With No Warning, House Republicans Vote to Hobble Independent Ethics Office  —  House Republicans, defying their top leaders, voted Monday to significantly curtail the power of an independent ethics office set up in 2008 in the aftermath of corruption scandals that sent three members of Congress to jail.

Trump: North Korea will be stopped  —  President-elect Donald Trump tweeted Monday evening that North Korea won't reach the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon that will be able to hit the United States.  —  “North Korea just stated that it is in the final stages of developing …

Robert Lighthizer Is Expected to Be Named U.S. Trade Representative  —  Donald Trump is also considering ways to bring his daughter and son-in-law into the administration  —  Donald Trump is expected to name Robert Lighthizer, a former trade official under President Ronald Reagan …

Israeli police question PM Netanyahu in corruption probe  —  Israeli police have questioned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as part of an inquiry into corruption allegations.  —  Ahead of their arrival at his residence, Mr Netanyahu again denied any wrongdoing.

BREAKING IN PLAYBOOK: SONNY PERDUE is Trump's leading pick for Ag secy — TRUMP returns to NYC, holding meetings at TRUMP TOWER — VOX will interview Barack Obama Jan. 6 — B'DAY: Mike Zapler  —  Good Monday morning.  Happy New Year's Day, observed.  Eighteen days until Inauguration Day.

Many in U.S. Skeptical Trump Can Handle Presidential Duties  —  PRINCETON, N.J. — As Donald Trump prepares to take the presidential oath on Jan. 20, less than half of Americans are confident in his ability to handle an international crisis (46%), to use military force wisely (47%) …

Nude Neptune sunk by Facebook's privacy controls  —  A statue of Neptune in the Italian city of Bologna has fallen foul of Facebook's privacy policies, which claim it is “explicitly sexual.”  —  According to the Telegraph, local writer Elisa Barbari chose the 16th-century statue …

Adviser contradicts Trump: Russians hacked the US  —  Washington (CNN)A top adviser to President-elect Donald Trump said Monday he thinks the Russians were involved in election-related hacking of the US — a very different view than that held by the incoming administration.

Donald Trump's New Year's Eve speech cited Dubai business partner  —  Hussain Sajwani, founder of the DAMAC Group  —  (CNN)Donald Trump gave a lengthy description of his electoral victory, and lavished praise upon a Dubai business partner, during a ten-minute speech to 800 paying guests at his Florida estate Saturday night.

Joe Scarborough against the world  —  Joe Scarborough is fed up with his critics.  —  “I am sick and tired of people misrepresenting me and making snide assumptions and giving readers false conclusions,” the “Morning Joe” co-host told CNNMoney on Monday.  In 2017, he said, he was “going to war against lies.”

Pelosi: Ball in GOP court on ObamaCare replacement  —  House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Monday that the ball is in the GOP's court when it comes to replacing ObamaCare, according to reports.  —  Pelosi didn't necessarily rule out working with the GOP on replacing President …

Former Chicago police chief blasts Black Lives Matter  —  Former Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy on Sunday blamed the Black Lives Matter movement for causing a rise in violent crime around the country.  —  During a radio interview with John Catsimatidis on AM 970 in New York …

Istanbul attack: ISIS claims nightclub shooting  —  Istanbul (CNN)ISIS has claimed responsibility for the deadly New Year's attack at an upscale Istanbul nightclub that left 39 people dead.  —  The terror group offered no further clues about the identity of the attacker, and authorities in Turkey continue their search for the suspect.