1. Paul Ryan’s Honesty Problem: How He Just Exposed The GOP’s True Obamacare Intentions. The GOP Golden Boy inadvertently admitted that the GOP doesn’t agree insurers should be prohibited from discriminating against the ill.
2. Why The Government Just Threw Down $225 Million On Hybrid Electric Trains. The 32 hybrid electric-diesel trains will not only save money, but also reduce the carbon pollution that causes climate change.
3. Louisiana Is On It’s Way To Passing Significant Abortion Restrictions. The bill, which went forward without any debate, would impose restrictions similar to those that shut down a number of clinics in Texas.
4. Three Key Takeaways From Saturday’s Historic Afghan Elections. Nearly seven million cast votes over the weekend in Afghanistan’s presidential election. Here’s what you need to know.
5. The Roberts Court Just Endorsed Many Of Nixon’s Most Corrupt Campaign Finance Schemes. Chief Justice Roberts’ opinion in McCutcheon v. FEC defines the word “corruption” so narrowly that it is practically meaningless.
6. Major New Poll Finds That Obamacare Is Lowering The Number Of Uninsured. The percentage of Americans without health insurance has fallen from 17.1 percent to 15.6 percent, the lowest point since Barack Obama took office.
7. Maryland’s State Legislature Passes Minimum Wage Increase to $10.10. A top legislative priority for Gov. Martin O’Malley, the bill now heads to his desk to be signed into law.
8. Chemical Valley: The Coal Industry, The Politicians, And The Big Spill. The New Yorker magazine’s Evan Osnos investigates what happens when a state becomes so “business-friendly” that it harms its own people.
9. Grover Norquist Is Attempting To Influence Missouri’s Consideration Of A So-Called ‘Right-to-Work’ Bill. The bill, which significantly undermines collective bargaining rights, has bipartisan opposition in the Missouri House. Meanwhile, Speaker Tim Jones does the bidding of national conservative groups who support the bill like ALEC, Americans for Prosperity, FreedomWorks, and Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform.
10. The Ethics Of NBC Letting George W. Bush Be Interviewed By His Daughter. “So congratulations Dad, this is pretty exciting!”
The Senate votes on whether to extend long-term unemployment insurance tonight. Tomorrow is Equal Pay Day. And this week the House GOP sees if they can wrangle enough votes to pass their own budget.