In what was probably the eighth or ninth iteration of the point-and-laugh-at-Fox White House Christmas card story, MSNBC host Ed Schultz managed to top them all, with an assist from a temporary co-host named Rex. Schultz set up the story by introducing the adorable animal shelter beagle, a stand-in for First Dog Bo Obama, whose presence on the White House card, and on a presidential shopping trip, prompted ridiculous criticism from the likes of Sarah Palin and Sen. John McCain.

It seems like, every day, there’s some bit of conservative ridiculousness that emerges to be lampooned by a long procession of cable news shows. Wednesday’s version was the idiotic Fox Radio feature on the White House Christmas card, and as such, I watched about seven versions of point-and-laugh at the Sarah Palin-aided bit of silliness. My favorite take, as is often the case, was Rachel Maddow’s low-key, slow burn take on the former Alaska Governor’s latest defense of Christmas from nothing.

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel‘s language is legendary for its boldness, and new accounts tell he was not averse to being crude to anyone, from Bill Clinton to Bo Obama. Any discussion of Emanuel’s death threats to the White House dog has comedy potential, but when the people trying to qualify it are Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, and Lanny Davis, the humor is practically foolproof.

At yesterday’s White House briefing, the hot topic du jour was the House Democrats’ procedural “Deem and Pass” maneuver, also known as “Demon Pass,” the “Slaughter Rule,” and if I’m not mistaken, the “Cider House Rule?”  I’m not sure about that last one.

All this after Fox News’ Brett Baier spent a good chunk of his POTUS exclusive grilling the President on whether he supports the maneuver. Just to be thorough, I took a shot at the question with First Dog Bo Obama. Not surprisingly, he agreed with the President. Video after the jump.

Everyone knows that Bo Obama is the First Dog, but The History Channel’s Life After People recently imagined what it would be like if he ended up being the last dog, too. In last night’s episode, the show examined the likely fate of the White House, among other world leaders’ domiciles, if all the people on Earth were suddenly wiped out. Maybe it’s a case of “Old Yeller Syndrome” (which dictates that, in movies, it’s much worse to kill a dog than a human), but the producers predict a far-too-rosy fate for Bo. Read no further if you cherish their delusion.

It’s the end of the year, the time for handy lists and timelines recapping the touchstones of the past 12 months, freezing them in our ever-shortening collective memory.

Of course, some people just have to be different. Mediaite contributor and White House reporter Tommy Christopher pulls back the curtain on covering politics in 2009, and shares photos and videos that have never been seen before. Find out who the Secret Service did manage to keep out of the White House, what Joe Biden told his young mentorees, and much more.