Daily News Digest

Quote of the Day
"Our first task, our first job: caring for our children. If we don't get that right we don't get anything right."President Barack Obama on the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School where twenty children and six adults were killed.
(Washington Post)

1. Egyptian constitution wins backing in first round.
The Muslim Brotherhood, which propelled President Mohammed Morsi to power earlier this year, urged voters to approve the draft constitution in a two-day referendum, which will continue Dec. 22.
(USA Today)

2. Gun control debate begins to simmer after massacre.
Democrats say meaningful action in the wake of the school shootings in Connecticut must include a ban on military-style assault weapons and a look at how the nation deals with individuals suffering from serious mental illness.
(AP)

3. Obama, Boehner: movement along the fiscal cliff.
Sources say House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has offered to raise the top income tax rate, affecting Americans who make more than $1 million annually. President Obama, however, wants to raise the top two tax rates, covering taxpayers who make more than $250,000 a year. He says the government needs more revenue to help reduce a national debt that now exceeds $16 trillion.
(USA Today)

4. Rise in renewable energy will require more use of fossil fuels.
One of the hidden costs of solar and wind power — and a problem the state is not yet prepared to meet — is that wind and solar energy must be backed up by other sources, typically gas-fired generators. As more solar and wind energy generators come online, fulfilling a legal mandate to produce one-third of California's electricity by 2020, the demand will rise for more backup power from fossil fuel plants.
(McClatchy News)

5. To start immigration reform, study Texas solution.
A good starting point for a legislative package is the so-called Texas Solution. Although I don’t agree with all points on the list, it’s a start. And, importantly, it includes a verifiable, temporary guest worker program. In addition, we should start a documentation process that includes a photograph, biometric data like a fingerprint and other identifying information.
(Politico)

6. U.S. plans for possibility that Assad could lose control of chemical arms cache.
As Bashar al-Assad’s hold on power steadily weakens, U.S. officials are increasingly worried that Syria’s weapons of mass destruction could fall into the hands of Islamist extremists, rogue generals, or other uncontrollable factions.
(Washington Post)

7. A Syrian airstrike kills Palestinian refugees and costs Assad support.
Government forces for the first time hit Syria’s largest Palestinian refugee neighborhood with airstrikes on Sunday, killing at least eight people in the Yarmouk district of Damascus and driving dozens of formerly pro-government Palestinian fighters to defect to the rebels, fighters there said.
(New York Times)

8. Obama expected to nominate Kerry to head State Department.
U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to nominate Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry to succeed Hillary Clinton as secretary of state, sources familiar with the process said on Saturday.
(Chicago Tribune)

9. EPA cracks down on soot pollution.
Over objections from the oil industry and power companies, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued new air quality rules today to slash the amount of fine-particle soot allowed from smokestacks, wood-burning stoves, and diesel vehicles.
(USA Today)

10. Syrians sounding alarm over growing food shortages.
With bread scarce in major cities and towns, infant formula in extremely short supply, and fuel costs skyrocketing, civilians in war-ravaged Syria face an acute food crisis that might end in starvation for many, according to activists from around the country of 22 million.
(McClatchy News)

Quote of the day.
"Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart." Pope Benedict XVI, with his first tweet as @Pontifex.
(Catholic News Service)

Quote of the day.
“I felt like I was being asked to bury John Wayne. How does one bury someone who is epic?” Father Howard Draberk, on conducting the funeral for Hilmar G. Moore, the mayor of Richmond, Texas, for 63 years.
(New York Times)

1. Obama takes push for higher taxes on wealthy to workers at Michigan plant.
The visit to Michigan was the latest stop in a public-­relations effort by the White House aimed at harnessing Obama’s popularity across the country to generate momentum behind his plan to avoid the “fiscal cliff.” 
(Washington Post)

2. In talks, House majority weighs loyalty to voters.
As their leaders inch toward agreeing to higher tax rates, dozens of House Republicans find themselves caught between the will of a larger American public that favors higher taxes on the rich and the wishes of constituents who re-elected them overwhelmingly to oppose the Obama agenda at every turn.
(New York Times)

3. Charities fight changes on deductions.
Most Americans who file income tax returns won't be affected by proposed changes in how charitable contributions are deducted because they don't itemize their deductions, federal income tax records show. That hasn't stopped charity officials and others from lobbying Congress to fight any change in deductions as part of the "fiscal cliff" negotiations. 
(USA Today)

4. Right-to-work debate heats up ahead of Michigan vote.
Even with the outcome considered a foregone conclusion, the heated battle over right-to-work legislation in the traditional union bastion of Michigan shows no sign of cooling.
(Associated Press)

5. Obama plans push for immigration reform.
As soon as the confrontation over fiscal policy winds down, the Obama administration will begin an all-out drive for comprehensive immigration reform, including seeking a path to citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants, according to officials briefed on the plans.
(Los Angeles Times)

6. Pentagon says Afghan forces still need assistance.
As President Obama considers how quickly to withdraw the remaining 68,000 American troops in Afghanistan and turn over the war to Afghan security forces, a bleak new Pentagon report has found that only one of the Afghan National Army’s 23 brigades is able to operate independently without air or other military support from the United States and NATO partners.
(New York Times)

7. Exclusive: U.K. military in talks to help Syria rebels.
A plan to provide military training to the Syrian rebels fighting the Assad regime and support them with air and naval power is being drawn up by an international coalition including Britain.
(Independent)

8. Egypt braces for protests over constitution.
Pro-government and opposition protesters have started to gather in Cairo for rival rallies for and against a controversial constitutional referendum proposed by Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi.
(Al Jazeera)

9. El Salvador told to investigate 1981 El Mozote massacre.
El Salvador should investigate a civil war-era massacre that left some 1,000 people dead and bring those responsible to justice, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights rules.
(BBC)

10. Israel suspected over Iran nuclear program inquiry leaks.
Israel is suspected of carrying out a series of leaks implicating Iran in nuclear weapons experiments in an attempt to raise international pressure on Tehran and halt its program.
(Guardian) 

Daily Digest is off for the day, but here are a few of Duane's usual news sources for you to review until the Digest returns next week.