All I Want for Christmas Is a New GOP  —  You call that governing?  Amid dismal fiscal-cliff talks and an even worse reaction to the shooting in Newtown, Mark McKinnon throws cold water on his wayward party.  —  What I want for Christmas is a new Republican Party.

Obama is CNN's Most Intriguing Person of 2012  —  Obama: His year in facial expressions  —  Washington (CNN) — A year ago, President Barack Obama was under fire.  Today, he is being feted.  —  In just 12 months, the 51-year-old lawyer and former U.S. senator raised by a single mother went …

Crapo charged with drunken driving  —  Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) was arrested and charged with drunken driving in Alexandria, Va., early Sunday morning, according to local police.  —  Jody Donaldson, a spokesperson for the Alexandria Police Department, said in an e-mail that Crapo was arrested at 12:45 a.m. Sunday.

Search for Way Through Fiscal Impasse Turns to the Senate  —  WASHINGTON — With little more than a week for lawmakers to avert huge tax increases and spending cuts, attention is turning from the gridlocked House to the Senate, where some Republicans on Sunday endorsed President Obama's call …

4 firefighters shot, 2 killed at Webster, N.Y., fire  —  Fires allowed to spread while gunman remains at large  —  Police at the scene of the shooting.  A gunman shot and killed at least two firefighters responding to a house fire at a Rochester suburb early Monday.

THOUSANDS SIGN US PETITION TO DEPORT PIERS MORGAN  —  LONDON (AP) — Tens of thousands of people have signed a petition calling for British CNN host Piers Morgan to be deported from the U.S. over his gun control views.  —  Morgan has taken an aggressive stand for tighter U.S. gun laws …

The truth is that politicians are telling lies  —  Government is simply unaffordable  —  The Chancellor makes much of his determination to cut benefits  —  Was 2012 the year when the democratic world lost its grip on reality?  Must we assume now that no party that speaks the truth …

Vinny from ‘Jersey Shore’ — I Wanna Be a Politician  —  VINNY FROM ‘JERSEY SHORE’  —  I Wanna Be a Politician  —  With “Jersey Shore” officially in the history books ... Vinny Guadagnino says he's looking to transition into a career with even more sex, booze and drama ... POLITICS!!

For Poor, Leap to College Often Ends in a Hard Fall  —  GALVESTON, Tex. — Angelica Gonzales marched through high school in Goth armor — black boots, chains and cargo pants — but undermined her pose of alienation with a place on the honor roll.  She nicknamed herself after a metal band …

White House Wavers on Hagel, Considers Others for Defense  —  Nebraska Republican's Pentagon nomination appears to be failing because of his blunt advocacy of unpopular positions.  —  Besieged by criticism from right and left, and considerable skepticism from his former Senate colleagues …

Gregory Mocks LaPierre for Proposing Armed Guards, but Sends Kids to High-Security School  —  David Gregory mocked the NRA's Wayne LaPierre for proposing that armed guards be at every school in America.  But the NBC host seems to have no problem with armed guards protecting his kids everyday where they attend school in Washington, D.C.

When Prophecy Fails  —  Back in the 1950s three social psychologists joined a cult that was predicting the imminent end of the world.  Their purpose was to observe the cultists' response when the world did not, in fact, end on schedule.  What they discovered, and described in their classic book …

Poll: Public sours on what 2013 will bring  —  Public expectations about the year ahead are bleaker than they've been in more than a decade, with Republicans leading the way in adopting gloomier outlooks, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.  —  A bare 53 percent majority …