Not a Lot Like Christmas: Record-breaking warm weather has moved into the central and eastern states just before Christmas with temperatures running as much as 20 degrees above normal. Christmas day in some cities could be the warmest on record.

The phenomenon is caused by a long curving front of warm air coming off the Pacific through Southern California and looping up through Texas, Michigan, Illinois, and straight across Southern Canada through Maine.

It’s 55 in Los Angeles, 51 in Chicago, 58 in Washington, 55 in New York, and 49 in Boston.

Police Beat: In an analysis of all fatal police shootings in the US this year, The Washington Post has found that for 55 police officers it was not the first time they killed someone. For some cops it was their third fatal shooting, and for one it was his fourth.

The vast majority of police officers never fire their gun during their whole career. Some law enforcement experts say it is reason to ask questions when a cop is involved in more than one fatal shooting.

The Post’s reporting comes just as police shootings have been under increasing scrutiny.

Nation: Virginia, a big gun rights state, is revoking its reciprocity agreement to honor the concealed carry permits of residents from 25 other states. That means people with concealed carry permits from those states can no longer carry a concealed gun in Virginia.

Attorney General Mark Herring, a Democrat, made the decision. He said, “To me, this is a common-sense step that can help make Virginians and our law enforcement officers safer by ensuring that our concealed carry laws and safety standards apply to everyone in Virginia whether they are a resident or a visitor.”

Black and White: The editor of the Las Vegas Review-Journal has resigned two weeks after casino magnate and Republican bankroller Sheldon Adelson bought the paper. Despite a pledge by Adelson “to publish a newspaper that is fair, unbiased and accurate,” Mike Hengel told the staff that he thought his relationship with Adelson would be “adversarial” and he chose to accept a buyout offer.

Adelson donated $20 million to float the presidential campaign of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are hoping to be beneficiaries this time around.

Initially the name of the Review-Journal’s buyer was a secret, causing the editorial staff to launch an investigation to find out who was their new owner. One of the paper’s columnists wrote that, “Adelson is precisely the wrong person to own this or any newspaper.”

Permawar: Iraqi forces have fought their way to the center of Ramadi in an effort to retake the city and deal the Islamic State one of its biggest blows.

Several hundred Islamic State fighters have been reported killed out of an estimated force of up to 1,000 that has been holding the city. The rest of them are holding on tenaciously.

>A least 200 Syrian civilians have been killed in Russian air strikes, according to Amnesty International. Amnesty’s report says Russia has “unlawfully used unguided bombs in densely populated areas and inherently indiscriminate cluster munitions”.

At the same time, The Washington Post reports that, under pressure to get tougher, President Obama is considering relaxing the rules governing American air strikes, thereby increasing the risk of civilian casualties.

At Long Last, Mr. Trump: Donald Trump is defending his use of a Yiddish vulgarity in Michigan Monday night to describe Hillary Clinton’s loss to Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential race. He said she had been “schlonged.” Look it up. Trump says it’s not vulgar.

Trump also attacked Hillary Clinton in Michigan for her late return after a break in Saturday night’s debate.

“What happened to her? I’m watching the debate, and she disappeared. Where did she go?!” Trump said at the rally at the DeltaPlex Arena in Grand Rapids. “I know where she went. It’s disgusting, I don’t want to talk about it,” he added. “No, it’s too disgusting. Don’t say it, it’s disgusting.”

Well, she went to the bathroom just like the male candidates.

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