PAUL: TRADE WITH CUBA ‘PROBABLY A GOOD IDEA’  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul said Thursday that starting to trade with Cuba “is probably a good idea” and that the lengthy economic embargo against the communist island “just hasn't worked.”  —  Paul became the first potential …

Paramount Bans Showing ‘Team America’  —  Three movie theaters say Paramount Pictures has ordered them not to show Team America: World Police one day after Sony Pictures surrendered to cyberterrorists and pulled The Interview.  The famous Alamo Drafthouse in Texas, Capitol Theater in Cleveland …

Top Islamic militants killed; more US troops going to Iraq  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Two senior Islamic State group leaders were killed in U.S. and coalition airstrikes in northern Iraq over the last week, U.S. officials said Thursday, as Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel approved new orders …

‘Governor, This Is Barack Obama, Formerly Of Somerville.’ … For the past eight years, Deval Patrick has joined Jim Braude and Margery Eagan on the radio each month to field calls from listeners.  On Thursday, he joined the hosts of Boston Public Radio for the final time as governor of Massachusetts.

NEBRASKA AND OKLAHOMA SUE COLORADO OVER MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION  —  Supporters erupt in cheers at the passage of Amendment 64.  Supporters of Amendment 64, the campaign to regulate marijuana like alcohol, gather at Casselman's in Denver on Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012.  Kathryn Scott Osler, The Denver Post (THE DENVER POST |

Hillary Clinton Secretly Pushed Cuba Deal for Years  —  Although President Barack Obama is taking the credit for Wednesday's historic deal to reverse decades of U.S. policy toward Cuba, when Hillary Clinton was secretary of state, she was the main architect of the new policy and pushed far harder for a deal than the Obama White House.

Sexist Comment by Austin Police Officer: Isolated Incident or Part of Broader Culture?  —  Update (2:19 p.m.): Officer Andrew Petrowski officially retired from the Austin Police Department on Friday, Dec. 12 after learning KUT would air his comments this week.

Democrats to Colbert: Thanks For Your Help!  —  I have never seen Stephen Colbert's show on Comedy Central, but I take it that it consists of an endless series of anti-Republican “jokes.”  If asked, would Colbert admit to being a loyal Democratic Party foot soldier, or would he claim …

Obama libre  —  The last five weeks of the president's year were better than almost all the rest.  —  If President Barack Obama's year ended in November, it would have been one of the worst of his presidency.  —  Good thing he had the last five weeks.  —  Story Continued Below

At private meeting, union head tells officers to use ‘extreme discretion’  —  Police union leader Pat Lynch is telling officers to use “extreme discretion,” in response to what he said was a lack support from City Hall and Washington in the wake of a grand jury decision not to indict an officer in the death of Eric Garner last month.

Watching Colbert Makes Conservatives Even More Conservative  —  After nine years hosting one of the most popular comedy programs on air, it's hard to remember a time when Stephen Colbert might have been mistaken for the kind of conservative commentator he satires.

The Year of Outrage  —  Slate tracked what everyone was outraged about every day in 2014.  Explore by clicking the tiles below, and then scroll down to read about how outrage has taken over our lives.  —  Interactive by Allison Benedikt, Chris Kirk, and Dan Kois

Memo to Staff: Time to Lose a Few Pounds  —  Moving Beyond Gym Memberships, Companies Take Aggressive, Personalized Approach to Workers' Weight  —  The boss thinks you could stand to lose a few.  —  Seeking to make a dent in the intractable problem of obesity—a condition affecting roughly …

Catsimatidis' daughter files for divorce from husband of 3 years  —  Andrea Catsimatidis and Christopher Cox tour the Great Wall of China in 2013.  —  This political love match was not made to last.  —  Andrea Catsimatidis, daughter of billionaire grocer and failed mayoral candidate John Catsimatidis …

President signs legislation ending Nazi benefit checks  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Thursday capped a swift and forceful response to an Associated Press investigation by signing into law a measure that bars suspected Nazi war criminals from receiving U.S. Social Security benefits.

Files of more than 40,000 federal workers breached  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The computer files of more than 40,000 federal workers may have been compromised by a cyberattack at federal contractor KeyPoint Government Solutions, the second breach this year at a major firm handling national security …