Intercepted Russian Communications Part of Inquiry Into Trump Associates  —  WASHINGTON — American law enforcement and intelligence agencies are examining intercepted communications and financial transactions as part of a broad investigation into possible links between Russian officials …

A Trump Administration, With Obama Staff Members Filling In the Gaps  —  WASHINGTON — Donald J. Trump arrived in Washington the day before his inauguration as the nation's 45th president in a swirl of cinematic pageantry but facing serious questions about whether his chaotic transition …

Anti-Trump Protesters Pepper Sprayed on Eve of Inauguration Outside ‘DeploraBall’ in D.C.  —  Hundreds of Inauguration Weekend Protests Planned Across the Country 1:40  —  A weekend of protests over the inauguration and presidency of Donald Trump began Thursday night with police in Washington …

Trump's Inaugural Concert Didn't Fill The National Mall  —  Here's the crowd outside the Lincoln Memorial on Thursday for a concert celebrating President-elect Donald Trump's upcoming inauguration. … The National Park Service declined to estimate how many people attended the concert.

Trump aides jockey for best White House real estate  —  In the two months since Donald Trump won the most coveted office in the United States, his aides have quietly jostled for the next most valuable workspace—the short corridor just down the hall from the Oval Office.

Senate set to confirm two Trump Cabinet nominees Friday; others will wait  —  President-elect Donald Trump's two least controversial Cabinet nominees are expected to be confirmed by the Senate Friday afternoon, but the rest may have to wait before they can officially join the Trump administration.

Anti-Fascists Crash Alt-Right Deploraball  —  As attendees poured into the Deploraball, a celebratory event organized by figures in the Alt-Right and their Trump-loving allies, hundreds of protesters gathered outside yelling “Nazi scum” as they walked in.  —  Around a half-hour before the event …

Trump Sought Military Equipment For Inauguration, Granted 20-Plane Flyover  —  “It's very Red Square,” said Stephen Kerrigan, who oversaw the past two inaugurations.  —  Foreign Affairs Reporter, The Huffington Post  —  WASHINGTON Part of being a great president is showing off America's …

Is Trump Stronger Than He Seems?  —  New polls suggest that Donald J. Trump has the lowest approval and favorability ratings of any incoming president in the polling era — by a lot.  Unsurprisingly, he is not buying it.  —  He tweeted that the polls are “rigged” just like the “phony” …

Dennis Hastert seeks repayment of $1.7 million from sex abuse accuser  —  Former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert is serving a 15-month sentence in a Minnesota federal prison hospital after pleading guilty in October to a financial crime.  —  Imprisoned former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert …

Wright Under Consideration as Trump's Antitrust Chief, Source Says  —  Ex-FTC commissioner said in running for Justice Department job  —  Courts have countered Wright dissents in FTC enforcement cases  —  The Trump team is considering giving a top antitrust post to a former U.S. trade …

Can President Trump Be Presidential?  —  A special strength of American democracy has been the desire of newly elected presidents to unite the public with healing words after the sound and fury of the campaign.  —  Now comes President-elect Donald Trump.  He has won the office and yet …

From Russia with love: A $10,000 Trump coin  —  Moscow (CNN)Money, the saying goes, can't buy love.  But $10,000 will buy you the perfect Donald Trump inauguration keepsake — a coin with the words “In Trump we trust.”  —  It's the handiwork of a Russian mining company because …

It's time to relax about Trump  —  Hugh Hewitt hosts a nationally syndicated radio show and is author of the forthcoming “The Fourth Way: The Conservative Playbook for a Lasting GOP Majority.”  —  My wife and I welcomed Mike and Debbie for dinner at our California home Tuesday night.

Report: Trump has given up personal cellphone  —  Less than 24 hours before his inauguration, the Associated Press reports President-elect Donald Trump  —  has given up his personal cellphone.  —  Trump apparently told a friend on Thursday that he has given up the phone on the advice of security agencies.

Washington Hotel Presents Trump With a ‘Minefield’ of Potential Scandal  —  WASHINGTON — With sirens blaring, a fleet of limousines and security personnel raced down Pennsylvania Avenue twice in less than the last 24 hours to deliver Donald J. Trump to inauguration events.

Al Franken Criticizes Tom Price for Holding Tobacco Stocks He Owns Too  —  Sen. Johnny Isakson (R., Ga.) came to the defense of Donald Trump's nominee to head the Department of Health and Human Services, Rep. Tom Price (R., Ga.), during his Wednesday confirmation hearing after Sen. Al Franken …

El Chapo, Mexican Drug Kingpin, Extradited to the U.S.  —  Mexico City — Joaquin Guzman Loera, the notorious drug lord known as El Chapo, who twice slipped out of high-security Mexican prisons and into criminal legend, was being extradited to the United States on Thursday night, officials said …