FIRST SHOTS: No backup for Obama on China currency issue

The Upshot

Welcome to "First Shots," a daily roundup of early-bird news and a preview of what's to come.

• The president pushed China to boost its currency's value, but every other foreign leader at the G20 summit refused to back him up. (AP)

• Aung San Suu Kyi, the detained pro-democracy leader in Burma, could be released as soon as today. The Nobel peace laureate has been detained for 15 of the past 21 years and now rumors are swirling about the timing of her release. (Guardian)

• "Sarah Palin's Alaska" premieres this Sunday on TLC. (Los Angeles Times)

• Conservative Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) is waging an aggressive pushback against an earmark ban. (Politico)

• A new power-sharing deal in Iraq already appears shaky-- 60 MPs walked out of negotiations last night. (AFP)

• Congress' lame duck session could include a vote on a bill to create a pathway for illegal immigrant children to earn legal status. (Arizona Republic)

• There are no clear answers as to why the recently-stranded Carnival Splendor cruise ship experienced an engine fire and loss of power. (USA Today)

• The death of the phone book is fast approaching, thanks to the Internet. (AP)

Have something you'd like to see in our daily First Shots post? Email me.