Outspoken Putin critic: Trump's press conference just like Soviet ones  —  Garry Kasparov, an outspoken critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, likened President-elect Donald Trump  —  's press conference Wednesday to ones held by leaders in the Soviet Union.  —  “That reminded me of a Soviet press conference.

Federal ethics chief blasts ‘meaningless’ Trump business plan  —  The head of the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) on Wednesday slammed President-elect Donald Trump  —  's plan to separate himself from his business, calling it “wholly inadequate” in resolving potential conflicts of interest.

Peter Thiel, Trump's Tech Pal, Explains Himself  —  Let others tremble at the thought that Donald J. Trump may go too far.  Peter Thiel worries that Mr. Trump may not go far enough.  —  “Everyone says Trump is going to change everything way too much,” says the famed venture capitalist …

Donald Trump News Conference: Transcript  —  The following is a partial transcript of a news conference that President-elect Donald J. Trump held in New York on Wednesday, as prepared by the Federal News Service.  —  For updates and analysis of the conference, follow our transition briefing.

Tillerson has a shaky show before skeptical senators  —  Rex Tillerson had terse exchanges Wednesday with Republican Marco Rubio and other key senators during his confirmation hearing for the role of secretary of state, ducking questions on whether Russian leader Vladimir Putin is a “war criminal” or if the U.S. should sanction Moscow.

The Deep State Goes to War with President-Elect, Using Unverified Claims, as Democrats Cheer  —  In January, 1961, Dwight Eisenhower delivered his farewell address after serving two terms as U.S. president; the five-star general chose to warn Americans of this specific threat to democracy …

The story of the Trump dossier: secret sources, an airport rendezvous, and John McCain  —  What began as opposition research during the Republican primary slowly grew from a covert investigation into an extraordinary but unverified global story … The extraordinary but unverified documents published …

Christopher Steele, Ex-British Intelligence Officer, Said to Have Prepared Dossier on Trump  —  Former spy is director of London-based Orbis Intelligence Ltd.  —  A former British intelligence officer who is now a director of a private security-and-investigations firm has been identified …

Introducing: The Facebook Journalism Project  —  Facebook is a new kind of platform and we want to do our part to enable people to have meaningful conversations, to be informed and to be connected to each other.  We know that our community values sharing and discussing ideas and news …

Cory Booker seizes big moment with historic move against another senator  —  Washington (CNN)Sen. Cory Booker will make history Wednesday when he becomes the first sitting senator to testify against another sitting senator for a Cabinet post as he fights Jeff Sessions' nomination …

The 2 most important words in Trump's press conference  —  “I won.”  —  Donald Trump explained very clearly at Wednesday morning's press conference why he won't release his tax returns, thus leaving the public entirely in the dark as to who may or may not be paying him off: “I won.”

Trump Cites ‘Nazi Germany,’ Rejects Dossier on Alleged Russia Dealings  —  Donald Trump: Report that Russia has damaging intel on me is ‘fake news’ 3:06  —  MOSCOW — The Russian government on Wednesday denied unverified reports that it has compromising information about Donald Trump, dismissing the claims as a “total hoax.”

BuzzFeed CEO defends Trump coverage: report  —  BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti on Wednesday defended his organization's decision to publish a document with uncorroborated allegations about President-elect Donald Trump  —  and Russia.  —  Trump, as well as some media outlets, blasted BuzzFeed for the decision.

Obama may get rejected from golf club over Israel policies  —  More On:  —  President Obama's clashes with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may cost him a membership at an exclusive golf club, sources said.  —  Obama is looking to join the elite Woodmont Country Club in Maryland once he becomes a private citizen.

Army Leaker Chelsea Manning on Obama's ‘Short List’ for Commutation  —  President Obama has put Chelsea Manning, the former Army intelligence analyst serving a 35-year sentence for leaking classified material, on his short list for a possible commutation, a Justice Department source told NBC News.