Okay, this wasn’t something I imagined I’d see. One of our reporters, Ryan Reilly, being interviewed by Al Sharpton about Stephen Colbert. Video after the jump … Read More

China grows its own version of Twitter, with Chinese characteristics: Weibo.

2012 phenom Herman Cain announces a $2.46 million campaign haul in the 1st quarter. It’s a bit hard to know what yardstick to measure Cain against. But it’s barely half Pawlenty’s number — although Pawlenty’s is supposed to be a first tier candidate. So it’s not really something that knocks your socks off.

State Rep. Robert Mecklenborg (R), key sponsor of the Ohio bill that cracks down on voting rights (part of which is soon to become law) was arrested in April for drunk driving with a 26 year old woman as his passenger and Viagra in his system.

Ironically, losing his drivers license might complicate his ability to vote, though presumably he can get a non-drivers state ID to allow him to vote.

Reps. Meeks (D-NY) and Schmidt (R-OH) both now being investigated by the House Ethics Committee.

What’s more bizarre than accusations of one Justice putting another Supreme Court Justice in a chokehold? Reading the full court’s emails to each other arguing about what to do first after the incident — meet with the Capitol Police or sit for that group Court photo.

Schumer hints that Obama may not need Congress to avoid default.

Though President Obama once seemed to hold hopes of presiding over one of Washington’s fabled ‘grand bargains’ to rein in the long-term national debt, recent events have painted a different picture. Republicans have pushed an increasingly maximalist line — deep cuts to discretionary spending, Social Security and Medicare, zero new revenues and no effort to boost the economy at all. Meanwhile the president and his congressional allies have continued a series of tactical retreats with no clear stated limit on how much they’ll concede.

But the picture is stranger when you leave the hot house environment of Washington, where I just spent a couple days and look at what evidence we actually have about the mood of the country. Read More

Which GOP presidential wannabe are the climate change deniers most sweet on? The answer may surprise you.

The Minnesota state government shutdown yesterday evening after the popular Democratic governor and the Republican state legislature couldn’t agree to a budget deal. Former Gov. TIm Pawlenty says shutting it down was the right thing to do.