Ryan Says GOP to Make Debt-Ceiling Demands in Early '14  —  House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) signaled that Republicans would not raise the debt ceiling next year without some sort of concessions from Democrats, saying lawmakers were still crafting their strategy.

Honesty and Ethics Rating of Clergy Slides to New Low  —  Nurses again top list; lobbyists are worst  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans' rating of the honesty and ethics of the clergy has fallen to 47%, the first time this rating has dropped below 50% since Gallup first asked about the clergy in 1977.

NSA speaks out on Snowden, spying  —  The NSA gives unprecedented access to the agency's HQ and, for the first time, explains what it does and what it says it doesn't do: spy on Americans  —  The following is a script from “Inside the NSA” which aired on Dec. 15, 2013.  John Miller is the correspondent.

Why Inequality Matters  —  Rising inequality isn't a new concern.  Oliver Stone's movie “Wall Street,” with its portrayal of a rising plutocracy insisting that greed is good, was released in 1987.  But politicians, intimidated by cries of “class warfare,” have shied away from making …

Peter O'Toole, Star of ‘Lawrence of Arabia,’ Is Dead at 81  —  Peter O'Toole, an Irish bookmaker's son with a hell-raising streak whose performance in the 1962 epic film “Lawrence of Arabia” earned him overnight fame and established him as one of his generation's most charismatic actors, died on Saturday in London.

G.O.P. Firebrands Tone Down Their Message and Run Again  —  LIBERTYVILLE, Ill. — “My name is Congressman Bob Dold!” said the fleece-clad man making his way through a popular restaurant here.  —  Well, not exactly.  His name is Bob Dold, but he isn't a current member of Congress.

HOUSE REPORT: ILL-TRAINED OBAMACARE NAVIGATORS ENCOURAGING FRAUD, JEOPARDIZING PRIVATE INFO  —  The Obama administration decided that Obamacare Navigators, tasked with helping Americans enroll in a health insurance plan, would not undergo mandatory background checks.

North Carolina Legislator: Obamacare Worse Than Terrorists, Stalin, Hitler Combined  —  A 2008 Bob Rucho for North Carolina Senate re-election ad  —  North Carolina State Senator Bob Rucho (R) tweeted Sunday that he believes the Affordable Care Act ranks as worse than the worst atrocities of the past century.

Joan Fontaine, Who Won an Oscar for Hitchcock's ‘Suspicion,’ Dies at 96  —  Joan Fontaine, the patrician blond actress who rose to stardom as a haunted second wife in the Alfred Hitchcock film “Rebecca” in 1940 and won an Academy Award for her portrayal of a terrified newlywed in Hitchcock's …

Podesta: Climate game changer  —  Environmental groups believe John Podesta will be a force for change on climate issues at the White House.  —  The groups argue that for most of Obama's years in office, an administration that took power at the height of the recession has prioritized helping the economy over other goals.