Let's Not Make a Deal  —  Back in 2001, former President George W. Bush pulled a fast one.  He wanted to enact an irresponsible tax cut, largely for the benefit of the wealthiest Americans.  But there were Senate rules in place designed to prevent that kind of irresponsibility.

Rulings set on Wal-Mart, warming (final UPDATE, 11:58 a.m.)  —  The Supreme Court stepped into two major controversies on Monday, agreeing to sort out when a class-action lawsuit may be filed when employees are seeking back pay for alleged workplace discrimination, and to clarify whether companies claimed …

List of facilities ‘vital to US security’ leaked  —  Ningbo port in south-eastern China, one of the facilities on the US list  —  A long list of key facilities around the world that the US describes as vital to its national security has been released by Wikileaks.

Kennedy Still Highest-Rated Modern President, Nixon Lowest  —  Jimmy Carter's retrospective approval rating and rank drop from 2006  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Of the nine U.S. presidents who have served in the past 50 years, John F. Kennedy continues to earn the highest retrospective job approval rating from Americans, now 85%.

IF TWO WEEKS ISN'T ENOUGH, MAKE IT THREE.... Based on the current schedule, the Senate Democratic leadership intends to wrap the lame-duck session on Dec. 17 — a week from Friday.  Given this extremely tight calendar, and Republican delaying tactics, a whole lot of observers on both sides …

Right wing declares war on the poor: Kate O'Beirne calls parents of school lunch recipients child abusers  —  I'm speechless.  This little rant by Kate O'Beirne at a Republican strategy session is so evil, so incredibly cold-hearted, and so predictably right-wing that it makes me want to shove …

Kathy Griffin Gets Booed By U.S. Troops After Calling Bristol Palin Fat  —  Comedian and self-proclaimed “D-lister” Kathy Griffin hosted VH1 Divas Salute the Troops which was taped for an audience of servicemen at the Marine Corps Air Station in Miramar, California, and aired last night.

Mike Huckabee wants some respect  —  Dial down the deafening Sarah Palin buzz for just a moment: The most consequential decision in the 2012 Republican presidential sweepstakes could be whether Mike Huckabee decides to run again - and associates say the former Arkansas governor may well take the plunge.

Gov. Gary Johnson: I Smoked Marijuana from 2005 to 2008  —  The former New Mexico governor and likely 2012 Republican presidential candidate talks to THE WEEKLY STANDARD.  —  Gary Johnson, the former New Mexico governor and a likely 2012 Republican presidential candidate …

Short goodnight expected for the DREAM Act during lame duck  —  The DREAM Act — a priority of Democrats in both Congress and the White House — faces a difficult future in the lame duck.  —  Even as Democrats in both chambers prepare to consider the measure this week …

What I've Learned  —  We can't keep politics out of school reform.  Why I'm launching a national movement to transform education.  —  Former Washington, D.C. schools chancellor Michelle Rhee says she's not done fighting.  —  After my boss, Washington, D.C., mayor Adrian Fenty, lost his primary in September, I was stunned.

Majority of Muslims want Islam in politics, poll says  —  They have mixed feelings about the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, the survey shows.  —  Supporters of the Islamist group Muslim Brotherhood protest in El Mahalla el Kubra, Egypt, last week on election day.  (Amr Abdallah Dalsh, Reuters / November 28, 2010)

In visit to Denver, Jeb Bush says he doesn't agree with Arizona's immigration law  —  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said if his children walked the streets of Phoenix they might look awfully suspicious to police.  His wife, Columba, is from Mexico.  —  Harvard professor Robert Putnam told …

The Fed Has a $110 Billion Problem with New Benjamins  —  A significant production problem with new high-tech $100 bills has caused government printers to shut down production of the new notes and to quarantine more than one billion of the bills in huge vaults in Fort Worth, Texas and Washington, DC, CNBC has learned.

What Obama Needs to Come Back: Nothing Short of Luck  —  The coalition that got Barack Obama elected President just two years ago has been shattered.  Gaming out the trajectory of the next two years can be done any number of ways, but Obama's efforts to rebuild a politically robust alliance will be the most telling.

What happened to the ‘warmest year on record’: The truth is global warming has halted  —  A year ago tomorrow, just before the opening of the UN Copenhagen world climate summit, the British Meteorological Office issued a confident prediction.  The mean world temperature for 2010, it announced …

Dems aim for 100+ bills in 1 swoop  —  Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), ranking member of the Environment and Public Worls Committee has threatened to block swift approval of a land and water omnibus bill if it includes, for example, the version of the Chesapeake Bay protection bill that passed …

Noah's Ark, the Theme Park  —  Facing a rising tide of joblessness, the governor of Kentucky has found one solution: build an ark.  —  The state has promised generous tax incentives to a group of entrepreneurs who plan to construct a full-size replica of Noah's ark, load it with animals and actors …