The Right's ‘Duck Dynasty’ Hypocrisy  —  By Dean ObeidallahDecember 19th 201312:00 PM  —  Conservatives think people should be held responsible for their actions—until one of their own, like Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson, has to pay a price for their hateful views.

Conservatives freak out over ‘pajama boy’  —  Conservatives are in a tizzy over a seemingly innocuous Obamacare ad from Organizing for Action featuring a young man in pajamas.  —  He's “a metrosexual hipster in a plaid onesie” scowled National Review's Charles Cooke, a “vaguely androgynous …

Most Republicans Plan Early Christmas Exit After Defense Vote  —  The Senate will vote through the weekend on pending nominations that Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., would like to see completed before Christmas — just don't expect most Republicans to be there for it.

FY 2013: ICE announces year-end removal numbers  —  98 percent of the agency's total removals were convicted criminals, recent border crossers, illegal re-entrants or those previously removed by ICE, in line with agency's enforcement priorities  —  WASHINGTON — Today …

Obama Commutes Sentences for 8 in Crack Cocaine Cases  —  WASHINGTON — President Obama, expanding his push to curtail severe penalties for drug offenses, on Thursday commuted the sentences of eight federal inmates who were convicted of crack cocaine offenses.

Hack list No. 1: Mike Allen  —  Our annual list is here!  This time, we channeled each hack's unique voice — and let them “write” their own entries  —  PAYOLA-BOOK: No professional blowback for sponsor-fluffing Mike Allen — LEIBO on ALLEN: ‘enabler’ — Business lobby agenda pushed daily …

Target Confirms Unauthorized Access to Payment Card Data in U.S. Stores  —  Issue has been identified and resolved  —  Target today confirmed it is aware of unauthorized access to payment card data that may have impacted certain guests making credit and debit card purchases in its U.S. stores.

Take This Town and Shove It  —  A White House reporter's tale of sex, booze and the briefing room.  —  If you write about American politics for a living, stop right there.  Get back to work, and don't read another damn word.  —  Sign out of Twitter, say “thanks but no thanks” …

Marriage Equality Is The Law In New Mexico, State Supreme Court Rules  —  “We hold that the state of New Mexico is constitutionally required to allow same-gender couples to marry,” the justices unanimously concluded.  The state becomes the 17th in the U.S. to approve marriage equality.

Brian Boitano announces he's gay before trip to Sochi  —  Brian Boitano, the 1988 Olympic figure skating gold medalist who was named to the official U.S. delegation to the 2014 Sochi Olympics, announced today that he is gay.  —  “I am many things: a son, a brother, and uncle, a friend …

Bob Newhart bows out of gig with anti-LGBT organization  —  Bob Newhart, the beloved actor and comedian, quietly announced over social media that he has cancelled his upcoming gig at the Legatus Summit.  This follows GLAAD and several LGBT advocates and bloggers, including Lisa Derrick of Firedog Lake …

The Welfare Queen  —  Ronald Reagan made Linda Taylor a notorious American villain.  Her other sins were far worse.  —  “She Used 80 Names”  —  Ronald Reagan loved to tell stories.  When he ran for president in 1976, many of Reagan's anecdotes converged on a single point: The welfare state is broken, and I'm the man to fix it.