SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET: 

THE EMBARASSMENT DOES IT AGAIN – FROM DAILYWIRE:  Democratic Socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez revealed this weekend that she has no idea what the three branches of the U.S. government are during a conference call with prospective far-left political candidates.  "If we work our butts off to make sure that we take back all three chambers of Congress — uh, rather, all three chambers of government: the presidency, the Senate, and the House," Ocasio-Cortez said on Saturday while on a call with Justice Democrats.  The three branches, not chambers, of the U.S. government, are the executive, legislative, and judicial.  But that's her "narrative."  Who are we oppressors to challenge her?  This is what white supremacy is all about.

SOMETHING ELSE TO WORRY ABOUT – FROM CNS:  A report in the Christian Post contends that the number of witches (and Wiccans) has dramatically increased since the 1990s, to the degree that there may be at least 1.5 million witches in the United States, which is higher than the 1.4 million mainline Presbyterians.  "[T]he practice of witchcraft has grown significantly in recent decades; those who identify as witches has risen concurrently with the rise of the 'witch aesthetic,'" reported the Christian Post in October, citing data from Quartz, a Trinity College study, and the Pew Research Center.  Between 1990 and 2008, the number of Wiccans in the United States grew from 8,000 to 340,000, according to three religious surveys conducted by Trinity College in Connecticut. In addition, the Pew Research Center reported in 2014 that 0.4% of the population -- 1 to 1.5 million Americans -- "identify as Wicca or Pagan."  Anyone who's ever watched Elizabeth Warren or Kamala Harris speak in the Senate knows that this story is true.

FOR BETTER OR WORSE – FROM BLOOMBERG:   Living together is become more popular than marriage for young American couples, according to Census Bureau data. Fifteen percent of people in the 25-to-34 age group shared quarters with an unmarried partner this year, up from 12 percent in 2008.  Among those between 18 to 24, cohabitation is more prevalent today than marriage with 9 percent living with an unmarried partner versus 7 percent living with a spouse. Fifty years ago, only 0.1 percent of people between 18 and 24-year and 0.2 percent between 25 and 34 lived with an unmarried partner.  Married couples do have an edge, though. More income.  I make no judgment, but decisions have consequences. 

November 18, 2018