‘Ashamed’ Franken says he'll return to work on Monday  —  Breaking an eight-day silence, the Minnesota senator tells the Star Tribune that he needs to regain trust of those he's let down.  —  Sen. Al Franken broke his eight-day silence Sunday, reaching out to Minnesota media outlets to talk …

Bharara compares Trump to Jan Brady after Russia tweet  —  For U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara invoked the classic sitcom “The Brady Bunch” after President Trump lamented coverage of the Russia investigation, comparing Trump's “Russia, Russia, Russia” comment to Jan Brady's famous “Marcia, Marcia, Marcia” line.

Readers Accuse Us of Normalizing a Nazi Sympathizer; We Respond  —  The Reader Center is a newsroom initiative that is helping The Times build deeper ties with our audience.  —  We have asked our national editor, Marc Lacey, to respond to feedback on our recent profile of a white nationalist.

Pelosi Chokes, Won't Say That “Icon” Conyers Should Resign Over Settlement Of Harassment Allegations; Update: Conyers Quits Top Spot On Judiciary Committee  —  An astounding performance, in which the first woman Speaker in American history goes to bat for a credibly accused harasser in the midst …

GOP leaders in advanced talks to change tax plan in bid to win over holdouts  —  Senate Republicans are seriously considering several last-minute changes to their tax legislation in an effort to mollify wavering members, four people familiar with the discussions said, as GOP leaders seek …

FBI didn't tell US targets as Russian hackers hunted emails  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI failed to notify scores of U.S. officials that Russian hackers were trying to break into their personal Gmail accounts despite having evidence for at least a year that the targets were in the Kremlin's crosshairs, The Associated Press has found.

Time Inc. Is Said to Near Sale in Deal Backed by Koch Brothers  —  Time Inc. is nearing an agreement to sell itself to the Meredith Corporation in a deal backed by Charles G. and David H. Koch, the billionaire brothers known for using their wealth and political connections to advance conservative causes.

Susan Sarandon: 'I thought Hillary was very dangerous.  If she'd won, we'd be at war'  —  She talks about Hollywood sexism, female empowerment and playing Bette Davis  —  usan Sarandon at 71 is bright-eyed and airy, and perhaps shyer than she can publicly seem.

Republicans offer a sham defense of Roy Moore.  —  The battle within the Republican Party has come down to this: Is it OK for a 32-year-old man to seduce a 14-year-old girl?  —  Will Saletan writes about politics, science, technology, and other stuff for Slate.  He's the author of Bearing Right.

Congress stares down shutdown amid December deluge  —  December is shaping up to be the cruelest month for Republicans who control Capitol Hill.  —  Under enormous pressure for a legislative achievement, GOP senators will attempt to follow their House counterparts this week by passing …

Fox News Anchor Bret Baier Hangs With Trump at Mar-a-Lago During Thanksgiving Weekend  —  An Instagram photo Saturday shows Bret Baier and his wife with POTUS alongside golf legend Jack Nicklaus their wives  —  Fox News anchor Bret Baier and his wife, Amy, enjoyed some R&R this Thanksgiving weekend …

Trump's long history of misleading the media  —  Trump has been playing the media like a fiddle for more than 30 years.  I was reminded of that fact this week while reading Harry Hurt's 1993 book, “Lost Tycoon: The Many Lives of Donald J. Trump.”  —  Hurt recounts how Trump used …

I went to jail for leaving my baby outside a restaurant  —  Twenty years after going to jail for leaving her baby in a stroller outside a New York City restaurant, Anette Sørensen is ready to set the record straight.  —  In 2012, she published a novel based on the “traumatizing” …

Pentagon tried to block independent report on child sex among Afghan forces, Senate office says  —  The Pentagon tried to block an independent assessment of child sex abuse crimes committed by Afghan soldiers and police, instead insisting on the creation of its own report offering …

Ivana Trump: Donald Trump ‘missing a little bit of his old life’ … President Trump's first wife Ivana Trump said she believed the president is missing his life prior to entering the White House, when asked whether she thinks he will run for reelection.  —  “I think he's missing a little bit …

Why a historically conservative county in Virginia is making national Republicans nervous  —  (Julia Rendleman/For The Washington Post)  —  CHESTERFIELD, Va. — In this bastion of Virginia-brand conservatism, dozens of Democratic women roared on a recent night as their organization's leader crowed …