Criticized as Weak in Past Talks, Obama Takes Harder Line  —  WASHINGTON — Amid demands from Republicans that President Obama propose detailed new spending cuts to avert the year-end fiscal crisis, his answer boils down to this: you first.  —  Mr. Obama, scarred by failed negotiations …

Sheldon Adelson Spent Far More On Campaign Than Previously Known … REACT:  —  FOLLOW:  —  Elections 2012, John Boehner, Mitt Romney, Campaign Finance, Elections 2012, Newt Gingrich, Video, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Las Vegas Sands, Sheldon Adelson, Fcpa, Mitt Romney 2012, Sands Casino …

The Big Budget Mumble  —  In the ongoing battle of the budget, President Obama has done something very cruel.  Declaring that this time he won't negotiate with himself, he has refused to lay out a proposal reflecting what he thinks Republicans want.  Instead, he has demanded that Republicans themselves say, explicitly, what they want.

Republican “Doomsday Plan” Allows Tax Increase, Uses Debt Limit For Future Leverage  —  Under “Doomsay Scenario,” Republicans vote “present” en masse so they don't take ownership of tax increase  —  Jonathan Karl has early notice of a potential “doomsday” plan devised by Republicans:

Kid Rock: Obama and I have ‘no hard feelings’  —  Washington (CNN) - Musician Kid Rock, who was a celebrity surrogate for Mitt Romney, said President Barack Obama wasted no time in jokingly acknowledging their campaign rivalry Sunday.  —  “It was nice.  I saw the president tonight.

New York Times Seeks Buyouts From 30 in Newsroom  —  Aiming to cut costs in an increasingly troubled advertising environment, The New York Times announced on Monday morning that it would offer buyout packages to newsroom employees.  While the primary goal of the buyout program is to trim managers …

Congress Retains Low Honesty Rating  —  Nurses have highest honesty rating; car salespeople, lowest  —  PRINCETON, NJ — As Congress remains involved in protracted negotiations over the pending “fiscal cliff” that could disrupt the nation's economy if not addressed by Jan. 1 …

Again, no gay marriage orders (UPDATED)  —  The Supreme Court on Monday released additional orders from its Friday Conference, but the list did not show any action on the ten cases dealing with the same-sex marriage issue.  UPDATED: The Court later Monday morning posted on its electronic docket …

Hillary is Running: A Dispatch from the Saban Forum  —  Hillary Clinton is running for President.  And the Israeli political class is a full-blown train wreck.  These are two conclusions, for whatever they are worth, based on a three-day conference I attended this weekend at the annual Saban Forum, in Washington, D.C.

News Corporation Announces Details Regarding Proposed Separation of Businesses  —  Robert Thomson Named CEO of Proposed Publishing Company; Leadership Team Unveiled  —  Companies to be Named News Corporation and Fox Group  —  News Corporation (NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV) …

Homeless Man Is Grateful for Officer's Gift of Boots.  But He Again Is Barefoot.  —  After Officer Lawrence DePrimo knelt beside a barefoot man on a bitterly cold November night in Times Square, giving him a pair of boots, a photo of his random act of good will quickly took on a life of its own …

Vatican discloses Pope's Twitter handle: @pontifex … VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - It's official.  Pope Benedict's handle on Twitter will be @pontifex.  —  He already has 1.2 billion “followers” in the standard sense of the word but next week he will have another type when he enters …

In KC, it's no time for a game  —  KANSAS CITY, MO.  —  Football is embarrassingly tone deaf.  —  Jovan Belcher, a starting linebacker for the Chiefs, murdered the mother of his child shortly before 8 a.m. Saturday.  He hopped in his car, drove to the Kansas City Chiefs practice facility …

Progressive media claims they'll be ‘tougher’ on Obama now |  Glenn Greenwald  —  Given the rationale they have embraced, is there any reason to believe this will happen, or that it will matter if it does?  —  Last week, the Huffington Post's media reporter, Michael Calderone …

Introducing the Drezner Intelligence Explainer  —  David Sanger and Eric Schmitt have a story in today's New York Times about... well, as near as I can figure, the purpose of the story is that the intelligence comnunity wants to communicate with the Assad regime in Syria.  Here's the opening: