Americans See Views of GOP Candidates Closer to Their Own  —  Obama, Bachmann furthest away on ideological scale  —  PRINCETON, NJ — Americans perceive Jon Huntsman, Mitt Romney, and Ron Paul as closest to themselves ideologically, and Michele Bachmann and Barack Obama as furthest away.

Bachmann chair's surprise defection  —  “10 minutes ago,” Sorenson, a GOP state senator, told POLITICO about when the Paul campaign found out he was moving to their camp.  —  In one of the most surprising moments of the 2012 campaign, Sorenson strolled on stage just moments before Paul …

Ron Paul soft spot emerges: Foreign policy  —  DES MOINES — Scary.  Not serious.  To the left of Barack Obama.  A threat to the existence of Israel.  —  With Ron Paul at or near the top of the polls in Iowa, his Republican rivals are sounding the alarms about the Texas congressman's unorthodox foreign policy views.

White House Memo: Obama Gains Reputation as Distant in Washington  —  WASHINGTON — Air Force One had just landed in Manchester, N.H., on a brisk Tuesday morning last month when President Obama made an admission to Valerie B. Jarrett, his close friend and senior adviser.  —  “I just called Reggie,” Mr. Obama said.

My Political Prediction for 2012: It's Obama-Clinton  —  My political prediction for 2012 (based on absolutely no inside information): Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden swap places.  Biden becomes Secretary of State — a position he's apparently coveted for years.  And Hillary Clinton, Vice President.

EXCLUSIVE: Nancy Pelosi's Daughter: ‘My Mom Wants to Leave Congress’  —  Alexandra Pelosi, daughter of House Minority Leader and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, told Big Government this week that her mother wants to leave Congress-and that she remains in Washington only at the behest of her campaign donors.

Ranks of Young Paul Volunteers Willingly Clean Up for the Cause  —  DES MOINES — Ron Paul's college-aged volunteer army — a core of the powerful ground organization that is the envy of rivals — is descending on Iowa from around the nation to coax people to the state's Republican caucuses …

Political Predictions for 2012  —  Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid or both will leave the Democratic leadership by year's end.  —  As New Year's approaches, here are a baker's dozen predictions for 2012.  —  • Republicans will keep the U.S. House, albeit with their 25-seat majority slightly reduced.

TNR On the Most Overlooked Stories of 2011  —  Lawrence Kaplan: America's Silent Withdrawal From Iraq  —  War is over.  —  No, really.  “Permanent” bases?  Absolutely not.  A decades-long partnership between Iraq and the United States?  With the American officials who guide the fortunes …

Is the U.S. Getting Older and Whiter, or Younger and More Diverse?  Yes.  —  A brief statistical road trip across the swiftly changing, if not swiftly growing, country  —  The U.S. population grew slower in 2011 than any time in the last 70 years, capping the most lethargic decade of population growth since the 1930s.

Little Change in Public's Response to ‘Capitalism,’ ‘Socialism’  —  A Political Rhetoric Test  —  OVERVIEW  —  The recent Occupy Wall Street protests have focused public attention on what organizers see as the excesses of America's free market system, but perceptions of capitalism …

What is Wrong With the Individual Mandate?  —  ParisParamus: Again, why is a mandate like Romneycare less conservative than raising everyone's state income taxes to pay for the free riders?  Or, why isn't Romneycare fundamentally different than having raised everyone's state income taxes …

Instead of Work, Younger Women Head to School  —  Workers are dropping out of the labor force in droves, and they are mostly women.  In fact, many are young women.  But they are not dropping out forever; instead, these young women seem to be postponing their working lives to get more education.

In Washington area, African American students suspended and expelled two to five times as often as whites  —  Across the Washington area, black students are suspended and expelled two to five times as often as white students, creating disparities in discipline that experts say reflect a growing national problem.

From North Korea, an Altered Procession  —  The funeral of Kim Jong-il on Wednesday called to mind the best stage-managed Communist state productions: the falling snow, the wailing mourners, the perfectly spaced limousines and rows of chest-beating men.  —  So perhaps it was because the scene …

Pentagon trimming ranks of generals, admirals  —  With the Iraq war over and troops in Afghanistan on their way home, the U.S. military is getting down to brass tacks: culling generals and admirals from its top-heavy ranks.  —  Pentagon officials said they have eliminated 27 jobs for generals …

Britain's Future Lies With America, Not Europe  —  Welcoming Britain back into the North Atlantic economic community would be a win-win for all involved.  —  In 1952, then-U.S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson said that “Britain has lost an empire but has failed to find a role.”

A Grim Forecast for Corporate Earnings  —  With an unusually large percentage of companies revising their fourth-quarter estimates downward, prepare to see many results that miss the Street's current estimates.  —  Why Subscribe?  —  When earnings season begins in earnest during the second week …