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that Obama gave "gifts" to minorities in exchange for their votes -- they are delivering postelection wish lists to the president anyway.
• "I think the president heard us loud and clear. The collective message was, 'Let's build on where we already are,'" the Rev. Al Sharpton told reporters after a White House meeting last week with a collection of advocates representing largely Democratic constituencies.
• Specifically, Sharpton said, that means keeping the brunt of the looming "fiscal cliff" of tax increases and spending cuts off the backs of the middle and working class.
• NAACP President Benjamin Jealous aimed that same message at Congress, especially on where tax relief is extended.
• ___

• The annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade ushered in a festive mood to a city still coping with the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, while in the outer boroughs and New Jersey, volunteers served up hot holiday meals to storm victims.
• In Afghanistan, huge hunks of beef, dressing, corn, collard greens, yams and mashed potatoes with gravy awaited about 2,500 soldiers in the dining hall. Nearby, service members played football.
• Meanwhile, stores that typically open early Friday were getting a head start on Thanksgiving evening, hoping Americans would be willing to shop soon after they polish off their pumpkin pie.
• Here's a photo gallery of Thanksgiving celebrations:
• ___

• BRUSSELS (AP) -- The prospect of failure hangs over a European Union leaders' summit intended to lay out the 27-country bloc's long-term spending plans.
• While heavyweights like Britain and France are pulling in opposite directions, smaller members are threatening to veto a deal to make themselves heard.
• Negotiators will try to navigate the myriad demands on the second day of the meeting Friday. A tense first session left many observers predicting leaders will need more time to bridge their differences over the bloc's spending priorities for the

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