North Korean Defector Tells Lester Holt ‘World Should be Ready’  —  SEOUL, South Korea — A senior North Korean defector has told NBC News that the country's “desperate” dictator is prepared to use nuclear weapons to strike the United States and its allies.  —  Thae Yong Ho is the most high …

Trump's risk of impeachment rises  —  Liberal Democrats could yet see their dreams come true.  —  Last week, a new poll from the liberal outfit Public Policy Polling (PPP) asked Americans if President Trump should resign if evidence emerges that his campaign worked with Russia to help defeat Hillary Clinton

BREAKING NEWS: Two nail bombs on St Petersburg metro rip through carriages, killing at least 10 as Putin visits city for meeting  —  Two nail bombs on the metro in St Petersburg ripped through train carriages killing at least 10 people today.  —  The incident occurred at two separate locations …

Jared Kushner Visits Iraq on Invitation From Joint Chiefs Chairman  —  Jared Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law, made a trip to Iraq over the weekend, visiting the country as the American military is aiding Iraqi forces in their brutal fight to retake Mosul from the Islamic State.

Mitch McConnell's Nuclear Trigger Finger  —  In the 1944 noir film “Gaslight,” a villain hides his crimes by convincing his innocent wife she's insane, feeding her barely perceptible lies and altering small aspects of her environment until she doubts her own instincts and observations.

Trump Can Pull Money From His Businesses Whenever He Wants — Without Ever Telling Us  —  When President Donald Trump placed his businesses in a trust upon entering the White House, he put his sons in charge and claimed to distance himself from his sprawling empire.

A possible Trumpcare comeback  —  There have been a lot of recent signals that some quiet Trumpcare negotiations are still going on, but what do they really add up to?  My best read, from talking to GOP sources over the weekend: Don't bet on a Trumpcare comeback just yet, but don't be shocked if it happens.

The Russiagate Scam Will Blow Up In The Democrats' Smug Faces  —  If you're stressed out about this whole Russian nonsense, relax - Donald Trump didn't do anything wrong, and he's not going be impeached, arrested, or ritually disemboweled.  When the truth comes out and it explodes in the Democrats' soft …

Tucker Carlson's Fighting Words  —  On Fox News, an unlikely star thrives in the tumult of Trump-era politics.  —  Tucker Carlson started wearing a bow tie in 1984, when he was in tenth grade at St. George's, a Rhode Island prep school with a dress code.  He stopped wearing a bow tie on April 11 …

Tom Perez won't apologize for insulting Trump and GOP leaders.  Here's why.  —  On Friday, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez told activists in New Jersey that their protests were hitting the Trump administration where it hurt.  He pointed to Jan. 21, the day of the Women's March …

What is the “Alt” Left?  —  Much has been written about the “Alt[alternative]-Right” It is attacked as a sort of updated paleo-conservatism—or anti-orthodox conservatism that promotes white identity, often dressed up with hip culture to appeal to younger right-wingers.

Fox braces for fallout from Bill O'Reilly scandal  —  If Bill O'Reilly weren't the biggest star at Fox News, would he still have a job at Fox News?  —  Many media industry observers, reading about the harassment allegations that have cost O'Reilly and Fox millions of dollars, are saying he would not.

As Republicans' views improve, Americans give the economy its highest marks since financial crisis  —  What a difference a year, and possibly an election, makes.  Nearly six-in-ten people in the United States (58%) say the economic situation is very or somewhat good, according …