ContributorNetwork – COMMENTARY | Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has made it known that he will form his very own presidential exploratory committee for a possible run for the Republican nomination in 2012. This will be the third time Paul has made a run at the Republican nomination, the last coming in 2008.

ContributorNetwork – COMMENTARY | Congressman Ron Paul, a long-time favorite of the Tea Party movement, announced Tuesday from Des Moines that he is forming an exploratory committee for the 2012 presidential election. He throws his hat into the ring with several other Republicans, including Tim Pawlenty, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, and Donald Trump (who keeps making big news).

The Nation – The Nation — Editor’s Note: Each week we cross-post an excerpt from Katrina vanden Heuvel’s column at the WashingtonPost.com. Read the full text of Katrina’s column here.

The Nation – The Nation — If there were any doubts about the racial animus driving Donald Trump’s attacks on Barack Obama, the billionaire reality show star exposed himself with his latest conspiracy.  On Monday night, Trump questioned how Obama could possible have been admitted to Ivy League schools, since Trump “heard” Obama was a “terrible student.”  Trump told the AP that he was investigating the issue, whatever that means, just as he claims to have dispatched investigators to Hawaii in order to find the President’s famous birth certificate.

Michelle Malkin – Confirmed: “Drain the swamp” is Washington-speak for “Let it fester.” While House ethics watchdogs dither, it’s shady business as usual for ethics scandal-plagued Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters.

Brent Bozell III – In the Bush years, poll results that showed the American people losing confidence in their president were featured routinely on the front page of major newspapers like The Washington Post. But when the Post discovers that President Obama’s ratings are collapsing, you need a search party to find where inside the paper they’re buried.

The Christian Science Monitor – The Internet can be a scary place. Troll some of its darker corners, and youâ??ll find plenty of people who think that George W. Bush knew about the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks before they happened. The Israelis were supposedly tipped off, too: Thatâ??s why Jews went to work late that day. And so on.

The Christian Science Monitor – Trying to tank up less often? GOP and Democratic leaders are doing the opposite â?? filling up on political rhetoric to score points or deflect criticism at a time of rising gasoline prices.

ContributorNetwork – COMMENTARY | While stumping for re-election dollars at the St. Regis Hotel in San Francisco, President Obama’s speech was disturbed by a singing protest. The members of the protest choir, who collectively paid $35,800 to gain access to the event, passed around photos and signs reading “Free Bradley Manning,” the soldier accused of leaking materials to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Afterward, press secretary Jay Carney told reporters that Obama thought the choral remonstration was “funny.” Oddly, President Obama was not as amused when a certain Texas reporter interrupted his preordained commentary.

ContributorNetwork – COMMENTARY | With the recent announcement that the Nissan Leaf is the 2011 “World Car of the Year,” the stage has been set for electric vehicles to become part of the mainstream culture. The Nissan Leaf, which markets for around $32,000, is one of the first commercially viable electric cars that may be able to make an impact on the mainstream culture.