Mitch McConnell already running the show for the GOP  —  Sen. Mitch McConnell won't become majority leader until next month, but he's already acting the part.  —  The Kentucky Republican, who will visit President Obama Wednesday at the White House, has taken the lead on a variety of thorny issues …

A Pelosi bailout?  —  House GOP's deal to keep government open may fall apart without Democratic votes.  —  The government will shut down in just eight days unless Congress acts, and Republican lawmakers and aides in and around leadership fear their two-step government-funding plan cannot pass without help — from Nancy Pelosi.

Rolling Stone whiffs in reporting on alleged rape  —  For the sake of Rolling Stone's reputation, Sabrina Rubin Erdely had better be the country's greatest judge of character.  On Nov. 19, the magazine published Erdely's story about a ghastly alleged gang rape at the stately Phi Kappa Psi fraternity at the University of Virginia.

Hillary should stop dithering  —  The media have moved from Hillary fatigue to Hillary exhaustion  —  Blessed art they who are ready for Hillary, for they have the patience of saints.  —  Each day, they gather money and names and deep data to lay at her feet in preparation for her presidential announcement.

Kathleen Sebelius: Jonathan Gruber?  Who?  —  WASHINGTON — Former Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius, disputing the description of MIT professor Jonathan Gruber as an architect of the Affordable Care Act, says she had never met with him and minimized the significance …

Truth trumps hype in Ferguson  —  There are times when symbolic gestures pack a powerful punch.  Fifty-nine years ago yesterday, Rosa Parks refused to give her bus seat to a white passenger.  Parks' action became an important symbol for the Civil Rights movement and an inspiration to those fighting to end segregation in America.

House passes bill to end benefits for Nazis  —  The House on Tuesday passed legislation to terminate Social Security benefits for suspected Nazi war criminals.  —  Passed 420-, the bill was approved after an October Associated Press report found that dozens of suspected Nazi war criminals forced …

Stephen Hawking warns artificial intelligence could end mankind  —  Prof Stephen Hawking, one of Britain's pre-eminent scientists, has said that efforts to create thinking machines pose a threat to our very existence.  —  He told the BBC:"The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race."

Georgia Town Votes To Ban Muslim Mosque, Residents Hate Islam (Video)  —  While anti-Muslim protesters waved signs outside the Kennesaw City Hall, the City Council voted against allowing an Islamic group the opportunity to rent a retail space in the small Georgia town.

Sheriff Defends Stopping Black Man For Walking With Hands In His Pockets  —  A black Michigan man who was stopped by a sheriff's deputy after walking with his hands in his pockets said he believes he was the victim of racial discrimination.  —  The local sheriff says the deputy acted appropriately …

U.S. Partisanship Shifts to GOP After Midterms  —  Story Highlights  —  PRINCETON, N.J. — Since the Republican Party's strong showing on Election Day last month, Americans' political allegiances have shifted toward the GOP.  Prior to the elections, 43% of Americans identified as Democrats …

Former Democratic congressional aide pleads guilty to sexual assault  —  A former Democratic congressional aide pleaded guilty Tuesday to sexually assaulting two women in 2010.  —  Donny Ray Williams Jr., 37, who served as a staff director for the Senate Homeland Security …

N.Y. Post corrects Obama-Chuck Todd item  —  The New York Post has corrected a report that wrongly quoted President Barack Obama badmouthing NBC's Chuck Todd.  —  The Post's initial report, published Saturday, quoted Obama as calling the “Meet the Press” moderator “sad” while on a visit to a Washington, D.C., bookstore.

A long list of sex acts just got banned in UK porn  —  Pornography produced in the UK was quietly censored today through an amendment to the 2003 Communications Act, and the measures appear to take aim at female pleasure.  —  The Audiovisual Media Services Regulations 2014 requires that video-on-demand …

Acting United States Attorney Annette L. Hayes  —  Western District Of Washington  —  Kirkland Resident Arrested For Interstate Threats To Kill  —  Posts Threats to Kill Police following Events in Ferguson, Missouri  —  A Kirkland, Washington resident was arrested on a criminal complaint …

Transgender Veterans Achieve Victory in Battle Against Discrimination  —  In response to ACLU-NJ letter, Army agrees to change names on key identity documents  —  NEWARK - Two New Jersey-based transgender veterans represented by the ACLU of New Jersey have won a victory in a battle to change …

US Army Plans to Send Abrams Tanks and Bradleys to Eastern Europe  —  The new Army commander in Europe plans to bolster the U.S. armored presence in Poland and the Baltic states and keep rotations of U.S. troops there through next year and possibly beyond to counter Russia.

Economy Doesn't Make Clinton a Favorite in 2016  —  I'd intended to write about the Democratic and Republican primaries this week, but an article from the New Republic's very smart Danny Vinik caught my eye.  So, the primaries will have to wait.  Referencing a piece by Ed Luce in the Financial Times …

Woman sues Bill Cosby, claiming underage abuse  —  Associated Press 3 hrs ago  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) — Bill Cosby was sued Tuesday by a Southern California woman who claims the comedian molested her in a bedroom of the Playboy Mansion around 1974 when she was 15 years old.

How to Score in Congress  —  The GOP needs reformers to run CBO and the Joint Tax Committee.  —  Republicans have twice captured new majorities in the House and Senate since 1994, only to achieve less than they hoped.  If they want to do better the third time as they take charge next year …