White House, GOP near two-year budget deal  —  Senior White House officials and congressional leaders are nearing a deal to raise the debt limit and set the federal budget for the next two years, say sources familiar with the talks.  —  The agreement is not yet final, as negotiators still need …

Donald Trump's TODAY town hall: Guns, ISIS — and the last time he ate McDonald's  —  Donald Trump brought his brash, unapologetic presidential campaign to New Hampshire on Monday for a “pancakes and politics” town hall meeting with voters, hosted by TODAY's Matt Lauer.

The Most Likely Next President Is Hillary Clinton  —  And Republicans are in denial about it.  —  MarkHalperin  —  A virulent strain of Clinton Derangement Syndrome, which scientists and Republicans thought had been wiped out at the end of the last century, is now inflicting millions of conservative Americans.

Decatur City Schools addresses teacher's controversial Halloween costume  —  DECATUR, Ala. - A representative from Decatur City Schools called a news conference this morning in reference to a controversial picture on social media.  During the conference, Superintendent Ed Nichols read a letter of apology from the teacher involved.

Can Carson win GOP nomination?  —  The possibility of Ben Carson becoming the Republican presidential nominee is being raised with increasing urgency after he knocked Donald Trump out of first place in two Iowa polls late last week.  —  But there are plenty of skeptics within Republican ranks …

The GOP's dysfunction all started with Sarah Palin  —  William M. Daley was White House chief of staff from 2011 to 2012.  —  When The Post's front page declares: “Republicans are on the verge of ceasing to function as a national party,” it's time to ask: How did this come to pass?

Rubio gives up on Senate: ‘He hates it’  —  Marco Rubio is a U.S. senator.  And he just can't stand it anymore.  —  “I don't know that ‘hate’ is the right word,” Rubio said in an interview.  “I'm frustrated.”  —  This year, as Rubio runs for president, he has cast the Senate …

IRS possessed Stingray cellphone surveillance gear, documents reveal  —  Exclusive: Invoices reveal tax service, 13th federal agency to use secretive dragnet, upgraded device that pretends to be cellphone tower to gather metadata  —  The Internal Revenue Service is the latest in a growing list …

In U.S., Support for Tea Party Drops to New Low  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans' support for the Tea Party has dropped to its lowest level since the movement emerged on the national political scene prior to the 2010 midterm elections.

Hot dogs, bacon and other processed meats cause cancer, World Health Organization declares  —  A research division of the World Health Organization announced Monday that bacon, sausage and other processed meats cause cancer and that red meat probably does, too.

Bush family gathers to rescue Jeb  —  <p>HOUSTON — This closed-door summit for Jeb Bush's richest donors was meant to be a pep rally, a reunion for loyalists eager to celebrate the family legacy with two former presidents.</p><p> But as George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush draw supporters …

Death to Capitalism?  Visitors to Marx's Grave Balk at Fee  —  London cemetery charges fee to see late communist's memorial  —  HIGHGATE CEMETERY, LONDON—On a summer visit to the grave of Karl Marx, Ben Gliniecki found that he would have to pay £4, or about $6 …

Police respond to reports of gunman in Davenport, Bettendorf  —  Watch Live Here  —  UPDATE: 3:32 p.m. - Captain Jim Stenger, Marine public affairs officer with the 9th Marine Corps Recruiting District issued a statement. … UPDATE: A spokeswoman for the City of Bettendorf says at 2:05 p.m. police …

After Papa Roux robbery, discount promised for handgun license holders  —  Papa Roux is the latest Indy restaurant to be robbed, following four others on the Eastside and another in Broad Ripple.  —  CONNECT  —  Art Bouvier has a message for criminals: Don't mess with Papa Roux.

Why Trump isn't fading like the GOP establishment expected  —  The conventional wisdom among Donald Trump's detractors is that his current surge in the polls won't last because as we get closer to actual voting, Republicans excited by his political incorrectness will start factoring in “electability.”

Russian Ships Near Data Cables Are Too Close for U.S. Comfort  —  WASHINGTON — Russian submarines and spy ships are aggressively operating near the vital undersea cables that carry almost all global Internet communications, raising concerns among some American military and intelligence officials …

Police union calls for Tarantino boycott after anti-cop rally  —  Quentin Tarantino speaks during an organized protest against police brutality in Washington Square Park on Saturday.  —  The city's police union is calling for a boycott of Quentin Tarantino films after the “Pulp Fiction” …

Does Ben Carson Believe Most Evangelical Voters Are Going to Hell?  —  Social conservatives backing his campaign may want to ask him a few questions.  —  Ben Carson, the retired neurosurgeon and political novice, has leaped to the head of the GOP's 2016 pack in Iowa.

Hillary Clinton Wins Again  —  On the heels of a strong Democratic debate performance, last week Vice President Joe Biden — whose candidacy would surely have drawn support away from her — dismounted the fence and decided not to run for president himself.  And then came the spectacular debacle of the Benghazi committee hearing.

Google Turning Its Lucrative Web Search Over to AI Machines  —  ‘RankBrain’ uses artificial intelligence to filter results  —  In tests, system beats company's experts at page selection.  —  When Google-parent Alphabet Inc. reported eye-popping earnings last week its executives …

Exclusive: Wal-Mart seeks to test drones for home delivery, pickup  —  Wal-Mart Stores Inc applied Monday to U.S. regulators for permission to test drones for home delivery, curbside pickup and checking warehouse inventories, a sign it plans to go head-to-head with Amazon in using drones to fill and deliver online orders.