Confidence in Obama reaches new low, Washington Post-ABC News poll finds  —  Public confidence in President Obama has hit a new low, according to the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll.  Four months before midterm elections that will define the second half of his term …

Muslim Outreach Not the Job of NASA, White House Says  —  White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs speaks at the daily briefing at the White House July 12.  (AP Photo)  —  White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Monday that NASA Administrator Charles Bolden must have misspoken …

JON KYL DOUBLES DOWN.... Over the weekend, Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) was asked on Fox News how he'd pay for extending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy, at a cost of $678 billion.  After initially dodging the question, Kyl said what he really believed: “You do need to offset …

Andrew Napolitano: Bush and Cheney Should Have Been Indicted for Torturing, for Spying and Arresting Without Warrants  —  Well, this is something you don't see every day.  Ralph Nader hosted this interview segment with Fox News' Judge Andrew Napolitano and discussed his book, Lies the Government Told You.

Beyond Guns: N.R.A. Expands Agenda  —  WASHINGTON — Fresh off a string of victories in the courts and Congress, the National Rifle Association is flexing political muscle outside its normal domain, with both Democrats and Republicans courting its favor and avoiding its wrath on issues that sometimes seem to have little to do with guns.

4 missionaries charged in Dearborn festival proselytizing  —  Dearborn — Four Christian missionaries were arraigned today on misdemeanor charges of disturbing the peace following their June 18 arrest at the Arab International Festival.  —  Negeen Mayel, 18, of California; Nabeel Qureshi …

Small Businesses Get More Pessimistic  —  Small businesses continue to feel highly pessimistic about the U.S. economic outlook, according to a report Tuesday that showed a monthly indicator of their sentiment turning weaker in June.  —  The National Federation of Independent Businesses …

Michelle Obama Rouses NAACP Before Vote Condemning ‘Racist’ Elements of Tea Party  —  Tea Party Leaders Say Political Motivation Driving NAACP Agenda  —  First Lady Michelle Obama brought renewed energy to the NAACP today, delivering the keynote speech at the annual convention …

Dems hit 60 on Wall Street bill  —  Democrats appeared on Monday to have won the 60 votes they need to move Wall Street reform through the Senate when Republican Sens. Olympia Snowe (Maine) and Scott Brown (Mass.) announced their support for a conference report.

Salazar Revises Rules for Deepwater Drilling Ban  —  Interior Secretary Ken Salazar issued revised rules on Monday for a six-month moratorium on deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, replacing an earlier one that had been declared invalid by federal courts.

Felons Voting Illegally May Have Put Franken Over the Top in Minnesota, Study Finds  —  The six-month election recount that turned former “Saturday Night Live” comedian Al Franken into a U.S. senator may have been decided by convicted felons who voted illegally in Minnesota's Twin Cities.

BP Oil Spill: Containment Cap Installed on Leak, As Anger Surges Over Slow Claims Payouts  —  Adm.Thad Allen Says BP ‘Very Close’ to Stopping Oil From Gushing Into the Gulf of Mexico  —  BP has successfully lowered a new containment cap onto its leaking well, its latest attempt to control …

Group to oppose President Obama's Mideast policy  —  Leading conservatives will launch a new pro-Israel group this week with a scathing attack on Rep. Joe Sestak, the Democratic Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, the first shot in what they say will be a confrontational campaign …

Panel To Delay Kagan Vote  —  The Senate Judiciary Committee will not vote Tuesday on the nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court, GOP aides said today.  —  GOP senators will use the ability of any committee member under the panel's rules to put off a vote for one week, several aides said.

Roman Polanski's freedom — and unmitigated gall  —  For Roman Polanski, the long, unspeakable nightmare of being confined to his three-story chalet in Gstaad, the luxury resort in the Swiss Alps, is finally over.  The fugitive director is free once again to stroll into town, have a nice meal …

Sharron Angle flummoxes local press with “stimulus” non-sequitor  —  Here's the latest out of Nevada: Sharron Angle is getting attention for flubbing an answer involving job creation in a manner that raises questions about whether she grasps an enormously important local issue.

Taranis: The £143million unmanned stealth jet that will hit targets in another continent  —  Looming ominously like a space ship from Star Wars, this is the future of unmanned flight.  —  Defence firm BAE Systems today officially unveiled its first ever high-tech unmanned stealth jet.

Did BP play role in bomber's release?  —  (CNN) — A group of U.S. lawmakers have called for an investigation into whether BP may have played a role in lobbying for the release of Abdelbaset al Megrahi to secure an oil contract with the Libyan government.  —  Megrahi, now 58 …

Vitter: I Support Birther Lawsuits (VIDEO)  —  Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) has made his views known on the Birther controversy: He supports lawsuits to force President Obama to produce his birth certificate.  —  “I personally don't have standing to bring litigation in court,” Vitter said.

In BP's Record, a History of Boldness and Costly Blunders  —  This article was reported by Sarah Lyall and Julia Werdigier in London, Clifford Krauss in Houston and Jad Mouawad in New York, and written by Ms. Lyall.  —  Hurricane Dennis had already come and gone on July 11, 2005 …

Lieberman, Kerry make last-ditch appeal on scaled-back climate bill  —  The Senate sponsors of a sweeping climate change bill are drafting a scaled-back version focused on electric power plants in a bid to salvage a role for greenhouse gas curbs in the Senate energy debate.

Strapped Florida Banks Ask for Help  —  Hobbled by Real-Estate Bust and Oil Spill's Fallout, Lenders Seek Reprieve From Capital Raising  —  Florida banks—already weakened by the real-estate bust and hit again by customers suffering from the BP PLC oil spill—are asking federal regulators …