What does a cyber counterattack look like?  —  President Barack Obama promised at his year-end news conference Friday that the U.S. will respond “proportionally” to North Korea's cyberattack against Sony Pictures Entertainment, but the conventional options available to him are ineffective …

How to Tell Whether Obama Did the Right Thing on Cuba  —  On my most recent visit to Cuba this past March, I brought my family with me, because I wanted my children to see what Cuba looked like before everything changed.  I didn't realize quite how quickly that change would come.

Some witnesses lied to Michael Brown grand jury, McCulloch says.  So why have them testify?  —  Certain witnesses who spoke before the grand jury investigating the Aug. 9 shooting of Michael Brown told obvious lies under oath, St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch said Friday.

How One Man Is Terrorizing Neighbors With a Hostile Holiday Decoration Display  —  Homeowners on Fairley Road in Ross Township, Pennsylvania, say their neighbor Bill Ansell is terrorizing them year round with his hostile anti-Christmas spirit.  —  “Any opportunity he has to make our life a hardship …

Castro's Hipster Apologists Want to Keep Cuba ‘Authentically’ Poor  —  The thawing of diplomatic relations between the US and Cuba has elicited a lot of patronizing, asinine fretting about the imminent “Americanization” of Cuba.  —  Alan Gross was in a cheery mood, having survived a grim five-year stint in a Cuban prison.

Sony exec fires back at President Obama  —  Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton, denying that the studio had “caved” by scrapping next week's opening of “The Interview,” fired back Friday after President Obama said the studio had “made a mistake.”  —  “The president, the press …

In Case You Missed It, Obama Made History Today: Calls Only on Female Reporters … Mark this down as a historic day in White House history.  —  President Obama has just become the first president to field questions from only female reporters at a White House press conference.

Obama labor board comes down hard on McDonald's  —  In a significant victory for fast-food demonstrators, the Obama administration filed 13 legal complaints on Friday against McDonald's USA, LLC, alleging 78 instances in which it violated federal labor law by punishing workers for taking part in fast food protests.

Rand Paul Battles Marco Rubio Over Cuba Policy  —  The libertarian-hawk fight begins.  —  Kentucky Senator Rand Paul took his time responding to this week's Cuba policy thaw.  Florida Senator Marco Rubio, the son of immigrants who fled the pre-Castro regime, called a press conference …

After turbulent year, Obama aims for quiet Hawaii getaway  —  KAILUA, Hawaii (AP) — A tumultuous year all but behind him, President Barack Obama set off for his annual winter getaway in Hawaii hoping for one thing: Quiet.  —  Air Force One touched down late in the evening at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam …

Operation Revenge  —  President Obama is back in his campaign comfort zone: Smiting his political enemies.  —  Two senior White House staffers stumbled out of the Fairmont Hotel in Chicago into the boozy, early-morning aftermath of President Obama's Nov. 6, 2012, reelection victory and ran smack into a sober reporter.

How bad would an IRS shutdown be?  —  The IRS chief's warning on Thursday that drastic budget cuts may force a shutdown for perhaps days is his latest bid to illustrate the impact of starving the tax agency.  —  But how bad would it really be?  —  Story Continued Below