Minnesota's State Senate just passed same-sex marriage, a week after their House did the same. Once Governor Mark Dayton signs the law, as he is expected to tomorrow, Minnesota will be the 12th state to legalize gay marriage. All this makes Minnesota the third state to legalize gay marriage this month (joining Rhode Island and Delaware) but only the second midwestern state (joining Iowa) ... Discuss

An IRS watchdog group delivered a stunner this week, unearthing reports that the Internal Revenue Service had been targeting Conservative groups like the Tea Party for extra close attention over the past couple of years. Documents reveal the IRS gave extra scrutiny to groups that criticized how the country was being run and even groups that sought "to make America a better place to live." The IRS is reeling from the scandal, with Lois Lerner, the IRS' director of tax-exempt groups, saying “We made some mistakes; some people didn’t use good judgment. For that we’re apologetic."

The admission has caused largely bipartisan outrage, with Maine Republican Senator Susan Collins telling CNN's "State of the Union" that, "It contributes to the profound distrust that the American people have in government." Democratic Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus called for a full investigation, saying "These actions by the IRS are an outrageous abuse of power and a breach of the public's trust. Targeting groups based on their political views is not only inappropriate but it is intolerable." For his part, President Barack Obama told reporters, "If in fact IRS personnel engaged in the kind of practices that have been reported on and were intentionally targeting conservative groups, then that's outrageous. And there's no place for it" ... Discuss

Dorset, Minn is a small (very small—Pop. 22) fishing town in Minnesota that selects its mayors by putting the town's residents into a hat and drawing one out. Such time-honored traditions are doubtless part of what makes America great, and fate chose young (very young—age 4) Robert Tufts to guide the town. Of course, you're probably thinking that a 4-year-old lacks the depth of knowledge and political experience to guide a town through today's trouble bipartisan waters, but that just shows you don't know much about politics. Because you're not a mayor. Bobbie Tufts is ... Discuss

A judge in Texas has ruled in favor of a group of high school cheerleaders in the small town of Dillon, or uh, Kountze, saying that there is no law preventing them from using inspirational Bible verses on banners at football games. The case stems from administrators at the small town school in Texas asking cheerleaders not to display banners like one with the words, “If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31" on it, fearing lawsuits from groups like The Freedom of Religion Foundation. The judge’s message to the cheerleaders: Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose. Now go get ‘em Panthers, or whatever your mascot there in Kountze is! … Discuss

The Administration's official position on the events that took place in Benghazi on September 11 of last year have been called back into question following the emotional testimonies of a number of eye-witnesses to the attacks, including that of Gregory Hicks, the former deputy chief of mission in Libya, and Eric Nordstrom, a former regional security officer in Libya. Both of them choked up as they recounted the events that left U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens.

Officially, this was all owing to an uproar over a Muslim-slamming YouTube video, but both Hicks and Nordstrom said that the effort was a coordinated terrorist attack that they had warned the Pentagon about. For their part, the Pentagon maintains that they did everything in their power to save every American in Libya. So, the question remains about who, if anyone, should be held accountable for a breakdown in communication and security, whether or not there was any serious coverup, and who is politicizing what for their own gain ... Discuss