President Obama to announce executive action on immigration Thursday  —  This post has been updated.  —  President Obama will announce Thursday that he will use his executive authority to expand temporary protections to millions of undocumented immigrants, according to several individuals who have been briefed on the decision.

Obama Is Not a Monarch  —  The president cannot act alone; the Constitution requires compromise.  —  The Constitution designs a system of checks and balances for our nation, and executive amnesty for illegal immigrants unilaterally decreed from the White House would seriously undermine the rule of law.

Behind the scenes at Uber/BuzzFeed fracas  —  Uber is at the forefront of a vast reordering of ground transportation and how we use cars.  It is also in the middle of many publicity storms.  This is partly due to the stuck-pig resistance of an entrenched and politically savvy taxi industry …

Democrats to Obama: You broke the party, now fix it  —  Nancy Pelosi was reelected minority leader.  So was Harry Reid.  Getty  —  Enough, Donna Brazile told White House political director David Simas the day after the midterms.  —  Democrats are in worse shape than when President Barack Obama came …

How Jon Stewart Helped Defeat a Key Pelosi Ally  —  A preventable backlash takes down a Californian candidate for a key role.  —  The intra-Democratic battle to lead the party on the House Energy and Commerce Committee was, up to this week, exciting and obscure.

Liberal ‘hell no’ caucus rises  —  The defeat of the Keystone XL pipeline in the Senate marked a major show of muscle for next year's new hell-no caucus: liberals.  —  Liberal Senate Democrats united to block the controversial project, even though their imperiled Democratic colleague Mary Landrieu …

NBC Scraps Bill Cosby Comedy in Wake of Rape Allegations  —  After decades-old rape allegations resurfaced  —  Bill Cosby will not be making his triumphant return to NBC after all.  —  NBC has decided to not move forward with its planned family comedy starring the former Cosby Show star, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Democrats willfully, repeatedly lied to sell Obamacare: Kevin O'Brien  —  Democrats are sprinting, but they can't outrun Jonathan Gruber.  He's a loud, scary tin can tied to their tails.  —  President Barack Obama dismissed him over the weekend as “some adviser who never worked on our staff.”

Libertarian Champion Rand Paul Helped Kill NSA Reform Bill  —  WASHINGTON — Rand Paul, a leader of the libertarian wing of the Republican Party, helped kill a bill meant to rein in the National Security Agency.  Huh?  —  The USA Freedom Act, sponsored by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) …

Snow covers 50% of U.S.  —  Are you there?  Share images, if you can safely  —  (CNN) — Snowstorms and record low temperatures whacked much of the country this week — and there's more havoc coming Wednesday.  —  About 50% of the country had snow on the ground Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.

Why House Republicans Did Even Better Than They Expected  —  When the 114th Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3, House Republicans will boast their largest majority since Herbert Hoover was president.  If all leaders in the yet-to-be-called races hold their leads, Republicans will go from 234 seats to 247 …

Perry: ‘I was a bit arrogant’  —  BOCA RATON—Texas Gov. Rick Perry isn't ready to announce his candidacy for president in 2016; that decision will come in May or June of next year.  But the longest-serving governor in the history of his state said Wednesday that this time, he will be ready if he decides to try again.

Secret Service Arrests Man Outside White House  —  WASHINGTON — The Secret Service arrested an Iowa man outside the White House on Wednesday.  The man, who had a hunting rifle and ammunition in his car, said he had driven to Washington because someone had told him to go to the White House, according to law enforcement officials.