Angry with Obama, GOP threatens political war next year  —  Washington (CNN) — They are losing the battle over higher taxes on the wealthy, so now Republicans are threatening a political war next year when it comes time to raise the nation's debt ceiling.  —  With cracks appearing …

The Morning Plum: A way out for labor in Michigan?  —  Today, Governor Rick Snyder is expected to sign “right to work” legislation in Michigan.  Obviously, this will constitute a hard blow to organized labor, for a host of reasons, symbolic and practical alike.

Justice Scalia defends comparing laws against homosexuality, murder  —  U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia equated homosexuality and murder on Monday as he argued at a Princeton seminar that elected bodies should be allowed to regulate actions they see as immoral.

THINGS IN POLITICO THAT MAKE ME WANT TO GUZZLE ANTIFREEZE, POINT OF NO RETURN EDITION  —  One of my primary criticisms of Tiger Beat On The Potomac has been that the entire enterprise has been dedicated totally to gossip, triviality, and Drudge-baiting to the exclusion of what's actually …

First on CNN: Haley finalizes short list for DeMint seat  —  Washington (CNN) - South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has whittled down the list of people she is considering for Jim DeMint's soon-to-be-vacant Senate seat to five people, a Republican close to the governor told CNN on Tuesday.

Jon Stewart almost quit Daily Show over “a**hole” coworkers  —  Late night satire's biggest secrets were revealed live on stage in Montclair, NJ Friday night as Stephen Colbert interviewed Jon Stewart at the Wellmont Theatre, a fundraiser for the Montclair Film Festival.

An Embarrassing Metric Disappears  —  As the din of America's falling headfirst over the fiscal cliff reverberates across the nation, the Obama administration is quietly killing a key economic metric that tells how, and how many, people are voting with their feet.

NO SHOTS FIRED: STATE DEPT BENGHAZI SECURITY FORCE UNARMED  —  A source with personal knowledge of the security situation in Benghazi told Breitbart News that Senators who listened to closed door testimony about the Benghazi attack were shocked to learn State Department security personnel agents were not immediately armed.

University of Texas professor claims black students are failing because they are raised by poor single women  — Law professor Lino Graglia has previously accused black culture of ‘setting children up for failure’  —  A professor at the University of Texas has sparked outrage by claiming black …

In ‘Zero Dark Thirty,’ she's the hero; in real life, CIA agent's career is more complicated  —  She was a real-life heroine of the CIA hunt for Osama bin Laden, a headstrong young operative whose work tracking the al-Qaeda leader serves as the dramatic core of a Hollywood film set to premiere next week.

INFOGRAPHIC: We Could End Homelessness With The Money Americans Spend On Christmas Decorations  —  The latest annual report from the Department of Housing and Urban Development shows that the national homeless population held steady from 2011 to 2012, hardly good news but perhaps better …

McConnell highly unpopular  —  Mitch McConnell is the most unpopular Senator in the country.  Only 37% of Kentucky voters approve of him to 55% disapprove.  Both in terms of raw disapproval (55%) and net approval (-18) McConnell has the worst numbers of any of his peers, taking that mantle from Nebraska's Ben Nelson.

Fox News Says Workers Who Don't Like Michigan's Anti-Union Bill ‘Can Get A Job Elsewhere’  —  On Tuesday, Fox News threw its weight behind Michigan's effort to allow union members to opt out of paying union dues, while benefiting from union contracts though so-called “right-to-work” legislation.

In Talks, House Majority Weighs Loyalty to Voters  —  WASHINGTON — As their leaders inch toward agreeing to higher tax rates, dozens of House Republicans find themselves caught between the will of a larger American public that favors higher taxes on the rich and the wishes of constituents …

Mark Schauer pepper-sprayed outside Capitol  —  Former congressman Mark Schauer said he was pepper-sprayed by police today while leading anti-right to work protesters outside the state Capitol.  —  Schauer said he was part of a crowd of protesters outside the Capitol's north wing …

Treasury Earns $7.6 Billion From Sale of Last Shares in A.I.G.  —  The Treasury Department said on Tuesday that it has sold off its remaining stake in the American International Group, reaping about $7.6 billion from the sale.  —  The government sold the 234.2 million shares at $32.50 each …

Poll: Voters want soft fiscal cliff landing, but offer no net  —  WASHINGTON — Americans clearly want Washington to solve its looming budget crisis, and they clearly reject almost every option to do that, according to a new McClatchy-Marist Poll.  —  The only option that voters endorse …