Rams players enter field with hands up  —  You can read the full statement below:

What's saving America.  —  The last time Frank Rich had a conversation with Chris Rock was in early 1996, when they and the 1950s teen heartthrob Pat Boone were thrown together in a New York television studio as panelists on Bill Maher's old show Politically Incorrect.

GOP staffer resigns over criticism of Obama daughters  —  Washington (CNN) — A senior Republican staffer is resigning after her comments that the Obama daughters should “try showing a little class” caused a firestorm of criticism on social media this weekend.

Bad Memories Down South  —  I've just spent nearly a week back home in exurban Atlanta, and I regret to report that the events in and in reaction to Ferguson have brought back (at least in some of the older white folks I talked with) nasty and openly racist attitudes I haven't heard expressed in so unguarded a manner since the 1970s.

Congress on the brink  —  Funding deadline, tax breaks come down to the wire.  —  December was supposed to be a sleepy month for Congress — a chance to finish up a productive lame-duck session and leave the decks clear for the new Republican majority that takes control in January.

Oil at $40 Possible as Market Transforms Caracas to Iran  —  Oil's decline is proving to be the worst since the collapse of the financial system in 2008 and threatening to have the same global impact of falling prices three decades ago that led to the Mexican debt crisis and the end of the Soviet Union.

Hillary Clinton's rickety bridge to the White House  —  Voters lack a compelling reason to embrace Democrats, as opposed to simply rejecting Republicans  —  The grand view of American politics is that Republicans have a lock on Congress, while Democrats have an inbuilt White House advantage.

Black Friday Fizzles With Consumers as Sales Tumble 11%: Retail  —  Even after doling out discounts on electronics and clothes, retailers struggled to entice shoppers to Black Friday sales events, putting pressure on the industry as it heads into the final weeks of the holiday season.

EXCLUSIVE: Al Qaeda plot to blow up 5 passenger planes in Christmas ‘spectacular’  —  TERRORISTS are plotting to blow up five European passenger jets in a Christmas “spectacular”, security experts say.  —  DAVIDDYSON  —  Armed police patrol Heathrow amid warnings of a serious terror threat to UK airports

Supreme Court To Consider Free-Speech Rights Of Social Media Users  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is weighing the free-speech rights of people who use violent or threatening language on Facebook and other social media.  —  The justices will hear arguments Monday in the case of a man …

With executive action, Obama risks losing Chief Justice John Roberts  —  President Obama always knew his plan to shield millions of immigrants from deportation would enrage Republicans on Capitol Hill who oppose most of what he does.  —  But by claiming the power to forge ahead based …

Stung by low turnout, Democrats eye shifting Fla.'s statewide election schedule  —  After yet another defeat blamed on low voter turnout, some Florida Democrats want to change the rules and elect the governor in the same year voters pick the president — when turnout is always much higher.

What the Media Gets Wrong About Israel  —  The news tells us less about Israel than about the people writing the news, a former AP reporter says.  —  During the Gaza war this summer, it became clear that one of the most important aspects of the media-saturated conflict between Jews and Arabs …