Devout Catholics document the appearance of their new leader using technology based on groundbreaking research by a gay mathematician and popularized by a Zen Buddhist.

Today Show [Instagram, via ParisLemon]

Snap! Go DiFi, tell that little punk where to stick it. From the Ess Eff Chronicle:

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a 20-year veteran Democrat, clashed fiercely with Tea Party-backed newcomer Ted Cruz of Texas, when the freshman began lecturing the Californian about the Constitution during a debate over Feinstein’s assault weapons ban. … The clash was reminiscent of an exchange Feinstein had nearly two decades ago with the since disgraced Larry Craig, an Idaho Republican, who lectured the “gentle lady from California” on firearms during debate over Feinstein’s successful 1994 ban that expired in 2004.

No issue is more emotional for Feinstein. She became mayor of San Francisco as a result of the assassination of George Moscone, and was the first to discover supervisor Harvey Milk’s body, slipping her finger into the bullet hole as she sought a pulse. […]

Cruz asked Feinstein whether she would “deem it consistent with the Bill of Rights” if Congress did the same thing to the First Amendment that she contemplates with the Second Amendment. Her assault weapons bill bans certain weapons, so Cruz asked whether Congress could ban certain books.

The Stanford-educated Feinstein replied, “I am not a sixth-grader,” and said her bill specifically exempts 2,271 weapons. “Is this not enough for the people of the United States?” she asked? “Do they need a bazooka?”

Clip of DiFi and Cruz after the jump.

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The Holy Seagull has deposited a white-burning turd, signaling to the world that the College of Cardinals are already sick of each other. Stay tuned for an announcement!

Some day, far in the future, Minnesota high school civics students are going to stumble across a transcript from their state legislature, and learn an important Life Lesson.

[via TPM]

“Former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) is joining the American Enterprise  Institute, the conservative think tank announced Monday. Lieberman will serve as co-chairman of the American Internationalism Project,  alongside former Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.).” [The Hill]

Title [Football]: “Earn the Right to Win: How Success in Any Field Starts with Superior Preparation”

Title [Basketball]: “Toughness: Developing True Strength On and Off the Court”

Authors: Tom Coughlin and David Fisher [Football]; Jay Bilas and Coach K [Basketball]

Ranks: 18 [Football]; 29 [Basketball]

Blurb [Football]: “Preparation is easy to praise but very hard to master. No modern coach, in any sport, understands that better than NFL veteran Tom Coughlin… Now Coughlin shares his best advice and anecdotes and shows how they apply beyond the gridiron.”

Blurb [Basketball]: “Through his ups and downs, on and off the court, Jay learned the true meaning of toughness from coaches, teammates, and colleagues. Now, he discusses this misunderstood — yet vital — attribute and how it contributes to winning in sports and in life.”

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“Will the lever voting machine never die? Though New York nixed the old machines a few years ago, they’ve still got them lying around, and now a few senators are pushing to get them reinstated for this year’s mayoral election. Yesterday, four senators proposed a law that would allow the Board of Elections to use the old voting machines instead of the new electronic ballots. The senators say they’re concerned the new machines wouldn’t be able to tally votes and be retested fast enough to handle the 14-day turnaround period between a primary and run-off mayoral election.” [Gothamist]