Obama's Gift to the Republicans  —  The ancient Greeks liked to say that character is fate.  —  The colossal mess that Obamacare has become reflects both the character of the legislation and that of the president who sponsored it.  —  The Affordable Care Act, as a government mandate …

Census ‘faked’ 2012 election jobs report  —  In the home stretch of the 2012 presidential campaign, from August to September, the unemployment rate fell sharply — raising eyebrows from Wall Street to Washington.  —  The decline — from 8.1 percent in August to 7.8 percent in September — might not have been all it seemed.

Cheney Family Values  —  If Liz Cheney, whose bid for the Senate has always had a stench of extreme opportunism, wants to discuss traditions and values, I'm all for it.  Let's start here: Isn't there a tradition of close-knit family members' taking care not to wound one another?  Is there not value in that?

Christie to GOP: 'If being me isn't good enough, then fine, I will go home'  —  Washington (CNN) - New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, fresh off a landslide reelection victory earlier this month, says if being himself “is not good enough in any other election I might someday pursue,” he will just find another job.

Martin Bashir apologizes for dirty, disgusting slam at Sarah Palin  —  FILE: Martin Bashir on the second day of Michael Jackson's child molestation trial in Santa Maria.reuters  —  When I first saw a headline about what Martin Bashir said, I figured it must be exaggerated.

Seminole deputies arrest George Zimmerman  —  Video: Zimmerman's wife calls 911, won't press charges  —  911 audio: Shellie Zimmerman says George is threatening everyone  —  George Zimmerman's attorney gives statement  —  George Zimmerman's wife says he threatened her

Edwards teaming up again with former law partner  —  RALEIGH, N.C. — Two-time Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards will soon begin practicing law again with his former law partner, David Kirby, and his daughter Cate.  —  The Edwards Kirby law firm will have offices in Raleigh and Washington, D.C.

Chat wrap: OUR Walmart rep answers your questions about this story  —  Is the food drive proof the retailer pays so little that many employees can't afford Thanksgiving dinner?  —  Norma Mills of Canton, who lives near the store, saw the photo circulating showing the food drive bins, and felt both “outrage” and “anger.”

Majority in U.S. Say Healthcare Not Gov't Responsibility  —  Republicans' attitudes on this measure have changed significantly since 2000  —  PRINCETON, NJ — The 56% of U.S. adults who now say it is not the federal government's responsibility to make sure all Americans have healthcare coverage continues to reflect a record high.

Ford Nation hits the airwaves … Mayor Rob Ford and Coun.  Doug Ford debuted their talk show ‘Ford Nation’ on the Sun News Network Monday evening shortly after council voted to futher strip the mayor's power and budget.  Video courtesy: Sun News … Photos View photos  — zoom

Elizabeth Warren: Don't cut Social Security.  Expand it!  —  “The most recent discussion about cutting benefits has focused on something called the Chained-CPI.  Supporters of the chained CPI say that it's a more accurate way of measuring cost of living increases for seniors.  That statement is simply not true.

Al Jazeera America fails to attract US audience  —  After just two months on the air, Al Jazeera America is losing ground in the US.  —  The US offshoot of the Mideast news outfit managed fewer than half of the viewers who tuned in to its predecessor, Al Gore's Current TV.

President Obama's messy breakup with insurers  —  Administration officials say they can take care of that problem.  They're going to look at ways to adjust special payment mechanisms built into Obamacare, called “risk corridors,” that pay health plans if they have higher costs than they expected.

Poll: Obama Down But Congress Is Down Further  —  The bottom has fallen out for everyone in the nation's political leadership.  —  That's the message from the latest Allstate/National Journal Heartland Monitor Poll, which shows that after a government shutdown, near-default on the federal debt …

Stephens: From ‘Four Score’ to ‘Yes We Can!’  —  Sudden modesty from the selfhyperadulated president.  —  Seven score and 10 years ago, Abraham Lincoln delivered his sacred speech on the meaning of free government.  Edward Everett, a former secretary of state and the principal speaker …

Meet The ‘Assassination Market’ Creator Who's Crowdfunding Murder With Bitcoins  —  As Bitcoin becomes an increasingly popular form of digital cash, the cryptocurrency is being accepted in exchange for everything from socks to sushi to heroin.  If one anarchist has his way, it'll soon be used to buy murder, too.

Judge won't allow Holder appeal now in contempt case  —  A federal judge has refused Attorney General Eric Holder's request that he be allowed to proceed now with an appeal in a case where the House of Representatives is seeking to enforce subpoenas for documents related to the controversial Operation Fast and Furious gun investigation.

Court order that allowed NSA surveillance is revealed for first time  —  Fisa court judge who authorised massive tapping of metadata was hesitant but felt she could not stand in the way  —  A secret court order that authorised a massive trawl by the National Security Agency of Americans' email …

Morose Obama asks his base for psychological intervention  —  A downbeat President Barack Obama repeatedly asked his worried supporters Monday night to help resurrect his spirits, following weeks of political disasters and personal humiliations caused by the cascading collapse of Obamacare.

Obama Pick for Court Is 3rd in a Row Blocked by Republicans  —  WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans on Monday blocked President Obama's third consecutive nominee to the country's most powerful and prestigious appeals court and insisted they would not back down, inflaming a bitter debate over a president's right to shape the judiciary.