Mitt don't need no surges  —  DES MOINES — If Mitt Romney wins the Iowa caucuses, the race for the Republican nomination is over.  —  If Mitt Romney comes in second in Iowa, the race for the Republican nomination is over.  —  And if Mitt Romney comes in third in Iowa, the race for the Republican nomination is over.

Cantor can't handle the truth about Reagan  —  CBS's “60 Minutes” ran a good profile on House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) last night, but there was one portion of the interview that was especially important.  —  In this video, it starts at about the 10:19 mark.

Nobody Understands Debt  —  In 2011, as in 2010, America was in a technical recovery but continued to suffer from disastrously high unemployment.  And through most of 2011, as in 2010, almost all the conversation in Washington was about something else: the allegedly urgent issue of reducing the budget deficit.

Ron Paul's Secret Plan To Actually Win  —  He probably can't.  But with stealthy preparations in Bismarck, Boise, and Minnetonka, he can be a huge pain in Mitt Romney's neck.  —  Ron Paul — poised to finish strong in the Iowa caucuses - has begun to implement a quiet …

Americans buy record numbers of guns for Christmas  —  Americans bought record numbers of guns last month amid an apparent surge in popularity for weapons as Christmas presents.  —  According to the FBI, over 1.5 million background checks on customers were requested by gun dealers …

The Roots Of Glenn Beck  —  Mark Lilla doesn't really like Corey Robin's new book on conservatism: … Better though, is his own perspective on the roots of conservatism and its current flight into the apocalyptic and reactionary: … It's interesting that Lilla raises Buckley here.

Andrea Mitchell: Iowa Is “Too White, Too Evangelical, Too Rural”  —  NBC's Andrea Mitchell gives her take on the state of Iowa while covering the upcoming caucus.  Mitchell makes her feelings about the Midwestern state to the viewers, opining that “the rap” on Iowa is that it is too white.

After Three Decades, Tax Credit for Ethanol Expires  —  WASHINGTON — A federal tax credit for ethanol expired on Saturday, ending an era in which the federal government provided more than $20 billion in subsidies for use of the product.  —  The tax break, created more than 30 years ago, had long seemed untouchable.

New to Twitter: the tweet Murdoch took down ... fast  —  “Either @rupertmurdoch is genuinely now on Twitter, or some disgruntled ex-NOTW journo just won the hacking Olympics.”  —  Less than two days after joining Twitter, media mogul Rupert Murdoch appears to have had his first brush …

‘Person of interest’ detained in L.A. arson fires  —  Los Angeles police this morning detained and are questioning a “person of interest” in the spate of arson fires occurring around the city since Friday.  —  The individual, believed to be the man seen in a video police released Sunday …

Islamist militants in Nigeria warn Christians to leave north within 3 days  —  The devastating scene outside St Theresa Catholic Church near the Nigerian capital Abuja on Christmas day  —  (CNN) — The militant Islamist group Boko Haram has issued an ultimatum giving Christians living …