Politics

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**FILE** Speaker of the House John Boehner, Ohio Republican, speaks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington Nov. 14, 2012, after the House Republicans voted for their leadership for the next session of Congress. He is flanked by Majority Leader Eric Cantor (left), Virginia Republican, and Rep. Lynn Jenkins, Kansas Republican. (Associated Press)

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British Prime Minister David Cameron (center) departs after an EU summit in Brussels on Nov. 23, 2012. The leaders of Britain and France staked out starkly different visions of Europe's future as talks in Brussels on how much the European Union should be allowed to spend, set the stage for a long, divisive and possibly inconclusive summit. (Associated Press)

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This citizen journalist image made from video provided by Shaam News Network, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows Syrian rebels celebrating the takeover of Mayadeen military base near Deir el-Zour on Nov. 22, 2012. Syrian rebels strengthened their hold in an oil-rich strategic province bordering Iraq, capturing a key military base that was considered the last bastion for regime forces in the area. (Associated Press/Shaam News Network via AP video)

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**FILE** An Israeli soldier guides a tank to a new position at a staging area near the Gaza Strip border in southern Israel on Nov. 22, 2012. A cease-fire agreement between Israel and the Gaza Strip's Hamas rulers took effect the previous night, bringing an end to eight days of the fiercest fighting in years and possibly signaling a new era of relations between the bitter enemies. (Associated Press)

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** FILE ** Model Gabriel Aubry (right) and actress Halle Berry attend the Calvin Klein 40th-anniversary party during Fashion Week in New York in 2008. (AP Photo/Peter Kramer)

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Indiana Senate President David Long, seen here with fellow GOP Sen. Brandt Hershman, wants to protect Indiana casinos from those in neighboring states. (Associated Press)

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Pennsylvania Democrats are already lining up to take on first-term Gov. Tom Corbett, a Republican, in 2014. (Associated Press)

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Russian Communist Party supporters carry an image of Vladimir Lenin as they gather in Moscow Nov. 7 to mark the anniversary of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. Lenin’s ideas have inspired a new generation of Russians, who are looking for a “new, modernized form of socialism,” one activist said. (Associated Press)

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Police officers detain Sergei Udaltsov outside the Kremlin-loyal NTV television station in Moscow in March. Russian opposition and human rights groups on Monday urged Western consumer products giants to stop “financing politically motivated persecution” by advertising on NTV, which has a reputation for biased coverage of government critics and demonstrations against President Vladimir Putin. (Associated Press)

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Communist Party supporters gather near a monument to Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin to commemorate the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution in St. Petersburg on Nov. 7. Mr. Putin abolished the national holiday in 2005, but the Russian president once called the Soviet Union’s breakup the “greatest geopolitical catastrophe” of the 1900s. (Associated Press)