Rob Portman commentary: Gay couples also deserve chance to get married  —  I have come to believe that if two people are prepared to make a lifetime commitment to love and care for each other in good times and in bad, the government shouldn't deny them the opportunity to get married.

A Kildee Comeuppance?  Or More Obama Aloofness?  —  Michigan Democratic Rep. Dan Kildee has been in Congress for a little more than two months, and today the leader of the free world gave him a gentle ribbing about just how new he is to Capitol Hill.  —  At a closed-door meeting between …

Mitt Romney gets B-list treatment at CPAC  —  Indifference awaits Mitt Romney Friday at the Conservative Political Action Conference as he delivers his first public speech since election night.  —  The base moved on four months ago, and most Republican activists don't really care what their failed nominee thinks any more.

Former Web Producer Indicted in California for Conspiring with “Anonymous” Members to Attack Internet News Site  —  A former web producer for a Tribune Company-owned television station in Sacramento, Calif., was charged today in an indictment for allegedly conspiring with members of the hacker group …

LAWMAKERS WANT OBAMA TO FOLLOW UP OUTREACH EFFORT  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — At a recent gathering of House committee and subcommittee chairmen, Republican lawmakers were asked if they could name the legislative affairs staffer at the White House responsible for staying in contact with their panel.

Coulter Destroys Feinstein Over Cruz Debate On Hannity: ‘Liberal Women Should Not Be Able To Hold Office’  —  Sean Hannity invited Ann Coulter on his Thursday night Fox News show to get her take on this morning's Senate showdown between Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).

Grand jury investigating Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), people familiar with probe say  —  View Photo Gallery — Sen. Robert Menendez: Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) has been embroiled in a controversy involving his relations with a Miami campaign contributor and the awarding …

John Boehner Turns Down Obama Invitation To Join Visit To Vatican, New Pope  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker John Boehner says he's turning down President Barack Obama's invitation to be in the U.S. delegation to the installation of Pope Francis.  —  The Ohio Republican says in a statement …

Sarah Palin's next act: Candidate or ‘Kardashian’?  —  In January 2009, Sarah Palin had the world on a string.  A potential Republican presidential field-clearer for the presidency, every sentence she uttered was news.  A Fox News contract awaited her.  So did book deals.

Conservative Groups Warn GOP Lawmakers  —  WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama's wooing of congressional Republicans in the past week has spurred the party's most conservative faction into girding to keep GOP lawmakers in line.  —  Conservative activists and organizations …

Pope Francis delivers stern message to cardinals at Sistine Chapel  —  “When we walk without the cross, when we build without the cross and when we proclaim Christ without the cross, we are not disciples of the Lord,” he says.  “We are worldly.”  —  VATICAN CITY — In his first mass as head …

Live-Blogging Senate Hearing Tomorrow, When J.P. Morgan Chase Will Be Torn a New One  —  Beginning at 9:30 a.m. tomorrow, I'm going to be live-blogging a hearing held by Senator Carl Levin's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations - the best crew of high-end detectives this side of The Wire …

In Republican Party, Schism Over America's Role Abroad  —  WASHINGTON — For more than three decades, the Republican Party brand has been deeply tied to a worldview in which the aggressive use of American power abroad is both a policy imperative and a political advantage.

Younger Generations Lag Parents in Wealth-Building  —  WASHINGTON — Pearl Brady has a stable job with good benefits and holds two degrees, a bachelor's and a master's.  But despite her best efforts, she has no savings, and worries that it will be years before she manages to start putting away money …