Fiscal Cliff Fictions: Let's All Agree to Pretend the GOP Isn't Full of It  —  It's really amazing to see political reporters dutifully passing along Republican complaints that President Obama's opening offer in the fiscal cliff talks is just a recycled version of his old plan …

Exclusive: The Internal Polls That Made Mitt Romney Think He'd Win  —  It's no secret that the Romney campaign believed it was headed for victory on Election Day.  A handful of outlets have reported that Team Romney's internal polling showed North Carolina, Florida, and Virginia moving safely …

No action on same-sex marriage  —  The Supreme Court, after taking most of the day to prepare new orders, took no action Friday on the ten same-sex marriage pleas now on the docket.  It did agree to rule on whether taking a human gene out of the body for research is a process that can be patented.

Self-Awareness Matters  —  In politics, self-awareness matters.  It does.  When I was a political consultant, I told my clients my first two rules.  The first was to know when you were in the minority, even when you thought you were right.  The second was to know yourself as others see you.

Complaints Aside, Most Face Lower Tax Burden Than in the Reagan '80s  —  What Is Fair?:  —  BELLEVILLE, Ill. — Alan Hicks divides long days between the insurance business he started in the late 1970s and the barbecue restaurant he opened with his sons three years ago.

Down and Out With Ted Cruz and the GOP  —  As Republicans regroup from electoral disaster, some — including a rising star in the Senate — insist conservatism was not to blame.  —  Associated Press  —  Why did Republicans lose the 2012 election?  Ask Ted Cruz, the newly elected Republican senator from Texas.

Noonan: The Drawn-Out Crisis—It's the Obama Way  —  The president seems to prefer frustration to good-faith negotiation.  —  The president's inviting Mitt Romney for lunch is a small thing but a brilliant move.  It makes Mr. Obama look big, gracious.  It implies the weakened …

Republicans' Ace in the Hole: Simpson-Bowles?  —  Democrats appear to have the upper hand on the politics of the fiscal cliff, which might explain their brash pronouncements and mind-blowing conceptualization of “compromise.”  This morning I outlined three possible contingencies for Republicans, none of which is especially attractive.

For Secretary of State, G.O.P. Pushes Old Hand  —  WASHINGTON — As President Obama's potential nominee for secretary of state, Susan E. Rice, comes under increasing fire, Congressional Republicans appear to be coalescing around a familiar name as an alternative candidate …

Congress looks at doing away with the $1 bill  —  Congressional auditors say doing away with dollar bills entirely ...more  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — American consumers have shown about as much appetite for the $1 coin as kids do their spinach.  They may not know what's best for them either.

Arizona Governor Compares Undocumented Immigrants To Drunks And Children  —  Since President Obama issued an administrative directive allowing some undocumented young immigrants to temporarily remain in the country, states have adopted policies to ensure they have equal work opportunity.

NY, NJ, Conn. join forces, seek nearly $83 billion in ‘flexible’ federal aid in Sandy recovery  —  ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy are joining forces in a regional effort to land nearly $83 billion in federal aid to recover from Superstorm Sandy.

Paulsboro bridge collapse derails train, dumps tank car contents into Mantua Creek  —  PAULSBORO — Four railroad tank cars have been dumped into the Mantua Creek and are leaking vinyl chloride after the train bridge collapsed at about 7 a.m.  —  Ambulances are being sent to the Paulsboro Marine Terminal …

Costco's Dividend Tax Epiphany  —  Obama's fans in the 1% vote to beat Obama's tax increase.  —  When President Obama needed a business executive to come to his campaign defense, Jim Sinegal was there.  The Costco co-founder, director and former CEO even made a prime-time speech at the Democratic Party convention in Charlotte.

Class Wars of 2012  —  On Election Day, The Boston Globe reported, Logan International Airport in Boston was running short of parking spaces.  Not for cars — for private jets.  Big donors were flooding into the city to attend Mitt Romney's victory party.  —  They were, it turned out, misinformed about political reality.

US government releases once-secret Watergate files  —  WASHINGTON — The government on Friday released more than 850 pages of once-secret documents from the Watergate political scandal, providing new insights on privileged legal conversations and prison evaluations of some burglars in the case.

Pot legalization support hits record high, poll shows  —  Support for marijuana legalization has edged up recently and is now tied with the oppposition, according to a CBS poll released Friday — the first time since that survey started keeping track of the issue.