Rand Paul Takes a Swipe at Chris Christie for Sandy Ads  —  He didn't name any names, but it's clear Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., still has a bone to pick with N.J. Gov. Chris Christie and his “mug” that was all over TV after superstorm Sandy.  —  During a Senate committee hearing on post-Sandy recovery efforts …

Loyal Obama Supporters, Canceled by Obamacare  —  San Francisco architect Lee Hammack says he and his wife, JoEllen Brothers, are “cradle Democrats.”  They have donated to the liberal group Organizing for America and worked the phone banks a year ago for President Obama's re-election.

Dan Savage Suggests ‘Mandatory Abortion’ for 30 Years, Draws Outrage  —  Popular sex columnist and liberal pundit Dan Savage drew some heat this week when he suggested to an Australian conference that he'd offer up “mandatory abortion” as a method of fighting overpopulation.

Pope Francis Kisses Severely Disfigured Man And Prays With Him  —  Pope Francis blessed a man with facial deformities during today's general audience at the Vatican.  —  Pope Francis was departing St. Peter's Square after Wednesday's general audience when he saw a severely disfigured man amidst the crowd of worshippers.

Jason Carter to challenge Gov. Deal next year  —  Democratic state Sen. Jason Carter will challenge Gov. Nathan Deal next year in a move that catapults the gubernatorial contest into the national spotlight and tests whether Georgia's changing demographics can loosen the Republican Party's 12-year grip on the state's highest office.

Sebelius Bombshell: Employer Based Plans Will Face Same Grandfathering Caveats as Lost Individual Plans  —  Testifying on Capitol Hill Wednesday about the failure of the Obamacare rollout, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius was grilled about President Obama's false promise …

Kerry: US considers Israeli settlements to be ‘illegitimate’  —  US secretary of state says despite difficulties, both Abbas, PM set to work toward peace deal.  —  BETHLEHEM - US Secretary of State John Kerry urged Israel on Wednesday to limit settlement building, an issue that is weighing on Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Vice President Biden congratulates the wrong Marty Walsh  —  Just minutes after the election returns arrived in Boston Tuesday night, Martin Walsh's cellphone rang.  It was the vice president of the United States, Joseph R. Biden, offering his congratulations.  —  “You son of a gun, Marty!” he thundered.

C.I.A. Is Said to Pay AT&T for Call Data  —  WASHINGTON — The C.I.A. is paying AT&T more than $10 million a year to assist with overseas counterterrorism investigations by exploiting the company's vast database of phone records, which includes Americans' international calls, according to government officials.

G.O.P. Weighs Limiting Clout of Right Wing  —  Leaders of the Republican establishment, alarmed by the emergence of far-right and often unpredictable Tea Party candidates, are pushing their party to rethink how it chooses nominees and advocating changes they say would result in the selection of less extreme contenders.

Clunker progressivism  —  Barack Obama's presidency has become a feast of failures whose proliferation protects their author from close scrutiny of any one of them.  Now, however, we can revisit one of the first and see it as a harbinger of progressivism's downward stumble to HealthCare.gov.

Why Obamacare Isn't Losing Popularity Even After A Month Of Really Bad Press  —  A new poll released on Wednesday finds that uninsured Americans are increasingly interested in Obamacare, despite the ongoing technological problems plaguing the websites that allow them to sign up for health insurance plans.

Reid confident of ENDA's prospects after Senate vote  — Stumble upon something good?  Share it on StumbleUpon  — Send via Email  — Send this page to Print Friendly  —  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke with LGBT reporters at a roundtable Wednesday (photo courtesy Senate Democrats)

Intel IG rebuffs Hill on surveillance probe  —  The inspector general who oversees the sprawling U.S. intelligence community said he lacks the resources to conduct a review of NSA's surveillance authorities, rebuffing a request from a bipartisan group of senators seeking answers about the the agency's work.

Sebelius' chief tech officer leaving, first major departure since website troubles  —  Washington (CNN) - The official in charge of technology at the federal agency that developed the problem-plagued HealthCare.gov website is leaving the government for a private sector job, according to an internal email announcement.