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 Good morning! Here's what you need to know: 1. Osama bin Laden is dead. Details are understandably sketchy at the moment, but US special operators apparently killed the "spiritual leader" of Al Qaeda at a "mansion" outside of Abbottabad, Pakistan. The "mansion" is within walking distance of one of Pakistan's premier military academies. Abbottabad is about an hour's drive from Islamabad, Pakistan. 2. The New York Times is reporting that bin Laden died in a firefight at the "mansion." He was later buried at sea. Here's the best "tick-tock" of the operation that we can find. 3. The Pakistan government, which late last night was saying it had assisted the United States in the strike against bin Laden, now says that no Pakistani soldiers participated. Tensions between Pakistan and the United States are likely to reach a new high with the revelation that bin Laden was living in Abbottabad. He could not possibly have been living there without the blessing of Pakistan's intelligence service, the ISI. 4. Al Qaeda remains perhaps the most serious threat to US national security interests. But the death of bin Laden throws the future of its leadership up for grabs and may diminish its standing with other jihadist movements. 5. The Taliban announced over the weekend that its spring military offensive had begun. The war in Afghanistan is not expected to be altered much by the death of Osama bin Laden. 6. The long-term impact of bin Laden's death across the Arab world is unclear. The Obama Administration hopes that the "Arab Spring" represents an "alternative narrative" to the ideology of Al Qaeda. 7. The Muslim Brotherhood said it is expanding its candidate roster for this fall's parliamentary elections, in a sign that Egypt's most powerful Islamist Party believes that it can capture more seats against weak opposition. 8. The Wall Street Journal reports: "Israel froze $88 million in Palestinian funds Sunday, elevating tensions over an Egyptian initiative to broker a power-sharing agreement between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority and raising new concerns about the prospects for peace in the region." 9. Democratic strategists and pollsters expect that President Obama's re-election will be very difficult. 10. Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, speaking to a gathering of the National Rifle Association, said that he did not think that social issues should take a back seat to economic issues in the 2012 election. That's code for: I'm running. 11. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) has been a hit on the hustings in the early primary and caucus states. But her record in Congress is thin and her colleagues thinks she's a show horse, not a work horse. For the latest in politics, visit Politics. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. | 
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