WASHINGTON — Government spending and debt are emerging as a campaign tug-of-war, with Mitt Romney blaming President Barack Obama for a "prairie fire of debt" and Obama calling the charge a "cowpie of distortion." House Speaker John Boehner is talking about a debt ceiling that is still more than eight months away.Read more

WASHINGTON — The CIA is remembering those lost in the hidden, often dangerous world of espionage, adding a new star to the intelligence agency's memorial wall and more than a dozen names to its hallowed Book of Honor.Read more

• Link | https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/additional-publications/cia-memorial-wall-publication/index.html
• Link | http://www.ciamemorialfoundation.org/

WEST POINT, N.Y. — Vice President Joe Biden said Saturday that the United States can now focus on new global challenges after a long decade of war in an election-year commencement address to jubilant graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.Read more

An analysis of the state-by-state race to 270 electoral votes, the total needed to win the presidency, and where Democratic President Barack Obama and probable Republican nominee Mitt Romney stand now. The numbers reflect electoral votes:Read more

President Barack Obama faces new warning signs in a once-promising Southern state and typically Democratic-voting Midwestern states roughly five months before the election even as he benefits nationally from encouraging economic news.Read more

WASHINGTON — The White House is aggressively pushing the idea that, contrary to widespread belief, President Barack Obama is tightfisted with taxpayer dollars. To back it up, the administration cites a media report that claims federal spending is rising at the slowest pace since the Eisenhower years.Read more

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is paying tribute to veterans during Memorial Day weekend, honoring those willing to sacrifice their lives for their country.Read more

• Link | www.whitehouse.gov
• Link | www.youtube.com/HouseConference

WASHINGTON — In the risky business of running for president, Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are largely playing it safe.Read more

• Link | http://www.twitter.com/nbenac

A judge in California has ruled that the federal law against recognition of same-sex unions is unconstitutional because it denies long-term health insurance benefits to legal spouses of state employees and retirees.Read more

Both candidates are aiming at raising about $800 million.Read more

• Link | PoliTex blog: From North Texas to D.C., our insiders take you beyond the usual rhetoric