Let me predicate this by saying that one justice putting another justice in a chokehold — as allegedly happened on the Wisconsin Supreme Court — would be so beyond the pale that it defies explanation by examining the ideological and political divisions of the court.

Having said that, the ideological and political rifts that have developed on the Wisconsin Supreme Court in recent years do provide some context for the alleged incident involving Justices Ann Walsh Bradley and David Prosser — even if they don’t even begin to explain it. Eric Kleefeld has our report.

FEC approves advisory opinion for Stephen Colbert to form his PAC.

If you’re of a mind to get outraged over the substance of today’s Mark Halperin pseudo-controversy, Alex Pareene has the best rationale for doing so.

The ostensible news today is that the Justice Department is conducting full criminal investigations into the deaths of two Bush-era detainees while in CIA custody.

But let’s consider the historic implications. The President of the United States set up an officially authorized system of off-the-book, extralegal prisons and a regimen of government-sanctioned torture; and the consequences of this dark period will be — at most — two criminal prosecutions.

Strict new regulations set to go into effect tomorrow in Kansas are purportedly intended to ensure that abortion clinics are safe and hygienic, but the new regs look an awful lot like a backdoor attempt to shut down abortion providers.

Evan McMorris-Santoro reports from the climate change deniers conference being held this week in DC.

Dems mocking Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) over campaign’s email plea for supporters to join him in Independence Day parade.

What’s it like inside a climate change deniers conference? A mix of the comically surreal, the deadly earnest and the achingly tedious.

For a time this afternoon, it looked like Kansas would have no operating abortion clinics come Friday morning when a strict new state law takes effect. But now Planned Parenthood has announced that it did receive a permit from the state and will be able to continue operations. The news came shortly after Planned Parenthood filed suit in federal court to enjoin implementation of the new law.