House Democrats defy Obama on tax cut bill  —  (CNN) - Defying President Obama, House Democrats voted Thursday not to bring up the tax package that he negotiated with Republicans in its current form.  —  “This message today is very simple: That in the form that it was negotiated, it is not acceptable to the House Democratic caucus.

LEAKED EMAIL: Fox boss caught slanting news reporting  —  At the height of the health care reform debate last fall, Bill Sammon, Fox News' controversial Washington managing editor, sent a memo directing his network's journalists not to use the phrase “public option.”

Why liberals don't like the tax cut deal — in graphs  —  CAP's Michael Linden produced a nice chart showing why the tax deal is tough for liberals to swallow:  —  The red and blue on the chart are a bit confusing, so read it closely: On the left, you're seeing the amount of money Obama …

‘Anything and Everything’: Palin's Reading List  —  Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is the only person to make the Most Fascinating list three consecutive years in a row.  Palin tells Walters that she is seriously considering a run for the White House and believes she can beat President Obama in 2012.

DREAM Act in danger after Senate Dems pull it from consideration  —  Washington (CNN) — Senate Democrats conceded Thursday they don't have the votes to pass the DREAM Act, a bill that would have offered a path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants who entered the United States as children.

Westboro Baptist Church says it will picket Elizabeth Edwards' funeral  —  (CNN) - Members of the Westboro Baptist Church announced Thursday plans to picket Saturday's funeral for Elizabeth Edwards in Raleigh, North Carolina.  —  The Kansas-based Church - monitored by anti-hate groups …

The Obama Stimulus Impact?  Zero  —  Liberals are still arguing that the federal spending stimulus wasn't large enough.  How many multiples of nothing—its result according to new evidence—would they like?  —  For the past two years, economists writing on these pages and elsewhere …

BACHUS ANNOUNCES FINANCIAL SERVICES LEADERSHIP TEAM  —  Congressman Spencer Bachus (AL-6), Chairman-elect of the House Financial Services Committee, today announced his appointments for committee leadership positions in the 112th Congress.  In addition to naming the vice chairman and subcommittee leaders …

Most Americans Say They're Worse Off Under Obama: Poll  —  More than 50 percent of Americans say they are worse off now than they were two years ago when President Barack Obama took office, and two-thirds believe the country is headed in the wrong direction, a Bloomberg National Poll shows.

Sarah Palin Goes Abroad  —  The Daily Beast has learned exclusively that Sarah Palin is planning her first real foreign trip—a move that could burnish her foreign policy credentials in advance of a 2012 presidential run.  —  The Daily Beast has learned that Sarah Palin will be traveling overseas in the new year.

Graham: Americans ‘See Weakness’ in Obama's ‘Political Immaturity’  —  Washington — Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), one of the Senate's high-profile mavericks, tells National Review Online that President Obama's “whining” over the tax deal reveals his “political immaturity.”

GOP gets queasy over earmark ban  —  After agreeing to kill earmarks, some of the most conservative GOP lawmakers are already starting to ask themselves: What have we done?  —  Indeed, many Republicans are now worried that the bridges in their districts won't be fixed …

Alabama Store Owner's Sign Reminds That BBQ Restaurants Are “Safest” Because Of Lack Of Muslims  —  And here's our offensive sign of the day.  An Alabama store owner known for putting jokes up on the billboard outside of his electronics store has found that the response gets chillier when you decide to use racist jokes.

The tax deal in one graph  —  From the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities:  —  Or maybe you prefer bar graphs?

Ex-White House Budget Director Joins Citigroup  —  Citigroup has hired President Obama's first budget director, Peter R. Orszag, as a senior adviser to government officials and private investors.  —  Mr. Orszag will hold the title of vice chairman and will be the youngest member …