Feds investigate Christine O'Donnell spending  —  BALTIMORE — A person with knowledge of the investigation says federal authorities have opened a criminal probe of Delaware Republican Christine O'Donnell to determine if the former Senate candidate broke the law by using campaign money to pay personal expenses.

Fox Utterly Destroys Cable News Ratings Competition in 2010  —  The Nielsen numbers are in for 2010, and in the battle for cable news ratings supremacy, Fox News took the title for the ninth year in a row — bludgeoning the competition for another year.  —  The blowout comes on the heels …

Lunchbox mix-up leads to charges for Sanford teen  —  SANFORD, N.C. — An athletic and academic standout in Lee County said a lunchbox mix-up has cut short her senior year of high school and might hurt her college opportunities.  —  Ashley Smithwick, 17, of Sanford, was suspended …

Why WikiLeaks Is Unlike the Pentagon Papers  —  Everyone knows that Daniel Ellsberg leaked top-secret government documents about the Vietnam War.  How many remember the ones he kept secret, or why?  —  In 1971, Daniel Ellsberg decided to make available to the New York Times …

CNN Poll: Plurality say Obama's policies will likely fail  —  Washington (CNN) - President Barack Obama enters the new year with a growing number of Americans pessimistic about his policies and a growing number rooting for him to fail, according to a new national poll.  —  Full poll results [pdf]

Kucinich worries his district will be eliminated  —  (CNN) - The state of Ohio will lose two congressional seats thanks to the latest U.S. Census figures, and liberal stalwart Dennis Kucinich is worried his seat is on the chopping block.  —  In an e-mail to supporters Wednesday …

Megyn Kelly: Calling Aliens ‘Undocumented’ Like Calling Rape ‘Non-Consensual Sex’ (VIDEO)  —  Plenty of conservatives are pretty upset over a campaign by the Society of Professional Journalists to convince reporters to stop using the terms “illegal aliens” and “illegal immigrants” in favor of “undocumented immigrant.”

Exclusive: Merle Haggard on His Kennedy Center Honor, Meeting Obama and Oprah and More  —  The singer, who received a lifetime achievement award, takes us behind the scenes of Tuesday's broadcast  —  Merle Haggard is no stranger to the White House: He was a guest of both Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan …

GARY SHILLING: And Now House Prices Will Now Drop Another 20%  —  In October, Gary Shilling of A. Gary Shilling & Co., predicted that house prices would fall another 20%.  —  In the two months since, house prices have resumed their decline.  Below, Gary outlines why he thinks the recent drops are just the beginning.

Tucker Carlson: “I Think Personally [Michael Vick] Should Have Been Executed”  —  Tucker Carlson again filled in for Sean Hannity on Hannity tonight, and couldn't resist, as others already had, delving into the issue of President Obama praising Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie …

The Road to 2012: The New New Hampshire  —  Mitt Romney and the rest of the GOP field are about to find a whole new set of players standing between them and first-in-the-nation primary victory  —  For Mitt Romney and other likely presidential contenders, 2011 will be a busy year of campaigning …

The Afghan War, Terrorism And Media Propaganda  —  As 2010 winds down, I am reminded that there is no Imperial policy more reprehensible and shameful than the war in Afghanistan.  This war is constantly presented to Americans as an integral part of the War On Terrorism, but it is no such thing.

Mother Nature vs. Nanny  —  The blizzard is definitely a force for conservatism, and not only because it has had the global-warming crowd scrambling for explanations.  The blizzard reveals something basic: Liberals in government want to tell us what to eat, counsel us about how and when to die …

Obama uses recess appointment to seat Justice Dept. official  —  President Obama used a recess appointment Wednesday to name James Cole as deputy attorney general.  —  The president also recess appointed five other officials, including four ambassadors.  —  Cole's nomination …

The Poorhouse: Aunt Winnie, Glenn Beck, And The Politics Of The New Deal  —  WHAT'S YOUR REACTION? … An employee of Associated Charities, a private organization dedicated to alleviating poverty in the District of Columbia, met an old black woman carrying a basket of cinders near the dump …

House Republicans Could End Lame Duck Sessions  —  Little-noticed over the holiday week: Rep. Lynn Jenkins tweeting this promise. … Jenkins linked to a story by David Farenthold explaining that the 20th amendment was supposed to end lame duck sessions by truncating the life of expired Congresses …

Top NRSC official: Several Senate Dems up in '12 in ‘serious trouble’  —  Washington (CNN) - The number two man at the National Republican Senatorial Committee says he thinks several Democratic senators facing re-elections in 2012 are in “serious trouble.”  —  But NRSC Executive Director Rob Jesmer …

If Christians Were Treated Like Muslims  —  Few Americans would deny that Judeo-Christian beliefs and values informed the Founding of this country and that they continue to shape much of American life today.  Nor would many of us deny that Americans who embrace Islamic values are a distinct minority here.

Favre Is Fined $50,000 but Not Suspended  —  Brett Favre, the Minnesota Vikings quarterback whose 20-year career is likely to end after this weekend, was fined $50,000 by the National Football League Wednesday for failing to cooperate with the league's investigation into graphic photos …