State and National News

Robert Haddick is managing editor of Small Wars Journal.

This article was written by the editors of The Nation.

For much of the post–cold war era, NATO has been a military alliance in search of a reason to exist. When ministers from the alliance's 28 member nations meet in Chicago in May, the question Why NATO? will once again hang over the proceedings.

Who dumped the dope?

That's the question of the day along the coast of Southern California as authorities try to figure out how four tons of marijuana — more than 150 bales — got into the Pacific Ocean near Orange County's Dana Point Harbor. They were found this weekend about 15 miles out to sea.

After its much-ballyhooed initial public offering on Friday ended with the stock's price just about where it started, Facebook ended sharply lower today.

Just after the start of trading, the social media giant's shares were trading around $33, down 13 percent about $5 from Friday's close. At close, it ended 11 percent lower at $34.03.

Fred Barnes is executive editor at The Weekly Standard.

By the time he took office in 2009, President Obama had fashioned a reputation as an idealist committed to reforming the way business is done in Washington. But as president, he's allowed this reputation to fritter away. And what's left of it is now being destroyed by his harsh and misguided campaign for reelection.

Good morning.

Our early headlines:

-- Dozens Killed By Suicide Bomber In Yemen.

-- Pakistan Threatens To Overshadow NATO Summit.

-- Eclipse Of The Sun: Did You Fall Into The Ring Of Fire's Path?

As President Obama and other NATO leaders wrap up a two-day summit today in Chicago, the ongoing dispute with Pakistan over reopening supply routes from that country into Afghanistan threatens to "put a crimp in the Obama administration's efforts to lay out a clear strategy for winding down the war in Afghanistan," NPR's Jackie Northam tells our Newscast desk.

As NPR's Elizabeth Blair said on Morning Edition in her report about the death of singer Robin Gibb: