CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 18, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

TUNE IN: FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard DesLauriers, U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz and other law enforcement officials will hold a news conference at 5 p.m. ET to discuss the Boston Marathon bombing. CNN will cover this event live.

LASTEST FROM BOSTON: A source who receives regular intelligence briefings on the Boston bombings tells CNN that two individuals whose photographs were circulated to law enforcement agencies on Wednesday are no longer of high interest to investigators. The source said the two individuals had been considered potentially important to the investigation yesterday, but are less so today. One of the individuals had been carrying a black back-pack close to the scene of one of the bombings that appeared similar to one recovered at the scene. – Deborah Feyerick

GUNS: REID TO SHELVE GUN BILL… Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Thursday he'll set aside proposed gun legislation without a final vote following the defeat a day earlier of major provisions sought by President Barack Obama and Democrats in the aftermath of the Newtown school massacre. “(Obama) and I agreed that the best way to keep working towards passing a background check bill is to hit pause, and freeze the background check bill where it is,” he said on the Senate floor. “This will allow senators to keep negotiating.” – Dana Bash

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 17, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

BREAKING: INCREASED BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR GUNS FAILS… The U.S. Senate just voted down a compromise proposal to expand background checks on firearms sales. The bipartisan plan was brokered by Sens. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, and Pat Toomey, R-Pennsylvania, and was backed by President Barack Obama in his push for a package of gun laws in the aftermath of the Newtown school massacre. – Tom Cohen

ROSE GARDEN: President Barack Obama to delivers a Rose Garden statement on the failed vote at 5:30 p.m. ET.

DEVELOPING: 'SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS,' BUT NO ARREST IN BOMBING… Authorities investigating this week's Boston Marathon attack want to question a man who was seen on video wearing a white baseball cap, two official sources with knowledge of the investigation told CNN. One of the sources said the man had the hat on backwards and was wearing a light-colored hooded sweatshirt and a black jacket. The second source said that investigators have not identified this person. – Michael Pearson and Tom Watkins

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 16, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

BOSTON BOMBING: WHO DID THIS? WHY? AND HOW? Monday's terror attack on the Boston Marathon killed an 8-year-old boy, a young woman nearly 12 years removed from her high school graduation in a Boston suburb, and one other person and left more than 180 others wounded. As Massachusetts and the rest of America mourned, a top FBI investigator vowed to travel "to the ends of the Earth," if need be, to find those responsible. – Michael Pearson

PRESSURE COOKER: The deadly bombs that turned the Boston Marathon into gruesome devastation were apparently placed inside pressure cookers hidden in backpacks, a federal law enforcement source told CNN. The blasts were likely detonated by timers - not by cell phones, a law enforcement official said. – Josh Levs

NO HARD INFORMATION: “We don't have any hard information yet, but I can assure we will find out who did it and bring them to justice,” Vice President Joe Biden told CNN’s Jim Acosta on Capitol Hill.

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 15, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

BREAKING: POLICE: 2 DEAD AFTER BLASTS AT BOSTON MARATHON… In the aftermath of two bomb blasts near the finish line of Monday's Boston Marathon, Boston police confirm two dead and 46 injured, according to Cheryl Fiandaca, head of media relations for the Boston police.

- Boston's fire chief told other law enforcement authorities that they have found what they believe is an unexploded explosive device, a government official tell CNN's Joe Johns.
- The FAA has placed a Temporary Flight Restriction over the site of the explosion in Boston at the request of law enforcement. The flight restriction is a three nautical mile radius from the site and extends from the surface to 3,000 feet. The restrictions do not affect commercial air traffic operations at Logan Airport.
- The Boston Marathon Facebook page says: “There were two bombs that exploded near the finish line in today's Boston Marathon. We are working with law enforcement to understand what exactly has happened.”
- There were no credible security threats ahead of the Boston Marathon, according to a state government official.
- Metropolitan Police in Washington D.C. are at a heightened level of security, according to D.C. Police Public Affairs Specialist Saray Leon. New York City and San Francisco police have been placed on a heightened state of alert.

This is a developing story, tune in to CNN and visit CNN.com for the latest news.

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 12, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

STILL OPPOSED: RNC re-affirms its position on marriage… The Republican National Committee approved two resolutions Friday re-affirming the party's position on marriage, a move designed to mollify social conservatives angry at GOP leaders who have suggested Republicans tone down their rhetoric in opposition of same -sex marriage in order to appeal to younger voters. “Let me make crystal clear something I've said since January,” RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said in a speech before the vote on the resolutions. "While we have to do things differently, there's one thing that can't and won't change: our principles. There are some that would like us to abandon them, but as long as I'm Chairman, we'll stay true to them. Some would have us turn into Democrats-lite, but I refuse.” – Mark Preston

FRIDAY NEWS DUMP: Obama’s net worth drops in 2012 tax returns… President Barack Obama and the first family saw their income drop slightly in 2012, according to tax returns released by the White House on Friday. The returns show the president and first lady Michelle Obama earned $608,611 last year, and paid $112,214 in taxes. Sales from his best-selling books slowed even further in 2012, bringing his overall gross adjusted income down 30% compared to 2011. – Jennifer Liberto

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 11, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

BELLIGERENT: Obama says North Korea needs 'to try lower temperatures’… After a meeting with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, President Barack Obama said the two agreed that “now is time for North Korea to end the kind of belligerent approach that they've been taking and to try lower temperatures.” “Nobody wants to see a conflict on Korean peninsula,” Obama told reporters. “It’s important for North Korea to observe basic rules and norms that are set forth including a wide variety of UN resolutions that have passed.”

GUNS TO GET A VOTE: Senate overcomes filibuster, clearing the way for debate on gun bill… The U.S. Senate voted Thursday to overcome a Republican-led filibuster against tougher gun laws, clearing the way for a major congressional debate on a package of proposals sought by President Barack Obama in the aftermath of the Connecticut school massacre. Because of the bipartisan deal between Sens. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, and Pat Toomey, R-Pennsylvania, Senate Democrats proposing the legislation received support from enough Republicans to pass the cloture motion, 68-31, that sets up debate expected to last for two weeks. – Tom Cohen

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 10, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

WHAT'S IN OBAMA'S BUDGET: President Barack Obama on Wednesday proposed a $3.77 trillion budget for 2014 that would cut deficits by $1.8 trillion over the next decade. Obama's budget blueprint - which has already drawn criticism from the left and the right - offers changes to Medicare and Social Security. It also includes tax increases that would primarily hit high-income households and corporations. – Jeanne Sahadi

SURPLUS ON PRINTING: The budget is 2,460 pages, including the historical tables and the appendix, and weighs a whopping 5.55 pounds.

HIT FROM LEFT: “I made a promise to the people of Rhode Island that I would always oppose cuts to Social Security, and I’m going to keep that promise,” wrote Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse in a written statement. “I cannot support a proposal that would force seniors to pay for deficits Social Security had no part in creating.”

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 9, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

GUNS LIKELY TO GET A VOTE: Reid to force a vote Thursday on debating gun proposals… The U.S. Senate plans to vote on Thursday on whether to open debate on gun control legislation that some Republicans have pledged to filibuster, Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said Tuesday. Republican Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois tells CNN that he thinks there are enough votes in the Senate – from both Republicans and Democrats – to overcome a filibuster.

ANY DAY NOW: U.S. believes North Korea could test fire missiles at any time… Recent intelligence shows it is likely North Korea has completed preparations for test firing mobile ballistic missiles, a U.S. official said. Based on that intelligence, the Obama administration now calculates it is likely North Korea may test fire mobile ballistic missiles at any time. The official cautioned most of the information is coming from satellite imagery so it's impossible to reach a definitive conclusion because the U.S. has no means to gather information on the ground. – Barbara Starr

FEELING THE CUTS? A CNN/ORC International survey released Tuesday indicates that the cuts, known inside the Beltway as the sequester, appear to be mostly affecting lower-income Americans.

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CNN's GUT CHECK | for April 8, 2013 | 5 p.m.
- n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

IMMEDIATE THREAT: Worries about North Korean threat at all-time high… As North Korea increases its alarming threats against South Korea and the United States the past few weeks, a new national survey suggests that Americans are listening. According to the CNN/ORC International poll out today, 41% of Americans now characterize North Korea an immediate threat to the United States, an all-time high for that measure.

IRON LADY: Margaret Thatcher, Britain's first female PM, dead at 87… Thatcher, a towering figure in postwar British and world politics and the only woman to become British prime minister, suffered a stroke Monday, her spokeswoman said. A British government source said she died at the Ritz Hotel in London.

ANOTHER DEMOCRAT: Sen. Tim Johnson announced his support for same-sex marriage in a written statement on Monday. “After lengthy consideration, my views have evolved sufficiently to support marriage equality legislation,” Johnson said. “This position doesn't require any religious denomination to alter any of its tenets; it simply forbids government from discrimination regarding who can marry whom.”

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