MURKOWSKI AND VITTER: Obama’s mulligan on Keystone XL

By Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Sen. David Vitter

TransCanada’s decision to reapply for a federal permit to build the Keystone XL pipeline across the U.S.-Canadian border offers President Obama something that rarely comes around - a second chance to do the right thing.

PICKET: Boehner to Obama - Tell Holder to cooperate with Issa on Fast and Furious

House Speaker John Boehner, Ohio Republican, urged President Barack Obama on Wednesday to tell Attorney General Eric Holder to cooperate with the congressional investigation relating to the now defunct Fast and Furious gun walking operation.

PICKET: S&P cautions California on its budget

Four months after Standard and Poor's rating agency upgraded California's financial future from "stable" to "positive" the S&P is noting they could reverse that rating anytime soon if state lawmakers do not pass a solid budget this year.

It's Time For Paul Samakow

5:15pm Every Wednesday afternoon... it's Attorney Paul Samakow with his legal perspective on the top stories of the week:

Obama budget defeated 99-0 in Senate

President Obama's budget suffered a second embarrassing defeat on Wednesday when senators voted 99-0 to reject it.

Dream Act supporters target filibuster

By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times

Illegal-immigrant students and some House Democrats sued the Senate this week to try to overturn the upper chamber’s filibuster rule, arguing that the 60-vote threshold applied to most major legislation violates the Constitution and is blocking important legislation, such as legalization for illegal immigrants.

Boehner digs in for next battle on debt

By Stephen Dinan and Sean Lengell - The Washington Times

House Speaker John A. Boehner on Tuesday set the stage for an end-of-year debt showdown, saying he will once again insist any increase in the federal borrowing limit be matched dollar-for-dollar with spending cuts elsewhere.

MILLER: Shocker Senate budget

By Emily Miller - The Washington Times

Sen. Harry Reid gave up his budgeting responsibilities once President Obama was elected. For the fourth straight year, the Senate majority leader hasn’t bothered with a spending plan, enabling a $5 trillion spree at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

MILLER: Injured vet’s guns stolen by D.C.

After being injured on his second tour of duty in Afghanistan, Lt. Augustine Kim spent the night in a D.C. jail for possessing unregistered guns. Mr. Kim was transporting his firearms from his parents’ house in New Jersey to South Carolina when he stopped at Walter Reed in Washington for a medical appointment in the summer of 2010. After being pulled over, handcuffed, arrested, thrown in jail overnight, his guns were confiscated by the city.

HURT: In a whirl over Obama’s gay marriage pirouette

By Charles Hurt

One “mainstream” American journalist broke into sobs of joy last week when President Obama publicly announced his twirling pirouette (aka “flip-flop”) in support of gay marriage. In describing the unbinding of his emotions, Andrew Sullivan called Mr. Obama his “father figure.”