Boxing Day -

Who would win an Obama/ Romney fist fight? - There is no difference in the opinion of likely and registered voters in Yahoo! and Esquires' Langer-produced poll.

57 percent think Barack Obama could beat Mitt Romney in a fist fight. 58 percent of the general population think Obama would win. About 20 percent had no opinion - http://yhoo.it/SIyIgG

Also - Elizabeth Warren airs ad with boxing trainer to Mickey Ward - http://bo.st/O2ksh2

What's QE3 and Why is the Fed Doing It? - http://abcn.ws/OlL6f1

On to the news -

EXCLUSIVE - George Interviews Romney - A first taste on World News, the Whole Shebang on GMA - http://abcn.ws/PnucNS

THE FED: ROMNEY: And now the Federal Reserve, it says, "Look, this economy is not going well. They're going to QE3. They're gonna print more money." … "Well, what Bernanke's doing is saying that what the president's saying is wrong. The president's saying the economy's making progress, coming back. Bernanke's saying, "No, it's not. I gotta print more money." I don't think what Bernanke is doing is gonna- get the economy going. I think we have to have- a leadership in Washington that encourages the private sector. I think printing more money, at this point, comes at a higher cost than the- (CROSSTALK) benefit it's gonna create.

GEORGE: -you wouldn't reappoint him if you won?

ROMNEY: I- I would like to appoint someone that I had selected. And I would- look for someone other than the- the current incumbent.

LIBYA ATTACKS: GEORGE: You said the statement showed- a tendency- to sympathize with those who waged the attacks. Where do they show sympathy for those who waged the attacks? It was done before the attacks happened.

ROMNEY: What I said was exactly the- the same conclusion the White House reached, which was that the statement was inappropriate. That's why they backed away from it as well.

GEORGE: They didn't say that it was showing sympathy for the attackers.

ROMNEY: Well, I think the- the- the statement was an inappropriate statement. I think-it was not t- directly- applicable and appropriate for the setting. I think it should have been taken down. And apparently the White House felt the same way.

GEORGE: And so- and no direct response then, when the president says you shoot first and aim later?

ROMNEY: Well, this is politics. I'm not gonna worry about the campaign.

Obama and Allies - Conservatives started to rally around Romney on Obama and Middle East today as President Obama made a diplomatic goof of his own.

Jake Tapper explains: "Asked if he considered the current Egyptian government an ally of the United States, President Obama Wednesday balked. "You know, I don't think that we would consider them an ally but we don't consider them an enemy," he said in an interview with Telemundo. "They are a new government trying to find its way, they were democratically elected. I think we are going to have to see how they respond to this incident, to see how they respond to maintaining the peace treaty with Israel." As The Cable's Josh Rogin points out, in 1989 Egypt was designated by Congress to be a Major Non-NATO Ally along with Australia, Israel, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and New Zealand.) Today the U.S. State department, somewhat awkwardly, re-affirmed that Egypt is an ally. Asked about the president's comment, White House National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said: "'Ally' is a legal term of art. We don't have a mutual defense treaty with Egypt like we do with our NATO allies. But as the President has said, Egypt is long-standing and close partner of the United States, and we have built on that foundation by supporting Egypt's transition to democracy and working with the new government."

More here - http://abcn.ws/PfmCq7

Tea Party Takeover: McConnell Hires Ron Paul Campaign Manager - http://abcn.ws/Px8Q4e

Paul Ryan Gets Hero's Welcome on Capitol Hill - http://abcn.ws/RNeZuQ But Schumer Calls Him a Deficit Reduction 'Fraud' - http://abcn.ws/TYG65s

Could Bernanke Get Obama Re-Elected? - Some conservatives - not the main policy makers on Capitol Hill, but some popular voices - see a Ben Bernanke- Barack Obama conspiracy in QE3, the Fed's new action to kick-start the American economy. If not a conspiracy, they at least see Bernanke showing leanings toward Obama. These aren't new thoughts. About a year ago, when he was running for president, Texas Gov. Rick Perry said it would be " almost treason" for Bernanke to "print more money" before November 2012. "If this guy prints more money between now and the election," Perry said in Iowa during his presidential campaign, "I don't know what y'all would do to him in Iowa, but we - we would treat him pretty ugly down in Texas. Printing more money to play politics at this particular time in American history is almost treacherous - or treasonous in my opinion."

Perry didn't go that far today, but he did say Bernanke oughta go. Bernanke talked to Diane Sawyer earlier this year about being nonpartisan - http://abcn.ws/NqFzbf

Clarence Thomas on Growing Up as a 'Minority Within a Minority Within a Minority' - http://abcn.ws/OKBH29 (de Vogue)

Ex-SEAL Spoke to ABC Before Libya Tragedy - From the Blotter: One of the Americans killed alongside Ambassador Christopher Stevens in an attack on a U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya Tuesday told ABC News before his death that he was working with the State Department on an intelligence mission to round up dangerous weapons in the war-torn nation.

In an interview with ABC News last month, Glen Doherty, a 42-year-old former Navy SEAL who worked as a contractor with the State Department, said he personally went into the field to track down so-called MANPADS, shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles, and destroy them. After the fall of dictator Moammar Gadhafi last year, the State Department launched a mission to round up thousands of MANPADS that may have been looted from military installations across the country. U.S. officials previously told ABC News they were concerned the MANPADS could fall into the hands of terrorists, creating a threat to commercial airliners. http://abcn.ws/UPpZ9Y

Romney Offers Donors Ride on 'Hair Force One' - http://abcn.ws/QSG6oE

Dems Hope to Win House Control… With Ryan's Help - The selection of Rep. Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney's Republican running mate will have a positive effect on Congressional races - for the Democrats. That's the claim made today by Rep. Steve Israel, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. http://abcn.ws/QYhTHK (Elizabeth Hartfield)

Oprah Gives Peek at Jane Fonda as Nancy Reagan - If you look too quickly, you might be tricked into thinking it's a photo from the archives. Oprah Winfrey tweeted a photo of herself and "Precious" director Lee Daniels posing with Jane Fonda, who uncannily resembles Nancy Reagan during her White House days. http://abcn.ws/TY7CQu (Amber Porter)

Ad Blitz May Explain Obama Convention Bounce, Group Says - President Obama's post-convention "bounce" in national polls may result mainly from an onslaught of pro-Obama TV ads rather than the spectacle and message of the party convention itself, according to a new analysis of media tracking data by the independent Wesleyan Media Project at Wesleyan University. http://abcn.ws/UOPVSU (Devin Dwyer)

Sen. Jon Keel: US Embassy Response Like Blaming Rape Victim - Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., suggested today that President Obama's response to the embassy attacks in Egypt and Libya was akin to a court asking a rape victim for an apology. http://abcn.ws/RT59qc (Greg Krieg)

President Obama Says Libya Attack a Reminder of US as 'Indispensable Power' - President Obama reflected tonight at a campaign rally in Las Vegas on what he said has been a "tough day" for the country, mourning the loss of four Americans killed in Libya, vowing justice for their killers and pledging that U.S. diplomacy would be unwavering "because the world needs us." http://abcn.ws/RNcS4P (Devin Dwyer)

Paul Ryan Ramps Up His Tone in Wake of Obama Criticism - Paul Ryan stepped up his criticism of the Obama administration at a rally here, using a more aggressive tone than earlier in the day, saying the "administration sent mixed signals to those who attacked our embassy in Egypt and mixed signals to the world." http://abcn.ws/U8ovp4 (Shushannah Walshe)

DNC Apologizes for Showing Russian Warships in Tribute to US Veterans - Organizers of last week's Democratic National Convention apologized today for accidentally showing an image of the Russian navy during a tribute to U.S. veterans. http://abcn.ws/NoSVF2 (Mary Bruce)