U.S. Politics

Jack Dorsey is the current executive chairman the social network Twitter, a company he also helped to co-found, and CEO of mobile payment company Square. Dorsey indicated in an interview that he one day would like to become the mayor of New York City.

During the interview that aired Sunday on 60 Minutes, Dorsey says that he is "serious" about running for mayor of New York City. Dorsey did not say when he hoped to do this, but it's not likely to be any time soon as he currently lives in San Francisco, Calif.

Dorsey did say, however, that he wants to move to the city one day and attempt to gain access to the mayor's seat. He says he feels safe in NYC, and compares it to being in a car during a thunderstorm, where there's chaos going on outside, but you feel safe inside the car.

On Friday the North Dakota Senate approved what would be the United States' most restrictive abortion laws. One measure passed would ban abortions in most cases once a fetal heartbeat can be detected (as early as 6 weeks), and a second bill bans abortions based solely on genetic abnormalities or gender.

If signed into law, the ban on abortions based on genetic abnormalities would be the first of its kind in the nation. The ban on abortions based on gender would make North Dakota the fourth state to ban sex-selection abortions.

The so-called "heartbeat" bill provides exceptions if an abortion would prevent the death or irreversible impairment of a pregnant woman but no exceptions for rape.

Both bills passed the state House of Representatives last month, and having passed the Senate on Friday, they'll move on to Governor Jack Dairymple. The governor has not indicated whether he will sign them into law. He is expected to receive the bills on Monday.

On Saturday, conservatives chose Rand Paul as their preferred presidential nominee for 2016 in an early, but often unreliable look at the Republican Party's base.

The Kentucky senator topped the annual straw poll taken at the Conservative Political Action Conference, narrowly beating out Florida senator Marco Rubio, 25 to 23 percent. Rick Santorum, who ran for president in 2012, finished third and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who was snubbed by CPAC, came in fourth in the polling.

One of the reasons that the results of CPAC polls tends to be unreliable is that those who participate in the conference, which lasts for three days, tend to be younger than average Republican voters. Their choice of Paul also reflects the libertarian bent of the attendees. 2,930 votes were cast, and more than half were by those between the ages of 18 and 25.

U.S. Senator Rob Portman, a Republican representing Ohio, announced earlier this week that he had changed his stance on same-sex marriage after his son, WIll, came out as gay. Phil Burress, president of Citizens for Community Values, says that he discussed the issue of gay marriage with Portman on Thursday evening and advised him to outright reject his son.

In an email sent out to supporters, Burress said that Portman called him Thursday night asking for advice on the issue. On Friday, Portman announced that he had reversed his position on the issue, crediting his son's recent coming out for his change of heart. Portman wrote:

"I believe all of our sons and daughters ought to have the same opportunity to experience the joy and stability of marriage."

Burress' organization led the campaign to approve Ohio's constitutional amendment that prevents the state from recognizing any relationship other than a heterosexual marriage. In his email, Burress says that he told Portman that he and his wife would pray for his son to become heterosexual.

Vice President Joe Biden, a devout Catholic, will lead the U.S. delegration to Rome for Pope Francis' installation. No dates have yet been announced, however the ceremony to officially install Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina as Pope Francis could take place as early as Tuesday.

Bergoglio was selected by a conclave of Roman Catholic Cardinals on Wednesday to head up the Catholic Church.

In a statement issued Wednesday, Biden said:

“Jill and I want to offer our congratulations to His Holiness Pope Francis, and extend our prayers as he takes on this holy responsibility. I am happy to have the chance to personally relay my well wishes, and those of the American people, when I travel to Rome for his Inaugural Mass. The Catholic Church plays an essential role in my life and the lives of more than a billion people in America and around the world, not just in matters of our faith, but in pursuit of peace and human dignity for all faiths. I look forward to our work together in the coming years on many important issues.”

Biden has served as one of President Barack Obama's informal religious advisers on issues concerning the Catholic Church, including last year's debate over contraception coverage under the new health care law.

James Carter, the grandson of former President Jimmy Carter, may have been the one to make the video of Mitt Romney's damning remarks about the "47 percent" in the run-up to the presidential election last year go mainstream, but the man who actually shot the video has remained a mystery, until now. The filmmaker has been revealed as a bartender that was working at the dinner for wealthy Republican owners, and will reveal his full identity this evening.

The man admitted that the only reason that he had even brought a camera with him to the fundraiser, which was held in May 2012 in Boca Raton, Florida, was because he had assumed that Romney would meet staff and allow photos to be taken as a thank you. That of course did not happen.

In the video, which is believed to have been the turning point of the election and downfall of Romney's campaign, Romney argues that 47% of Americans would vote for Obama "no matter what" because they were "victims dependent on government." Romney said:

"All right, there are 47 per cent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what."

The bartender says that he felt like it was his civic duty to make the tape public. His identity will be revealed on Wednesday night on MSNBC, with the much-anticipated interview taking place on the Ed Show.

After having been arrested earlier this week for his third OVI charge in less than a decade, Cleveland City Councilman Zack Reed lost his driving privileges when he failed to submit to a breathalyzer test, but pledged to remain on the job and stated that he'd take public transportation to get to work. Not everyone feels that Reed is fit to remain on the job, however. Pastor A.J. Thompson of the Powerhouse SARC ministries on Union Avenue took matters into his own hands and filed an "impeachment" lawsuit on Friday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.

According to court documents, Thompson is seeking the impeachment of Zack Reed and Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Peter Corrigan.

Ahead of an announcement of new United Nations sanctions to be placed against North Korea, which carried out a third nuclear test on February 12, the North Korean government threatened a nuclear strike against the United States. The White House has responded to the threats out of Pyongyang, insisting that the U.S. is fully capable of defending against a North Korean ballistic missile strike.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said:

"The United States is fully capable of defending against any North Korean ballistic missile attack."

According to a statement from a Foreign Ministry spokesman that was carried on the Korean Central News Agency, North Korea is prepared to "exercise the right to pre-emptive nuclear attack to destroy the strongholds of the aggressors", and Washington is "set to light a fuse for nuclear war."

Carney contends that North Korea "will achieve nothing by threats or provocations."

Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), who is a doctor, was asked on Thursday morning by Glenn Beck if he had considered using a catheter during his marathon filibuster of CIA director nominee John Brennan last night. Paul said that he had considered the use of a catheter, which would have allowed him to lengthen the filibuster, but said that he ultimately decided against it.

Paul said:

"I did think about it. I've put them in before, but I really decided against it."

Paul's fillibuster ended at 12:39am on Thursday when the senator felt that he finally had to relieve himself and could no longer hold off. He ended the filibuster by stating:

Ahead of a United Nations vote on new sanctions, North Korea cranked up its rhetoric and threatened to exercise its "right to pre-emptive nuclear attack." In a statement issued over the official KCNA news agency, North Korea's foreign ministry spokesman said:

"Since the United States is about to ignite a nuclear war, we will be exercising our right to pre-emptive nuclear attack against the headquarters of the aggressor in order to protect our supreme interest."

The South Korean military also said on Wednesday that it would strike back at North Korea and target its top leadership if Pyongyang attacks.

Tensions have been increasing across the Korean peninsula ever since North Korea, under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, who took office a year ago following the death of his father, launched a long-range rocket last December. This was followed up with a third nuclear test on February 12, which triggered the prospect of additional U.N. sanctions.

These new U.N. sanctions are due to be formally announced on Thursday after the U.S. and China, North Korea's one major diplomatic ally, struck a deal to punish Pyongyang.

Earlier this week, North Korea threatened to end the 60-year truce that ended the Korean war.

The current consensus is that North Korea does not yet have a missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. They do, however, have smaller missiles, which they have shown off during military parades. South Korea's capital or Seoul is within range.