GOP civil war: Herman Cain calls for third party  —  As the GOP fights itself in the wake of Mitt Romney's loss, calls for a third party emerge  —  It's been less than 24 hours since the polls closed and already the first shots in an emerging civil war within the conservative movement are being fired.

Rove's On-Air Rebuttal of Fox's Ohio Vote Call Raises Questions About His Role  —  It was 11:13 p.m. on Tuesday, the moment that Fox News had called Ohio for President Obama.  Karl Rove stood just off camera, his phone glued to his ear.  On the other end was a senior Romney campaign official …

Life after defeat for Mitt Romney: Public praise, private questions  —  BOSTON — Mitt Romney began his retreat from public life Wednesday at a private breakfast gathering with a couple hundred of his most loyal and affluent campaign benefactors.  The former Massachusetts governor …

Romneyworld reckoning begins  —  BOSTON — Advisers to Mitt Romney insisted Wednesday that they were surprised by the scale of their loss to President Barack Obama, while big-time GOP donors griped about the campaign's unflinching confidence in the final stretch.

Axelrod: Talk of mandate ‘foolish, generally untrue’  —  Obama senior campaign adviser David Axelrod downplayed talk of an election mandate on the “fiscal cliff” on Thursday.  —  Axelrod said presidents always talk after an election about a mandate, but he called such talk “foolish.”

Vice President Joe Biden to guest on ‘Parks and Recreation’ — EXCLUSIVE VIDEO  —  Next week's episode of Parks and Recreation is going to have a VIP: the VP.  —  Joe Biden — yes, the very guy who was re-elected Vice President of the United States less than 24 hours ago …

Obama supporters celebrate: No more Israel; kill those motherf***ers  —  Obama supporters out celebrating his win on election night gathered on State Street Tuesday evening.  I asked one man why he was celebrating Obama, and what that meant to him.  He said, “It really means to me …

Boeing Announces Big Layoffs in Defense Division  —  Boeing announced a major restructuring of its defense division on Wednesday that will cut 30 percent of management jobs from 2010 levels, close facilities in California and consolidate several business units to cut costs.  —  The company [BA Loading...

Vegas Employer: Obama Won-So I Fired 22 Employees  —  LAS VEGAS (CBS Las Vegas) — A Las Vegas business owner with 114 employees fired 22 workers today, apparently as a direct result of President Obama's re-election.  —  “David” (he asked to remain anonymous for obvious reasons) …

Sneed exclusive: Jesse Jackson Jr. in plea deal talks with feds: sources  —  Sneed has learned U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., who handily won re-election Tuesday despite a lengthy stay at Mayo Clinic for depression and bipolar disorder, is in the midst of plea discussions with the feds probing his alleged misuse of campaign funds.

The Meaning of Yesterday's Defeat  —  Yesterday was a comprehensive disaster.  Here in Minnesota, to add a local perspective, not only did the state go for Obama-no surprise there-but the Democrats recaptured both houses of the legislature, and voters defeated two ballot initiatives, one on gay marriage and one on voter ID.

Blue reign in Sacramento: Democrats dominate California voting  —  The Democrats' historic gains position them for unchecked power in the form of two-thirds majorities in both houses.  —  Gov. Jerry Brown could have two-thirds Democratic majorities in both houses of California's Legislature.

Little to Show for Cash Flood by Big Donors  —  At the private air terminal at Logan Airport in Boston early Wednesday, men in unwrinkled suits sank into plush leather chairs as they waited to board Gulfstream jets, trading consolations over Mitt Romney's loss the day before.

Obama re-election protest escalates at Univ. of Mississippi; racial slurs, 2 arrests reported  —  JACKSON, Miss. — A protest at the University of Mississippi against the re-election of President Barack Obama grew into crowd of about 400 people with shouted racial slurs as rumors of a riot spread on social media.

Slash the 'Stache!  —  The Goal: To raise the cash  —  David Axelrod's mustache is safe... for now.  President Obama won PA, MI, and MN.  —  But that famous mustache is on the line again.  David has promised to shave it, this time in support of another of his favorite causes - epilepsy research.

BAD SIGN: FEMA office on Staten Island closes ‘due to weather’  —  Looks as if FEMA is just a fair- weather friend.  —  Yesterday's nor'easter proved too much for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's aid location in Tottenville, SI — which hung a sign reading “Closed due to weather” as the wintery storm blew into town.

Kay Bailey Hutchison: GOP can't ‘throw away’ women  —  Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said Thursday that her party must stop treating women as “a throw-away.”  —  “When we talk about women's issues and the social issues, people have to stop acting like the woman is a throw-away here …

Man behind anti-Muslim film sentenced to prison  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) — The California man behind an anti-Muslim film that led to violence in many parts of the Middle East was sentenced Wednesday to a year in federal prison for probation violations in an unrelated matter, then issued a provocative statement through his attorney.

A Silver Lining and a Conundrum [Updated]  —  I can see only one good outcome from yesterday's election: the fact that Barack Obama will be the president who inherits the mess left by Barack Obama.  The economy is in awful shape; it won't get much better given Obama's policies, and may get worse.

The Case of the Missing White Voters  —  One of the more intriguing narratives for election 2012 was proposed by political scientist Brendan Nyhan fairly early on: that it was “Bizarro 2004.”  The parallels to that year certainly were eerie: An incumbent adored by his base …

2016 election: Hillary Clinton vs. Jeb Bush?  —  BOSTON — American politics may be headed back to the future.  —  Four years after the country elected a 40-something African-American newcomer named Barack to the presidency, a more familiar political order is poised to reassert itself …

Voting Limits Caused Less Chaos This Year Than Epic Lines  —  There was confusion about a voter ID law in Pennsylvania, widespread use of provisional ballots in Ohio and problems for college students voting in Florida on Election Day.  But the systematic, widespread voter disenfranchisement …

Obama's Victory Presents G.O.P. With Demographic Test  —  A couple of decades ago, Prince William County was one of the mostly white, somewhat rural, far-flung suburbs where Republican candidates went to accumulate the votes to win elections in Virginia.  —  Since then, Prince William has been transformed.