Nugent apologizes for using term ‘subhuman mongrel’  —  (CNN) - Conservative activist and rocker Ted Nugent apologized Friday for using the term “subhuman mongrel” to describe President Barack Obama.  —  “I do apologize-not necessarily to the President-but on behalf of much better men than myself …

‘House of Cards’ threatens to leave if Maryland comes up short on tax credits  —  A few weeks before Season 2 of “House of Cards” debuted online, the show's production company sent Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley a letter with this warning: Give us millions more dollars in tax credits, or we will …

With 2015 budget request, Obama will call for an end to era of austerity  —  President Obama's forthcoming budget request will seek tens of billions of dollars in fresh spending for domestic priorities while abandoning a compromise proposal to tame the national debt in part by trimming Social Security benefits.

The changed politics of late-night TV  —  The curtain rose this week on a new era of late-night TV — altering the terrain for politicians who frequent the shows and complicating life for Republicans, who have lost their most comfortable seat in front of the camera.

Negotiators reach deal to end Ukraine crisis  —  The Post's Will Englund gives a first-person account of what it's like on the ground for protesters and citizens in Kiev.  (The Washington Post)  —  KIEV, Ukraine — A deal designed to end Ukraine's long-running crisis was reached Friday …

Measure pits freedom against discrimination  —  FONT:  —  The Arizona Legislature has passed a controversial religion bill that is again thrusting Arizona into the national spotlight in a debate over discrimination.  —  House Bill 2153, written by the conservative advocacy group Center …

Boehner: I'd rather kill myself than raise the minimum wage  —  Speaker John Boehner is so against raising the minimum wage that he once said he would rather commit suicide than vote for a “clean” increase.  —  The Ohio Republican and son of a barkeep has repeatedly opposed federally mandated hike increases …

The GOP's Talent Gap  —  The party doesn't have enough smart people working on its campaigns, and those who do are playing out of position.  —  Republicans who run campaigns gripe they lose races because of candidates and ideology.  It's easy to understand why.

At American Enterprise Institute, NeoCons Say ‘Hello, Dalai’  —  In the right-wing temple, the high priests of capitalism debated morality with the Dalai Lama, who acknowledged he could see more than ‘exploitation’ in free enterprise.  —  Welcoming the Dalai Lama to the pinnacle of free enterprise …

The myth of ‘settled science’  —  Irepeat: I'm not a global warming believer.  I'm not a global warming denier.  I've long believed that it cannot be good for humanity to be spewing tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.  I also believe that those scientists who pretend to know exactly …

Hillary Clinton Maintains Positive Image in U.S.  —  American public's opinion of Vice President Joe Biden is mixed  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — A clear majority of Americans, 59%, still view Hillary Clinton favorably a year after she left her post as secretary of state.

Brownback extremely unpopular, trails for reelection  —  PPP's newest Kansas poll finds that Sam Brownback has continued to become even more unpopular in the last year, and that he slightly trails his Democratic opponent for reelection.  Only 33% of voters in the state approve of the job Brownback is doing …

Ratings: Is CNN's Piers Morgan Shooting Himself in the Foot?  —  In the end, are guns what killed CNN's “Piers Morgan Live”?  —  The show, hosted by anti-gun crusader Morgan, continues to struggle in the Nielsens.  And this month, the start of the Michael Dunn loud-music murder trial …

SC colleges under fire about book, course choices  —  Some S.C. public colleges are coming under fire for the books they assign students and whether they follow a state law requiring instruction on the U.S. founding documents.  —  S.C. House budget writers voted Wednesday to take away nearly $70,000 …

Democrats' Best Weapon for Midterms: Fear of a Red Senate  —  Control of the Senate depends on turnout in November.  Democrats need to tap what scares their base most: fear of an unrestrained GOP.  —  We've known for a long time now that the Democrats have a lot of Senate seats to defend …

‘Anchorman 2’ Returns (Call It 2 ½)  —  LOS ANGELES — TAKE a raunchy Hollywood comedy, remove the jokes, and what do you have left?  —  Room for 763 new, and even raunchier, jokes.  —  In what appears to be the movie equivalent of blood replacement therapy — and possibly a cinematic first …