Poll: Among GOP hopefuls, Romney fares best against Obama  —  CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto.  —  Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney holds a two-point lead against President Obama …

Bill Daley resignation: Why he had to go  —  The Bill Daley era on Monday screeched to a jarring, clattering conclusion.  —  Daley, who departs after a little more than a year as President Barack Obama's chief of staff, was never a great fit inside the West Wing — and Obama …

Why You Cannot Say You ‘Like’ Firing People  —  As Derek Thompson points out on our site, and as the Romney campaign will be fully justified in reiterating, obviously Mitt Romney did not mean that he enjoys the process of telling people “you're gone!” when he made his infamous “I like being able to fire people” remark in New Hampshire.

Texas Voting Rights Case Heard by Supreme Court  —  WASHINGTON — Several members of the Supreme Court appeared frustrated on Monday as they surveyed the available options and looming deadlines in a major voting rights case from Texas that could help decide control of the House.

N.J. Gov. Chris Christie Responds to Female Hecklers With Offensive Oral Sex Joke … - New Hampshire Debate: Gingrich Attacks Romney for His “Pious Baloney” - CBS Stakes Its Claim as the Adult Contemporary of the Network Morning Shows  — Chris Christie Responds to Female Hecklers With Lame …

Poll: Americans, 2-1, Fear Obama's Reelection  —  When it comes to how Americans view President Obama going into the new year, there appears to be very little spirit of Auld Lang Syne.  Instead, according to the new Washington Whispers poll, many voters aren't forgetting what they dislike about Obama and want him out office.

Gayest Cities in America, 2012  —  It's no secret that megalopolises New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles have robust LGBT life — and we've even heard tell of little queer hoods like the Castro and P-Town.  This isn't that list.  —  There's the official census with information …

UPDATED: Herger to announce retirement; LaMalfa to run for his seat  —  After a quarter century representing the north state, U.S. Rep. Wally Herger will announce today he is planning to retire at the end of his current term and state Sen. Doug LaMalfa will be running for his seat.

Pain: The David Gregory Solution  —  Before we leave the weekend's debates behind, and in keeping with the blog's first rule of economics — Fk The Deficit.  People Got No Jobs.  People Got No Money.  — I would be remiss not to mention the performance on Sunday of Dancin' Dave Gregory …

Lawmakers accuse Facebook of ducking questions on its privacy practices  —  Reps. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Joe Barton (R-Texas) accused Facebook of evading questions about whether it tracks users in order to deliver targeted ads on Monday.  —  The co-chairmen of the Congressional Piracy Caucus …

The name ‘Jew’ lands Christian in trouble  —  A man wrote that his name was ‘Jew Jurian’ on his national identity card form.  The data entry clerk then assumed he was a Jew.  Thus for the first time in the history of Computerised National Identity Cards (CNIC), a Pakistani was officially declared a Jew.

Conservatives vs. Capitalism  —  The last two presidential election cycles have revealed a stinking hypocrisy in conservatives: They profess their love of capitalism and entrepreneurship, but when offered a real capitalist and entrepreneur, they go, “Eek, a mouse!”  And they tear him down in proud social-democrat fashion.