What Jim DeMint figured out  —  In today's Republican universe, there's less of a relationship than ever between holding office and holding power  —  It says something about the state of the conservative movement and the Republican Party that Jim DeMint's power won't wane at all - and …

Administration Weighs Legal Action Against States That Legalized Marijuana Use  —  WASHINGTON — Senior White House and Justice Department officials are considering plans for legal action against Colorado and Washington that could undermine voter-approved initiatives to legalize the recreational use …

November Employment Report: 146,000 Jobs, 7.7% Unemployment Rate  —  From the BLS: … Click on graph for larger image.  —  There was uncertainty about this report because of Hurricane Sandy.  —  The headline number was above expectations of 80,000, but both September and October payroll growth was revised down.

At Boehner's Request, He and Obama Negotiate Alone  —  WASHINGTON — At House Speaker John A. Boehner's request, Senate leaders and Representative Nancy Pelosi have been excluded from talks to avert a fiscal crisis, leaving it to Mr. Boehner and President Obama alone to find a deal, Congressional aides say.

The Republican crisis  —  Party of ‘eat your veggies’  —  If you want to know why Republicans and conservatives are in a political crisis, you need only consider the fact that the Right's deeply held view now boils down to this: Taxes should not go up on the wealthy, and your health benefits should be cut.

New photo shows Obama taking Romney's concession call  —  (CNN) - A never-before-seen official White House photo, posted online Friday, shows President Barack Obama on Election Night speaking with his freshly defeated rival Mitt Romney.  —  The photo was taken in the presidential suite …

Axelrod slashes his mustache  —  Obama campaign adviser David Axelrod shaved his mustache on national television Friday to settle a bet.  —  Axelrod fulfilled the bet with MSNBC “Morning Joe” co-cost Joe Scarborough to raise over $1 million toward epilepsy research.

A Newly Preposterous Low for McConnell (and the Filibuster)  —  My admiration for the Senate's minority leader, the Hon. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, is limited.  But his latest move took even me by surprise.  —  In a tactic he thought would put the Obama Administration in an uncomfortable position …

Right-to-work bills pass in Lansing  —  Lansing — The birthplace of the nation's modern-day labor movement moved closer to becoming the nation's 24th right-to-work state after bills Gov. Rick Snyder vowed to sign into law passed their first hurdles in the Republican-controlled Legislature on Thursday.

Why People Are Confused About the Fiscal Cliff  —  Dean Baker catches the Washington Post running a Q&A under this banner:  —  OK, if there's one thing the fiscal cliff confrontation isn't, it's a “debt crisis”.  The problem — a political standoff that may lead to damaging austerity …

Could the ‘platinum coin option’ solve the U.S. debt crisis?  —  Associated Press - This is a U.S. Mint handout of the one-ounce $100 platinum coin.  Under current law, the Treasury is technically allowed to mint as many coins made of platinum as it wants and can assign them whatever value it pleases.

Joe Manchin objects to MTV's ‘Buckwild’ reality show  —  Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W. Va.).  ( AP)  —  Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) isn't too wild about MTV's new reality show, “Buckwild.”  —  The show is scheduled to debut next month and follows a group of nine twenty-somethings living …

The Baby Boom Bump  —  CONVENTIONAL wisdom calls the 2012 presidential race the “demographic election,” attributing President Obama's victory in large part to his commanding advantage among rapidly growing groups like Latinos and millennials.  —  But if demographics is destiny in politics, it is even more true for policy.

The Fantasy of a 91% Top Income Tax Rate  —  A liberal article of faith that confiscatory taxes fed the postwar boom turns out to be an Edsel of an economic idea.  —  Democratic Party leaders, President Obama in particular, are forever telling the country that wealthy Americans are taxed at too low a rate and pay too little in taxes.

Jon Chait's Miserable Endorsement of Raising the Medicare Eligibility Age  —  Since Jon Chait has never met a concession he didn't like, he comes out with an endorsement of raising the Medicare eligibility age as part of a long-term deficit deal.  So his cover for what is universally regarded …

MISANDRY - Male Resistance to the MRM  —  A Redditor named doch_doch has a new blog she has just started and it is definitely worth a look.  (This is one of the cleverer screen names I have seen.  It means “though, though” or “Oh but yes it is!” in German.)  —  She starts with:

Whites Stayed Home And Re-Elected Obama  —  Now that all the data is in, the fundamental reason for Romney's defeat is apparent, if largely unreported.  It is not just that blacks, Latinos, and single women showed up in record numbers at the polls.  It's that whites didn't.

FCC to FAA: Allow ‘greater use’ of electronic devices during flights  —  The head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Thursday pushed for wider in-flight use of electronic portable devices during airplane flights.  —  FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski called …

Google Nearer to Selling Motorola Set-Top Line  —  Google Inc. is wrapping up an auction of Motorola's set-top box business, according to people involved in the deal, as it continues downsizing the hardware unit.  —  The Mountain View, Calif., company had set a deadline of Friday for the last round of bids …

Hono­lulu after Pearl Harbor: A report published for the first time, 71 years later  —  Video: Betty McIntosh's account of the attack on Pearl Harbor went unpublished until today.  Now 97, she's still sharp as a whip and speaks to The Fold's Brook Silva-Braga about what she remembers …

Driver in Fatal Bus Crash Found Not Guilty of Manslaughter  —  A bus driver accused of being so tired that he caused a crash that killed 15 passengers was found not guilty on all felony charges by a jury on Friday, underscoring the difficulty in prosecuting so-called drowsy driving cases.

‘A FIRST CLASS NURSE WHO CARED DILIGENTLY FOR HUNDREDS’  —  King Edward VII hospital spoke of the their shock at the death of Jacintha Saldanha in a statement:  —  'It is with very deep sadness that we confirm the tragic death of a member of our nursing staff, Jacintha Saldanha.

Syria's Chemical Weapons Moves Lead U.S. to Be Flexible  —  WASHINGTON — When President Obama first warned Syria's leader, President Bashar al-Assad, that even making moves toward using chemical weapons would cross a “red line” that might force the United States to drop its reluctance …