Sen. Jim DeMint to Head Heritage Foundation  —  South Carolina U.S. Senator Jim DeMint will replace Ed Feulner as president of the Heritage Foundation.  Mr. DeMint will leave his post as South Carolina's junior senator in early January to take control of the Washington think tank, which has an annual budget of about $80 million.

Tim Cook's Freshman Year: The Apple CEO Speaks  —  Prior to his death on Oct. 5, 2011, Steve Jobs made sure that the elevation of Tim Cook—his longtime head of operations and trusted deputy—to Apple chief executive officer would be drama-free.  “He goes, ‘I never want you to ask what I would have done,’” recalls Cook.

Republicans wave the white flag  —  Speaker John Boehner emerged from his weekly huddle with House Republicans on Wednesday morning to take his place behind a mahogany lectern in front of a brown backdrop.  The dark tones provided ideal camouflage for the deeply tanned speaker — as though he were trying to vanish into the background.

The Political Risks of Cliff-Diving  —  Republicans will get the blame, but it is the president who will be weakened most.  —  President Barack Obama has clear advantages in the public-opinion contest over the fiscal cliff.  He recently won re-election, Democrats increased their Senate majority and the GOP controls only the House.

FOX'S CORRESPONDENT ON FRONT LINES WITH OBAMA  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Ed Henry's assignment covering the White House would be a challenge for any journalist, no matter his employer.  —  Yet Henry works at Fox News Channel, home base for viewers who longed for President Barack Obama's defeat.

Lawmaker chews out staffer for riding on members-only elevator  —  Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) chewed out a House staffer after catching her riding on a “members only” elevator, according to an ITK tipster who was on the scene.  —  But Foxx's office is calling our lookout's description of events in the elevator an “exaggeration.”

How Democrats' Main Filibuster Reform Would Work  —  Senate Democrats who support reforming the filibuster when the new Congress convenes next month insist their ideas are fairly modest.  Their farthest-reaching proposal, they say, would be to end the era of silent obstruction …

U.S.-Approved Weapons Transfer Ended Up With Libyan Jihadis  —  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration secretly gave its blessing to arms shipments to Libyan rebels from Qatar last year, but American officials later grew alarmed as evidence grew that Qatar was turning some of the weapons …

U.S. Unadjusted Unemployment Shoots Back Up  —  Unemployment situation best for college grads, whites, men, and older workers  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. unemployment, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment, was 7.8% for the month of November, up significantly from 7.0% for October.

Air Force-wide inspections begin today  —  Commanders and supervisors in all corners of the Air Force will conduct a widespread sweep of all work spaces and public areas starting today, looking for pictures, calendars and other materials that objectify women.

I Am Not Big Brother  —  I'VE grown accustomed to reading inaccurate accounts of my day job.  I'm in political data.  —  If I'm not spying on private citizens through the security cam in the parking garage, I'm probably sifting through their garbage for discarded pages from their diaries …

First on CNN: Priebus launches RNC re-election bid  —  Washington (CNN) - Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus formally launched his re-election campaign Thursday in a letter and YouTube video sent to the 168-member committee.  —  In the letter, provided to CNN by a GOP source …

Olive Garden Suffering From Bad PR After Anti-Obamacare Comments  —  Darden Restaurants, Inc. — owner of Red Lobster and Olive Garden — is battling back negative press attention in light of its October announcement that the company will use Obamacare as a reason to shift to part-time employees.