  (CBS) A couple of Republican senators put out a report today spelling out how they say a lot of the money taxpayers shelled out for the stimulus package was wasted.

Hey, Small Spender  —  One of the things everyone knows right now is that Obama has presided over a huge increase in government spending.  But like so many of the things everyone knows, it isn't true.  —  A few considerations to bear in mind:  —  1. You don't want dollar amounts …

Iran denies reports of attack on President Ahmadinejad  —  Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been president since 2005  —  Iranian officials have denied that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was targeted in an assassination attempt.  —  A conservative Iranian website had said an explosive device …

More Workers Face Pay Cuts, Not Furloughs  —  The furloughs that popped up during the recession are being replaced by a highly unusual tactic: actual cuts in pay.  —  Local and state governments, as well as some companies, are squeezing their employees to work the same amount for less money …

ABC whacks Shales over attack on Amanpour  —  ABC is hitting back at Washington Post TV critic Tom Shales for pushing “an utterly fabricated controversy” about “This Week” host Christiane Amanpour supposedly calling on viewers to honor slain Taliban fighters.

When they came for Ishmael, Abe grabbed a rope...  I know John touched on this earlier, but I am amazed at how low the ADL has sunk.  There was a time in my lifetime when this was an organization to look up to.  Like the ACLU and the NAACP, the ADL was an organization committed to justice …

US dismisses Zardari's remark that war is lost in Afghanistan  —  WASHINGTON: The United States on Wednesday dismissed Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's view that US-backed coalition forces are losing the war in Afghanistan, saying actions taken in the last several months were keeping …

On the Web's Cutting Edge, Anonymity in Name Only  —  You may not know a company called [x+1] Inc., but it may well know a lot about you.  —  From a single click on a web site, [x+1] correctly identified Carrie Isaac as a young Colorado Springs parent who lives on about $50,000 a year, shops at Wal-Mart and rents kids' videos.

‘Static Kill’ Appears to Be Working in Well, BP Says  —  HOUSTON — BP announced Wednesday that pumping heavy drilling mud into its stricken well in the Gulf of Mexico had appeared to stabilize pressure in the well.  —  The company began the pumping operation on Tuesday with the hope …

Where's the oil?  It's oozing out of the Louisiana ground  —  A slew of media reports last week asked, “Where is the oil?” angering many along the Gulf Coast, particularly those still seeing oil all over the place.  BP, the oil giant that's been trying to stem the flow of oil from its busted …