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 …

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.

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.

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 …

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.

Study: American Households Hit 43-Year Low In Net Worth  —  WASHINGTON (CBS DC) - The median net worth of American households has dropped to a 43-year low as the lower and middle classes appear poorer and less stable than they have been since 1969.  —  According to a recent study …

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.

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.

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 …

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.

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 …

Small union is causing big problems for ports  —  A strike by about 800 clerical workers is disrupting the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and costing them an estimated $1 billion a day.  Above, trucks line up Thursday to enter Pier J at the Port of Long Beach.  (Bob Chamberlin, Los Angeles Times / November 30, 2012)

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.

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.

Christie strongly favored for reelection, voters still lukewarm on 2016 bid  —  Chris Christie's the most popular Governor PPP's polled on all year, and he looks pretty safe for reelection next year.  But New Jersey voters still aren't sold on him as a Presidential candidate in 2016.

Ecoterrorism suspect surrenders at Canadian border  —  This undated photograph provided by the FBI shows fugitive Rebecca Rubin.  (FBI / Associated Press)  —  A Canadian woman who has been an international fugitive from charges relating to a string of fires set by environmental radicals surrendered …

Rwandan Ghosts  —  Benghazi isn't the biggest blight on Susan Rice's record.  —  GOMA, Democratic Republic of the Congo — Televised comments made by Amb.  Susan Rice shortly after the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi have dominated the debate over her probable nomination for secretary of state.

Why Conservatives Must Surrender on ‘Redistribution’  —  Liberals talk about booming incomes at the top while lower-income households barely see benefits from economic growth.  Conservatives talk about a rising share of the population that depends on government benefits and a shrinking share that pays income tax.