Senators ‘troubled’ after Rice talk  —  Sen. John McCain and two other GOP senators said they were “significantly troubled” after a private meeting with U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice about her erroneous explanation of the deadly attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

Is Grover Finally Over?  —  I once took a long train ride with Grover Norquist.  This wasn't intentional.  We found ourselves next to each other on the line to board an Acela from Washington, D.C., to New York, and we fell into a conversation, by which I mean that he did a great deal of talking …

Tom Ricks: Fox News ‘is making it up’  —  Author Tom Ricks on Tuesday said Fox News is “making it up” that he apologized after slamming the network during an on-air interview as “operating as a wing of the Republican Party” and hyping Benghazi for political reasons.

North Korea's top leader named The Onion's Sexiest Man Alive for 2012  —  é‡'.... .æ°"  —  Edited and translated by Zhang Qian, People's Daily Online  —  U.S. website The Onion has named North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un as the “Sexiest Man Alive for the year 2012”.

The Next Mitt Romney  —  Jeb was neutral.  —  Say again, neutral.  —  As Ronald Reagan might say, there he went again.  —  What was Jeb Bush neutral about?  —  The choice between liberal Charlie Crist and conservative Marco Rubio for the Republican nomination for United States Senator from Florida.

House GOP plans public push against tax hikes on businesses  —  President Obama won't be the only one hitting the campaign trail to push his deficit plan to avert the fiscal cliff.  —  House Republicans are planning their own campaign-style events to argue against Obama's insistence …

Cox and Archer: Why $16 Trillion Only Hints at the True U.S. Debt  —  Hiding the government's liabilities from the public makes it seem that we can tax our way out of mounting deficits.  We can't.  —  A decade and a half ago, both of us served on President Clinton's Bipartisan Commission …

Most-Racial America  —  Antiwhite bigotry goes mainstream.  —  “Everytime [sic] I think the Democratic race card players could not get more vile, more deranged, more patronizingly demeaning to blacks, someone manages to defy even my vivid imagination,” thunders blogger William Jacobson.

CNN Poll: Americans rate W.H. response to Benghazi attack and Petraeus resignation  —  Washington (CNN) - Americans are giving the White House low marks for how it's handled the terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, and the resignation of former CIA Director David Petraeus, according to a new national survey.

Germany to ban sex with animals: report  —  THE German government is about to reintroduce a ban on bestiality, after pressure from animal welfare groups.  —  Newspaper die Tageszeitung reports that the governing coalition are soon to amend the country's Animal Welfare Act to make sex …

Idaho lawmaker shares ‘last chance’ idea to elect Romney  —  A state senator from north-central Idaho is touting a scheme that's been circulating on tea party blogs, calling for states that supported Mitt Romney to refuse to participate in the Electoral College in a move backers believe would change the election result.

City Is Amassing Trove of Cellphone Logs  —  When a cellphone is reported stolen in New York, the Police Department routinely subpoenas the phone's call records, from the day of the theft onward.  The logic is simple: If a thief uses the phone, a list of incoming and outgoing calls could lead to the suspect.

Martha Coakley's got it made on road to Corner Office  —  She is the woman who couldn't beat Scott Brown, but now she's the Democrats' best hope to keep the governor's office in 2014.  —  Don't laugh, but that woman is Attorney General Martha Coakley.  —  Lt. Gov. Tim Murray?  Treasurer Steve Grossman?

Gazans Crossing Fence ‘into IDF Positions’  —  IDF soldiers describe dangerous anarchy on border fence as result of Pillar of Defense agreements.  —  IDF soldiers stationed along the border fence with Gaza say they have received new orders on opening fire, which allow Arabs in Gaza …

The Internet's Best Terrible Person Goes to Jail: Can a Reviled Master Troll Become a Geek Hero?  —  On a gray Wednesday morning in October, the car headed west on the Lincoln Highway Bridge hit 100 miles per hour and I started to worry it might hurtle off into the tangle of rusted …

Dems Defend Filibuster Reform Effort: ‘McConnell Has Broken The Social Contract’  —  On the Senate floor Monday afternoon, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell railed against his counterpart, Harry Reid, and a “cohort of short-sighted Senate sophomores,” for proposing to modify …

Obama's New Cabinet  —  Elisse B. Walter?  —  Is that really whom President Obama named on Monday to be the new chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission?  A woman who has been at the S.E.C. for the last four years?  And, to boot, someone practically joined at the hip with her predecessor, Mary Schapiro?

Santorum's new cause: opposing the disabled  —  President-unelect Rick Santorum made his triumphant return to the Capitol on Monday afternoon and took up a brave new cause: He is opposing disabled people.  —  Specifically, Santorum, joined by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), declared his wish …

Enclaves, Long Gated, Seek to Let In Storm Aid  —  Sea Gate looks the same as many storm-scattered waterfront communities do.  Home after home torn apart by the ocean.  Streets filled with sand.  Shattered sidewalks and clogged sewers.  A sea wall, which had already been inadequate …

Who Should Be TIME's Person of the Year 2012?  —  As always, TIME's editors will choose the Person of the Year, but that doesn't mean readers shouldn't have their say.  Cast your vote for the person you think most influenced the news this year for better or worse.