Exclusive: Rep. Parker Griffith switches to GOP  —  POLITICO has learned that Rep. Parker Griffith, a freshman Democrat from Alabama, will announce today that he's switching parties to become a Republican.  —  According to two senior GOP aides familiar with the decision …

U.S. Voters Oppose Health Care Plan By Wide Margin, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Voters Say 3-1, Plan Should Not Pay For Abortions  —  As the Senate prepares to vote on health care reform, American voters “mostly disapprove” of the plan 53 - 36 percent and disapprove 56 …

EXCLUSIVE: Ex-RNC chiefs rip Steele speaking fees  —  Party chairman charging $8,000 to $20,000  —  Michael S. Steele, Republican National Committee chairman, is using his title to market himself for paid appearances nationwide, personally profiting from speeches with fees of up to $20,000 at colleges …

Reid asks Senate to remain civil as chamber edges toward final vote  —  The Senate early Tuesday morning edged closer to approving a massive healthcare bill.  —  Senators approved a series of procedural votes Tuesday morning that brings them closer to a Christmas Eve vote on healthcare reform.

The Diaz-Balarts withdraw Charlie Crist endorsement  —  Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart have pulled their endorsement of Gov. Charlie Crist for the U.S. Senate.  —  Lincoln offered few details as to why, just that Crist had “left us no alternative and he knows why.”

Sorry, Vegans: Brussels Sprouts Like to Live, Too  —  I stopped eating pork about eight years ago, after a scientist happened to mention that the animal whose teeth most closely resemble our own is the pig.  Unable to shake the image of a perky little pig flashing me a brilliant George Clooney smile …

Democrats Face Challenge in Merging Health Bills  —  WASHINGTON — Even as the Senate took a significant step toward passing its version of a sweeping overhaul of the health insurance system before Christmas, Democrats were grappling Monday with deep internal divisions over abortion …

The Protocol Society  —  In the 19th and 20th centuries we made stuff: corn and steel and trucks.  Now, we make protocols: sets of instructions.  A software program is a protocol for organizing information.  A new drug is a protocol for organizing chemicals.  Wal-Mart produces protocols for moving and marketing consumer goods.

Top House Liberal Suggests He Could Accept Deal On Senate Bill  —  In a sign that House liberals may be bracing to swallow much of the Senate bill with minimal changes, a key House progressive suggested in an interview with me that he might be able to support a bill without a public component …

Paul leads big  —  If there was any doubt Rand Paul is a serious candidate for the Republican Senate nomination in Kentucky it can be cast away.  Our first poll of the race finds him leading Trey Grayson 44-25.  —  Paul is, as the conventional wisdom suggests, drawing his strongest support …

States' jobless funds are being drained in recession  —  The recession's jobless toll is draining unemployment-compensation funds so fast that according to federal projections, 40 state programs will go broke within two years and need $90 billion in loans to keep issuing the benefit checks.