Poplicola

Good morning, everybody. Sandra Bullock is Hollywood\’s highest-paid actress and Lily Allen is having a baby. Now, your morning constitutional: California \”has no interest in differentiating between same-sex and opposite-sex unions,\” ruled U.S. District Chief Judge Vaughn R. Walker, striking down California\’s state ban on same-sex marriage. According to Walker, the ban violated the federal constitutional guarantees of equal protection and of due process. The complete 138-page opinion can be found here. FiveThirtyEight: Kennedy, Olsen and the right side of history. Some delightful initial responses to Walker\’s ruling. The House will return to work next week to...

Good morning, folks. Susan Boyle might be on Glee. Now, your morning constitutional: Lebanese and Israeli soldiers have exchanged fire on their shared border; each side has reported casualties. In the Northern Ireland city of Londonderry on Tuesday, an Irish Republican Army splinter group detonated a bomb in a hijacked taxi outside of a police station. Buildings were damaged but nobody was injured. According to the newly released USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, President Obama\’s approval rating has dropped to 41%. According to Gallup\’s daily tracking poll, his approval rating stands at 45%. The ethics charges against Reps. Waters...

Good morning, everybody. After 14 days, Lindsay\’s finally out of jail. Now, your morning constitutional: Rescuers having trouble reaching 27,000 people still stranded after Pakistan suffers some of the worst flooding it has experienced in decades. The floods are already responsible for over 1,100 deaths. An ongoing famine in Niger threatens millions of people who already suffer from food insecurity. A rocket that was likely aimed at an Israeli resort actually hits a nearby Jordanian resort, killing one and injuring four Jordanians. On the leaked Afghanistan documents and \”war crimes.\” According to a new national poll, Wyoming...

Good morning, everybody. Ellen\’s leaving American Idol, and Diddy wants in. Now, your morning constitutional: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia are meeting in Beirut to work together to help stabilize Lebanon if a UN tribunal indicts members of the Hezbollah movement for the killing of Rafik Hariri. Republicans succeeded in filibustering a Senate bill that would create a $30B fund for small business lending. July has been the deadliest month for American troops since the beginning of the war nine years ago. Economic growth in the U.S. slowed to 2.4% in the...