• Eric Boehlert, Senior Fellow at Media Matters for America, calls in at 7:05am Pacific to co-host Right Wing World.

• Rep. Joe Sestak (D-PA) calls in at 8:30am Pacific to make a major announcement about his campaign to be senator from Pennsylvania.

• Three days after the world watched a giant balloon fly through the air as a tearful family expressed fears that their 6-year-old boy could be inside, authorities announced what millions already suspected: The whole thing was staged. Colorado authorities believe the event was a “publicity stunt” by the family to market themselves for a reality show.

• The White House will not commit to health care legislation that would cap insurance premiums or tax benefits, taking a wait-and-see approach as congressional negotiators seek a deal. President Obama will not demand that a final bill include a public option, though that’s his preference, advisers said yesterday.

• Defense Secretary Robert Gates is undertaking the tricky task of trying to persuade allies to remain committed to the war in Afghanistan even as the Obama administration debates whether to send more troops to fight. Allies like Japan and Great Britain, however, are showing signs of pulling back.

• House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) calls in at 7:30am Pacific to talk about health care reform.

• Comedian John Fugelsang joins the Mooks in studio in L.A. for another edition of “Fridays with Fugelsang.”

• After scouring northern Colorado by foot and air, frantically chasing a now-infamous Mylar balloon for dozens of miles and interviewing his big brother over and over, local and federal authorities ended their search for 6-year-old Falcon Heene where it began – at his house. He was in a box. In the attic. The whole time.

• House speaker Nancy Pelosi warned her Senate counterparts yesterday that she intends to fight hard for a public plan option as part of any comprehensive health care overhaul bill. Dem Senate leaders have not yet indicated whether they will include the option when they combine their two measures.

• President Obama signed legislation yesterday providing an additional $7.5 billion in assistance to the Pakistani government to help them combat a wave of attacks orchestrated by the Taliban.

• Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was hospitalized Wednesday night for what appeared to be an adverse reaction to medication, but she was released Thursday.