Cain aide wrongly insists they've ‘confirmed’ accuser's son works for POLITICO  —  Herman Cain campaign manager Mark Block, in an appearance with Sean Hannity on Fox News just now, insisted that a relative of the second woman to publicly accuse the candidate of sexual harassment in the 1990s works at POLITICO.

Obama Administration to Delay New 15-Cent Christmas Tree ‘Fee’  —  The U.S. Department of Agriculture is going to delay implementation and revisit a proposed new 15 cent fee on fresh-cut Christmas trees, sources tell ABC News.  The fee, requested by the National Christmas Tree Association in 2009 …

A Very Good Night for Democrats  —  In state elections across the country Tuesday, voters rejected Republican attempts to pursue a far right-wing agenda  —  Democrats had a very good election night on Tuesday.  —  Their cherished causes prevailed, they kept their statehouses …

Obama up big in Ohio  —  One person who should be feeling particularly good about last night's election results in Ohio is Barack Obama.  On our weekend poll, which got the final result of Issue 2 correct to within a point, Obama led all of his Republican opponents in the state by margins ranging from 9-17 points.

Va. elections: GOP Senate takeover hangs on 86 votes  —  Virginia Democrats' hopes of maintaining their party's hold on the Commonwealth's upper house were very much in doubt late Tuesday, hinging on a razor-thin count in a single Senate district.  —  When the ballot-counting ended for the night …

Occupy Oakland makes $20K deposit at Wells Fargo  —  Last week, one or more Occupy Oakland protesters smashed the windows of a Wells Fargo branch.  —  This week, the group's general assembly agreed — in a near-unanimous vote Monday — to temporarily place $20,000 of the group's money …

How Mississippi beat Personhood  —  Will this derail a movement aiming for Roe v. Wade?  —  If Mississippi can't pass a Personhood amendment, can any state?  Those who put major political and financial muscle behind Initiative 26 — rejected last night by an astonishing 58 percent of the state's voters …

GOP lawmakers want out of tax pledge  —  Grover Norquist's grip on the House Republican Conference is loosening.  —  A growing number of GOP lawmakers have disavowed Norquist's pledge against supporting tax increases in recent days, telling The Hill they no longer feel bound to uphold …

Occupy Movement Inspires Unions to Embrace Bold Tactics  —  Organized labor's early flirtation with Occupy Wall Street is starting to get serious.  —  Union leaders, who were initially cautious in embracing the Occupy movement, have in recent weeks showered the protesters with help …

David Gregory: No “Grand Wizard” In GOP To Force Cain Out  —  On Wednesday's “Today” show, host of NBC's “Meet the Press” David Gregory says there is no “Grand Wizard” right now in the GOP to “force” Cain out of the primary.  Transcript below: Ann Curry, NBC News: “He's not stepping down …

Gingrich on global warming ad with Pelosi: 'The dumbest single thing I've done in years'  —  In 2008 former House Speaker Newt Gingrich appeared in a TV ad created by Al Gore's Climate Reality Project with then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to urge action on anthropogenic climate change.

Barclays Says Italy Is Finished: “Mathematically Beyond Point Of No Return”  —  Euphoria may have returned briefly courtesy of yet another promise for a resignation that will likely not be effectuated for weeks or months, if at all, and already someone has done the math on what the events in the past several days reveal for Italy.

Generation Jobless: Students Pick Easier Majors Despite Less Pay  —  Biyan Zhou wanted to major in engineering.  Her mother and her academic adviser also wanted her to major in it, given the apparent career opportunities for engineers in a tough job market.

Durbin, breaking with Dems, applauds GOP offer on taxes as a breakthrough  —  Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.) diverged from Democratic colleagues Wednesday and applauded the Republican offer to raise $300 billion in new taxes as part of a deficit-reduction deal.