Boehner ally: GOP challenges to Speaker ‘unprofessional’  —  Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) called GOP challenges to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) “pretty unprofessional and very disappointing” on Monday.  —  Cole, a close ally to Boehner, said the challenges aren't serious and blasted Republicans trying …

Huckabee's challenge in 2016: Growing a national campaign from the grass roots  —  If Mike Huckabee is going to make a serious run for the Republican presidential nomination, he will have to do something he was unable to do in 2008: raise millions of dollars and build a sprawling national campaign …

Is Life Better in America's Red States?  —  THE new Congress that starts work this week is the latest reminder of America's stark political divisions: The parties in Washington are more polarized than they have been in decades, the partisanship gap between rural Republicans and urban Democrats has grown …

The Bill  —  Steven Brill on how health-care reform went wrong.

Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson says he didn't trust the Ohio Attorney General's Office to handle Tamir Rice investigation  —  Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson answers a question during an “open discussion” with media about the DOJ findings on police use of force, on Thursday, December 11, 2014.

Hedge fund founder, 70, shot dead by son, 30, in East Side apartment: cops  —  Thomas Gilbert Sr., founder of Wainscott Capital Partners, was found fatally wounded after an argument with his son, police said.  The son fled the scene, according to police.  —  A Wall St. whiz who headed …

Privilege of ‘Arrest Without Incident’  —  The day after Christmas, a shooter terrorized the streets of a Chattanooga, Tenn., neighborhood.  According to the local newspaper, the shooter was “wearing body armor” and “firing multiple shots out her window at people and cars.”

2014 Was Hottest Year On Record Globally By Far, Reports Japan Meteorological Agency  —  The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has announced that 2014 was the hottest year in more than 120 years of record-keeping — by far.  NOAA is expected to make a similar call in a couple of weeks and so is NASA.

Kelley Paul to discuss new book  —  Kelley Paul, wife of U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, will speak this week to women's groups across the state - including stops in southcentral Kentucky - about her new book, “True and Constant Friends.”  —  The book will be published in April.

The End of One Big Inflation and the Beginning of One Big Myth  —  I recently had a short back-and-forth with Noah Smith on the subject of Tom Sargent's article “The Ends of Four Big Inflations,” in which I called it “terrible history and questionable economics.”

British and Dutch researchers develop new form of lie-detector test  —  Polygraph replacement could be in use in police stations around the world within a decade.  —  Police and intelligence agencies around the world have for almost 100 years relied on lie detectors to help convict criminals or unearth spies and traitors.

Presidents and the Economy  —  Suddenly, or so it seems, the U.S. economy is looking better.  Things have been looking up for a while, but at this point the signs of improvement — job gains, rapidly growing G.D.P., rising public confidence — are unmistakable.

Navy vet, 100, persuades protesters to let him speak: ‘Give me a chance’  —  U.S. Navy veteran Dario Raschio was all smiles Saturday as he awaited a special honor from U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, who joined him at Portland Community College's Southeast Campus to present the 100-year-old with a handful of medals.

Pope Francis Names 15 New Cardinals From 14 Countries  —  VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis named 15 new cardinals Sunday, selecting them from 14 nations including far-flung corners of the world such as Tonga, New Zealand, Cape Verde and Myanmar to reflect the diversity of the church …