GOP men told how to talk to women  —  The National Republican Congressional Committee wants to make sure there are no Todd Akin-style gaffes next year, so it's meeting with top aides of sitting Republicans to teach them what to say — or not to say — on the trail, especially when their boss is running against a woman.

Polis melts down on House floor  —  Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) on Wednesday night lost his cool on the House floor over the issue of immigration, after the presiding officer warned another Democrat not to refer to people sitting in the House gallery.  —  Democrats were calling for House passage …

Income inequality is riskier than you think  —  President Obama decried “the relentless, decades-long trend” of “a dangerous and growing inequality and lack of upward mobility” in a speech Wednesday, calling it “the defining challenge of our time.”  Even as he spoke, fast-food workers prepared …

Stolen cobalt-60 found in Mexico; curious thieves likely doomed  —  MEXICO CITY — The day after a load of stolen radioactive material was found in a field, Mexican authorities had formed a perimeter around the area and were measuring for contamination as they planned the recovery process Thursday, according to Mexican news reports.

Pelosi: No Budget Deal Without Unemployment Benefits Extension  —  House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on Thursday said Democrats would not support a budget deal that does not extend emergency unemployment benefits, which are set to lapse on Dec. 28 for about 1.3 million people.

2 million Facebook, Gmail and Twitter passwords stolen in massive hack  —  Hackers have stolen usernames and passwords for nearly two million accounts at Facebook, Google, Twitter, Yahoo and others, according to a report released this week.  —  The massive data breach was a result …

Why Barack Obama can't win  —  President Obama has reached a new low in his presidency — this much is clear.  —  But the president's lowest-ever approval ratings don't even tell quite how bad it is for Obama.  For that, you need to look at how he is viewed on the issues.

Young invincibles spurn O-Care  —  Mounting opposition to ObamaCare among young adults is creating a new crisis for the White House.  —  While the federal enrollment website HealthCare.gov appears to be improving by the day, polls show the “young invincibles” key to making the law work are becoming less likely to enroll.

De Blasio to Name Bratton as New York Police Commissioner  —  Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio was expected on Thursday morning to name William J. Bratton to lead the New York Police Department, according to two people with knowledge of Mr. de Blasio's decision.  —  The move will return Mr. Bratton …

Unarmed Man Is Charged With Wounding Bystanders Shot by Police Near Times Square  —  An unarmed, emotionally disturbed man shot at by the police as he was lurching around traffic near Times Square in September has been charged with assault, on the theory that he was responsible …

Landrieu talks flood insurance hikes and Obamacare  —  US Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-LA, insists support is growing nationally to delay huge increases in flood insurance.  —  Realtors, home builders and banking groups have signed onto the effort.  Landrieu said a coalition of senators …

Palin Hopes Bashir's Attack Won't Stop People From Starting A Business (VIDEO)  —  Responding to the resignation of Martin Bashir for the first time, Sarah Palin said once again Thursday that she accepts his apology.  She just hopes that the former MSNBC host's “unprovoked” …

Obamacare Is Costing Democrats the White Women They'll Need at the Ballot Box  —  Polls show that when it comes to the troubled health care law, Democrats should be most concerned about one of their key constituencies.  —  A woman votes at the Park Slope Branch Public Library in the Brooklyn borough of New York November 5, 2013.

On Smarm  —  Last month, Isaac Fitzgerald, the newly hired editor of BuzzFeed's newly created books section, made a remarkable but not entirely surprising announcement: He was not interested in publishing negative book reviews.  In place of “the scathing takedown rip,” Fitzgerald said …

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear hits Mitch McConnell on Obamacare  —  Democratic Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear took a jab at Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell over his continued opposition to the Affordable Care Act.  —  Speaking on Capitol Hill on Thursday, Beshear called on McConnell …

The righteousness in Hobby Lobby's cause  —  Business people shouldn't be required to check their faith at the door.  —  The Supreme Court has agreed to referee another dispute over President Obama's healthcare law.  This time it will look at whether businesses can use religious objections …

Chris Christie leaves for Oklahoma Thursday, raising ire of Democrats and gay rights activists  —  TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie leaves late Thursday afternoon for his first out-of-state fundraising trip as chairman of the Republican Governors Association — and liberal groups have noticed.

IMMEDIATE RELEASE  —  Detainee Transfer Announced  —  The Department of Defense announced on Dec. 5 the transfer of Djamel Saiid Ali Ameziane and Bensayah Belkecem from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to the Government of Algeria.  —  As directed by the president's Jan. 22, 2009 …

Remember all those Obamacare horror stories?  Not looking so bad now  —  Inflammatory personal testimony has been a staple of bad debating since humans first started arguing with each other  —  Statisticians dismiss the practice of using personal stories to argue about an objective reality as …

The 10 Best Books of 2013  —  The year's best books, selected by the editors of The New York Times Book Review.  —  FICTION  —  Alfred A. Knopf, $26.95.  —  By turns tender and trenchant, Adichie's third novel takes on the comedy and tragedy of American race relations from the perspective of a young Nigerian immigrant.

Medicaid Is Latest Health-Site Victim  —  States Refuse to Sign Up Enrollees Due to Incomplete Information from HealthCare.gov  —  States are warning that they may not process Medicaid enrollments from people who have signed up for the health program through the troubled HealthCare.gov site …

Ted Cruz explains dad's Fidel Castro comment  —  Sen. Ted Cruz said while there are some differences between President Barack Obama and former Cuban leader Fidel Castro, Obama is displaying “dictatorial” tendencies as president.  —  During an interview by Jorge Ramos on Fusion …