Hard questions await Obama at news conference  —  This is not what the White House wanted for President Barack Obama's first news conference of his second term.  —  He won't be able to dwell much on his stronger-than-expected victory or even press his agenda for the next four years.

Krauthammer: White House 'Held Affair Over Petraeus's Head' For Favorable Testimony On Benghazi  —  Syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer on Tuesday said the White House used David Petraeus's affair to get the CIA director to give testimony about the attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi …

Romney Blames Loss on Obama's ‘Gifts’ to Minorities and Young Voters  —  A week after losing the presidential election to President Obama, Mitt Romney blamed his overwhelming electoral loss on what he said were big “gifts” that the president had bestowed on loyal Democratic constituencies …

Misreading Election 2012  —  The GOP might be out of step with some voters, but Mitt Romney was an unusually unpopular party standard-bearer.  —  Postelection talk of “lessons learned” is often exaggerated and misleading, and so it is in 2012.  —  A week after President Obama won re-election, two themes are dominant.