Pawlenty Drops Out of Republican Race  —  Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, left, at Thursday's debate in Ames, Iowa, with Jon M. Huntsman Jr. and Newt Gingrich.  —  DES MOINES — Tim Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota, dropped his bid for the Republican nomination for president …

Rick Perry Is Now Sorry He Banned Parental Honor Killings  —  Godbotherer and probably Notre Dame football fan Joshua Mercer is unleashing a sigh of relief that Texas dick adjuster Rick Perry is apologizing for mandating that all girls in Texas become whores at age eleven or, I don't know, move to Utah and get married or something:

Tea Party's heyday may be coming to an end, say political experts  —  The reign of the Tea Party may be coming to an end in Washington, according to academic political experts who say polls show a backlash against the conservative movement.  —  Two national polls released this month by CNN …

Gallup: Obama job rating sinks below 40% for first time  —  President Obama's summer woes have dragged his approval rating to an all-time low, sinking below 40% for the first time in Gallup's daily tracking poll.  —  New data posted Sunday shows that 39% of Americans approve of Obama's job performance, while 54% disapprove.

Pakistan gave China access to secret U.S. aircraft involved in bin Laden raid, paper says  —  ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan gave China access to the previously unknown U.S. “stealth” helicopter that crashed during the commando raid that killed Osama bin Laden in May despite explicit requests …

Police water cannon and plastic bullets?  After 50 years of the most lavish welfare state on earth?  What an abject failure  —  Bitter laughter is my main response to the events of the past week.  You are surprised by what has happened?  Why?  I have been saying for years that it was coming …

You Want Compromise?  Sure You Do  —  Sheryl Gay Stolberg is a reporter in the Washington bureau of The New York Times.  —  WASHINGTON  —  THROUGHOUT the debt-ceiling debacle, poll after poll has shown that Americans want politicians in Washington to compromise.

CNN/ORC Poll: Dem support for Obama's re-election fades  —  Washington (CNN) - Barack Obama's base is behind another term for the president, according to a new CNN/ORC International poll.  —  Seven in 10 Democrats say they'd like to see Obama as their party's presidential nominee next year.

Indiana State Fair stage collapse: 5 dead; singer relates horror  —  The death toll has risen to five in the stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair in which 45 people were also injured.  —  The main stage collapsed on a crowd waiting for a Sugarland performance Saturday night …

Bachmann: I ‘Probably Would’ Reinstate DADT Because It ‘Has Worked Very Well’  —  This morning on CNN, contender for the GOP nomination and Iowa straw poll winner Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN) told host Candy Crowley that DADT “has worked very well,” and if she were president she would “probably” reinstate it.