Obama, Cuban President Raul Castro Shake Hands at Nelson Mandela Memorial  —  President Obama shook hands with Cuban President Raul Castro today at a memorial service for the late Nelson Mandela in South Africa.  —  Obama stopped to shake Castro's hand as he was walking to the podium to pay tribute to Mandela.

APNewsBreak: US Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida loses $18M in fraud scheme  —  McLEAN, Va. — U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida lost $18 million in a scheme that cheated him and about 120 other investors out of more than $35 million, according to court papers.  —  The Virginia man who ran the scheme …

Ex-Clinton Aide Expected to Join Obama  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama, after a rocky year that leaves him at the lowest ebb of his presidency, is bringing into his White House circle the longtime Democratic strategist John D. Podesta, a former chief of staff for President Bill Clinton.

Why Miley Cyrus Should Be The 2013 Person Of The Year Instead Of Pope Francis  —  Time Magazine announced its finalists for Person Of The Year today, and the list is a not unsurprising mix of figures from various realms of public life: … It's easy to declare that one of these things is not like the other …

Ron Paul: Rand will ‘probably’ run in 2016  —  Former Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) said Monday his son will probably run for president in 2016 — judging by the hints he has been leaving.  —  “I think he probably will.  I mean, he's been on TV hinting that he very well might,” Paul told CNN about his son, Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.).

Fox News Paid Fired Executive $8 Million to Keep Quiet  —  Roger Ailes' secrets command a heavy price.  Last week, the New York Times reported that Fox News had reached an out-of-court settlement with Brian Lewis, the former Roger Ailes aide who was abruptly fired in late July.

Poll: Mark Pryor trails Tom Cotton in Arkansas  —  Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor trails his Republican challenger, Rep. Tom Cotton, by seven points among likely voters in Arkansas, 48 percent to 41 percent, according to a new poll from a conservative group that says his support of the health care reform law is costing him.

GOP bills would prohibit in-flight calls  —  Political momentum to keep a ban on cellphone calls during flights gained momentum Monday as lawmakers said it would be crazy to allow them.  —  Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) became the second lawmaker after Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) to offer legislation to keep the ban in place.

Dems: GOPer must quit over ‘death’ quip  —  Three Democratic state lawmakers called Monday for the state chairman of Virginia's Republican Party to resign over comments he made attacking President Barack Obama and Gov.-elect Terry McAuliffe, arguing the statements would damage already frayed relations between the parties going forward.

Poll: Obama, Iran face selling job on nuclear pact  —  The United States and Iran have not had diplomatic relations since 1979.  —  WASHINGTON — The White House and Iran face an uphill selling job to convince Americans to embrace the interim nuclear pact negotiated with Tehran last month, a USA TODAY/Pew Research Center Poll finds.

‘A public safety disaster’: Obamacare could force THOUSANDS of volunteer fire departments to close  — The Affordable Care Act forces companies with more than 50 workers to buy them all health insurance or pay hefty fines  — The IRS says volunteer firefighters are 'employees …

How to Keep Workers Unemployed  —  Another 99 weeks of jobless insurance won't create more jobs.  —  House-Senate negotiators are close to a modest budget accord to avoid another government shutdown, but suddenly the White House is introducing a last-minute demand.

How Adam Lanza Wrecked Obama's Second Term  —  Don't blame the catastrophic health care rollout for the president's woes.  The Sandy Hook shooting is the real reason things went amok.  —  There are plenty of reasons this is the lowest point of Barack Obama's presidency.

Rep. Steve Stockman to challenge Sen. John Cornyn in Texas GOP primary  —  (CNN) - Republican Rep. Steve Stockman is launching a primary challenge against fellow Texan Sen. John Cornyn.  —  The Senate's second-ranking Republican, Cornyn is up for re-election next year.

Union organizer shouts down protesters as they block private Google shuttle  —  Protesters blocked a private Google shuttle on Valencia street today, decrying private shuttle's use of public bus stops without paying fees or fines.  —  The group of 20 or so neon-yellow vested protesters called themselves the …

Netflix to Premiere Mitt Romney Doc ‘Mitt’  —  Directed by Greg Whiteley and exec produced by Seth Gordon, the film follows Romney's Oval Office aspirations beginning in 2006 through his concession speech in 2012.  —  Netflix is casting its vote for Mitt Romney.

Who's in Washington Purgatory?  —  Meet the luckless Obama appointees caught in career limbo.  —  For the past 900 days—nearly three years—Ken Kopocis has been languishing in the bureaucratic equivalent of Guantánamo Bay: The longtime congressional staffer is waiting to be confirmed …

Ex-San Diego Mayor Bob Filner sentenced for sexual harassment  —  The disgraced pol, who resigned earlier this year after multiple women accused him of harassment, got three months of home confinement and three years of probation.  —  Former San Diego Mayor Bob Filner resigned earlier this year.