The two biggest political stories of the day — the RNC’s release of its reaction to the party’s 2012 drubbing, and Tom Perez’s nomination to be President Obama’s Labor Secretary — couldn’t be more perfectly suited for each other. Two great tastes that taste great together.

The RNC report is called the Growth and Opportunity Project, and it effectively turns the GOP’s determination to avoid rethinking its economic policies — and to instead focus exclusively on making marginal inroads with minority voters — into the party’s official strategy.

Enter Tom Perez. Read More

Sahil Kapur’s initial report on today’s Supreme Court oral argument in the Arizona voter registration case.

There’s nothing binding about today’s RNC self-examination report, but it’s still a remarkable document and comes perhaps the closest of anything since the election to the big, fundamental reckoning that the GOP needs to go through not just for its own good but for the good of the country. Benjy Sarlin picks out the top 6 highlights from the report.

Hillary Clinton announces her support for gay marriage.

So drastically shorter primary phase, much earlier nominating convention, many fewer debates. Aren’t all of Reince Priebus’s structural reforms basically aimed at dramatically reducing the time period in which the actual Republican party base is on display for the public at large?

RNC Chief Reince Priebus asked about blow up at CPAC race event.

The Supreme Court hold oral arguments this morning at 10 a.m. ET in the Arizona case on whether states can require voters to provide proof of citizenship. TPM’s Sahil Kapur will be there and previews the issues at stake, both legal and political.

We’ll have more on this soon, but the big news of the morning is the RNC’s formal embrace of comprehensive immigration reform as a pillar of redefining the Republican Party post-2012.

In cas you missed it, here’s my quick take from this weekend on why that CPAC racial outreach event spun so out of control.

Drunken federal prison guard shoots finger to remove his wedding ring during fight with wife.

Needless to say, one of the happier outcomes you can imagine when you mix a domestic dispute, alcohol and a handgun. The ring remained on, notwithstanding substantial damage to Alfredo Malespini’s finger. Police say they’d been to the Malespini home “a couple times” for domestic disputes. Police Lt. Steve Caskey said the suspect “had been drinking quite heavily throughout the day and he and his wife had been arguing throughout the day about an affair he had had several months ago.”