Paul Babeu's Mexican Ex-Lover Says Sheriff's Attorney Threatened Him With Deportation  —  Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu — who became the face of Arizona border security nationally after he started stridently opposing illegal immigration — threatened his Mexican ex-lover with deportation …

Rick Santorum: Will women vote for him?  —  Democrats have an unexpected new foil in their effort to label the GOP as hostile to women: Rick Santorum.  —  After hammering away for a year at the message that Republicans are indifferent to women's health and economic well-being …

Michelle Obama Decides to Ski Aspen  —  Michelle Obama has embarked on a skiing vacation with her daughters in Aspen, Colorado, according to the Aspen Daily News.  —  The first lady, who just returned last month from 17 days of relaxation in Hawaii, is skiing in Colorado on Presidents' Day Weekend for the second year in a row.

Brokest Nation In History Fusses Instead About Sex  —  Have you seen the official White House version of what the New York Times headline writers call “A Responsible Budget”?  My favorite bit is Chart 5-1 on Page 58 of their 500-page appendix on “Analytical Perspectives.”

Catching Up On The Current State Marriage Equality Efforts  —  This three-day weekend seems like an apropos time to reflect on all the many recent advances in legal recognition for same-sex couples.  Here is a break-down of where things stand in each of the states we've been following this year:

Two justices suggest Citizens United ruling should be reconsidered in Montana case  —  Two Supreme Court justices suggested Friday that the court reconsider its controversial 2010 decision that allowed unlimited corporate and union spending in elections.  —  The suggestion came as the court blocked …

For Women Under 30, Most Births Occur Outside Marriage  —  LORAIN, Ohio — It used to be called illegitimacy.  Now it is the new normal.  After steadily rising for five decades, the share of children born to unmarried women has crossed a threshold: more than half of births to American women under 30 occur outside marriage.

Liberals, Don't Homeschool Your Kids  —  Why teaching children at home violates progressive values.  —  As a child growing up in Arizona and Georgia college towns during the 1980s and 1990s, the filmmaker Astra Taylor was “unschooled” by her lefty, countercultural parents.

US officials believe Iran sanctions will fail, making military action likely  —  Officials in key parts of the Obama administration are increasingly convinced that sanctions will not deter Tehran from pursuing its nuclear programme, and believe that the US will be left with no option but to launch …

White House economic report hides sharp drop in number of working Americans  —  White House officials are trying to downplay the growing political damage caused by a shrinking federal statistic: the percentage of working-age Americans who actually have jobs.

Tea Party and OWS Protest Side-By-Side Against Obama in San Francisco  —  Media pundits have often tried to point out the similarities between the Tea Party and the Occupy movement, in a futile attempt to get the two groups to merge.  Unfortunately, the differences were too great …