Republicans Balk at White House Plan to Avert Fiscal Crisis  —  WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner presented the House speaker, John A. Boehner, a detailed proposal on Thursday to avert the year-end fiscal crisis with $1.6 trillion in tax increases over 10 years …

UN General Assembly votes overwhelmingly to recognize state of Palestine; US, Israel object  —  UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations voted overwhelmingly Thursday to recognize a Palestinian state, a long-sought victory for the Palestinians but an embarrassing diplomatic defeat for the United States.

Why President Obama Isn't Using His Most Powerful Weapon — Again  —  The stakes in “fiscal cliff” talks are high — so where's the e-mail list?  So far, it's 2009 all over again.  —  Via: barackobama.com  —  President Obama and his victorious campaign team have signaled that they won't repeat …

U.S. Birth Rate Falls to a Record Low; Decline Is Greatest Among Immigrants  —  OVERVIEW  —  The U.S. birth rate dipped in 2011 to the lowest ever recorded, led by a plunge in births to immigrant women since the onset of the Great Recession.  —  The overall U.S. birth rate …

McCain Gets Petty On Susan Rice Attacks: It's ‘Meaningless To Take Out Core Al-Qaeda’  —  Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said on Wednesday that it is “meaningless” that al-Qaeda's core leadership — including presumably, Osama bin Laden — has been wiped out over the last four years.  Why would McCain make such a claim?

Just Walk Away, Republicans  —  RUSH: I'm having trouble coming up with a term for this.  But the conventional wisdom, the groupthink, I mean, folks, I don't care where you go, and this is not a criticism.  I'm actually looking at this in wonderment.  I don't care where you go.

Syrian Internet Is Off The Air  —  Click for latest update: 01:00 GMT Friday.  —  Starting at 10:26 UTC on Thursday, 29 November (12:26pm in Damascus), Syria's international Internet connectivity shut down.  In the global routing table, all 84 of Syria's IP address blocks have become unreachable …

Police report: Maine West coach witnessed sexual hazing, congratulated victim  —  At the law firm of Romanucci & Blandin, a parent who did not want her identity disclosed, talked about transferring her son from Maine West to Maine East after she reported hazing of a sexual nature against her son …

Clinton: Legalization not the answer to the drug war  —  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that she did not believe that domestic drug legalization was the answer to the cartel violence that plagues Central America as a result of the drug trade.  —  Asked by the Costa Rican ambassador …

Gingrich: House Republicans should stop negotiating with President Obama  —  Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich said Wednesday that House Republicans should stop negotiating with President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats on the fiscal cliff, saying that by doing so, they give Obama all of the leverage in the talks.

Strauss-Kahn Said to Reach Deal to Settle With Hotel Housekeeper  —  Dominique Strauss-Kahn and the hotel housekeeper who accused him of sexually assaulting her last year have quietly reached an agreement to settle a lawsuit she brought against him stemming from the case that made international headlines …

Residents Alerted to Obamas' Hawaiian Holiday Plans  —  BY MALIA ZIMMERMAN - KAILUA, OAHU - Residents living near the beachfront homes where President Barack Obama and First Family vacation with their friends every year since 2008 were alerted on Monday to some specifics of the Obamas' holiday vacation plans.

The Autism Advantage  —  When Thorkil Sonne and his wife, Annette, learned that their 3-year-old son, Lars, had autism, they did what any parent who has faith in reason and research would do: They started reading.  At first they were relieved that so much was written on the topic.

Donald Trump Partnership Ruins Macy's Popularity  —  The old adage that “all press is good press” might not ring true with department store chain Macy's.  Their recent partnership with conservative billionaire oddball Donald Trump is causing a sudden drop in the brand's popularity, particularly among women.

WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning gives evidence for first time  —  Manning takes stand at pre-trial hearing and speaks at length about his treatment by the military following his arrest in 2010  —  After 917 days in military captivity, the world finally heard on Thursday from Bradley Manning …

David Petraeus says he ‘screwed up royally’ in letter to old Army buddy  —  Ex-CIA chief David Petraeus took the blame for the extramarital affair that torpedoed his career, but his forgiving wife, Holly, is sticking by him, according to a newly revealed private letter.