It was an honor to have been considered for Secretary of State of our great country.  My discussions with President-elect Trump have been both enjoyable and enlightening.  I have very high hopes that the new administration will lead the nation to greater strength, prosperity and peace.

Rick Perry, Ex-Governor of Texas, Is Trump's Pick as Energy Secretary  —  WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald J. Trump plans to name the former Texas governor Rick Perry as his secretary of energy.  —  The selection of Mr. Perry to lead the energy agency would offer a rich paradox …

Why Obamacare enrollees voted for Trump  —  In Whitley County, Kentucky, the uninsured rate declined 60 percent under Obamacare.  So why did 82 percent of voters there support Donald Trump?  —  CORBIN, Ky. — Kathy Oller is so committed to her job signing up fellow Kentuckians for Obamacare …

Exclusive: Top U.S. spy agency has not embraced CIA assessment on Russia hacking - sources  —  The overseers of the U.S. intelligence community have not embraced a CIA assessment that Russian cyber attacks were aimed at helping Republican President-elect Donald Trump win the 2016 election, three American officials said on Monday.

David Brock blasts Brooklyn, ‘animals’ in press  —  There aren't many people on the planet who hate Donald Trump - and love Hillary Clinton - with the Savonarola intensity of a David Brock.  —  But the Democratic dark-arts impresario has come to believe, in the harsh light of last month's bitter loss …

America is held hostage by flyover states  —  The predominant narrative coming out of the 2016 Presidential post-election analysis is: The flyover states have spoken.  —  A flyover state is the huge region between the coasts.  As opposed to the eastern seaboard, northern post-industrial states and Pacific Ocean states.

Al Franken Faces Donald Trump and the Next Four Years  —  The two-term Democratic senator, who once made a living satirizing politicians, envisions an unfunny future.  —  'D  —  onald Trump never laughs," Al Franken said.  —  This was the senator's first observation to me on a recent afternoon.

My President Was Black  —  “They're a rotten crowd,” I shouted across the lawn.  “You're worth the whole damn bunch put together.”  — F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby  —  I.  —  “Love Will Make You Do Wrong”  —  In the waning days of President Barack Obama's administration …

RNC keeps close tabs on Electoral College vote  —  The Republican National Committee is overseeing an expansive whip operation designed to lock down Donald Trump's Electoral College majority and ensure that the 306 Republican electors cast their votes for the president-elect.

Aleppo battle: UN says 82 civilians shot on the spot  —  Syrian pro-government forces have been entering homes in eastern Aleppo and killing those inside, including women and children, the UN says.  —  The UN's human rights office said it had reliable evidence that in four areas 82 civilians were shot on sight.

Energy Dept. rejects Trump's request to name climate change workers, who remain worried  —  Global warming — “it's a hoax.”  —  Donald Trump has said that more than once.  —  So it's understandable that the request by the president-elect's transition team for the names …

Belding firefighter let go for racist remarks … BELDING, Mich. — A firefighter from the Belding fire department was let go for allegedly posting racist remarks on Facebook over the weekend.  —  A three-sentence statement is all it took to get Ryan Hudson fired.

Did the Duke lacrosse case have reverberations in the 2016 election?  —  One way to look at the election of Donald Trump is that it is a repudiation of the cult of political correctness that thrives — metastasizes might be a better word — on college and university campuses.

How Donald Trump's business ties are already jeopardizing U.S. interests  —  U.S. DONALD TRUMP U.S. FOREIGN POLICY  —  Given the vast scope of the clashes between the Trumps' extensive business dealings and the interests of America, the president-elect vowed during the campaign …

Scientists are frantically copying U.S. climate data, fearing it might vanish under Trump  —  Alarmed that decades of crucial climate measurements could vanish under a hostile Trump administration, scientists have begun a feverish attempt to copy reams of government data onto independent servers …

Time to Fight Like Hell  —  Decades from now, when the election of 2016 is distilled to its essence, what will that be?  Many hoped the central lesson would be a shattered glass ceiling and a cementing of the Obama legacy.  An expansion of rights and tolerance.

Marijuana Is Harder Than Ever for Younger Teens to Find  —  Regulated markets for adults have not made it easier for younger people to get marijuana.  —  In some parts of the county, adults who want marijuana need to drive to the nearest state-regulated shop.  Teens, however, are self-reporting declining accessibility.

Rogue One review: this is the first Star Wars movie to acknowledge the whole franchise is about war  —  It's often incoherent and messy.  But it's also beautiful and has a strong central theme.  —  Supported by  —  People die in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.  A lot of them.

A Saudi woman tweeted a photo of herself without a hijab.  Police have arrested her.  —  The Saudi woman was going out for breakfast when she decided to make a statement.  Violating the country's moral codes, she reportedly stepped out in public wearing a multicolored dress …