Trump's media neediness  —  In President Trump's interview with the New York Times, he declared: … On one level, the comment is ludicrous.  Despite the frenzied paranoia of the Fox News crowd, the Times doesn't determine election winners.  If it did, he wouldn't be president.

Iran protests: Citizens told to avoid ‘illegal gatherings’  —  The Iranian government has told people to avoid “illegal gatherings” in the wake of two days of angry anti-establishment protests in the country.  —  Scores have been arrested in protests over corruption and living standards.

Donald Trump Is a Consequential President.  Just Not in the Ways You Think.  —  On January 20, 2017, as President Donald Trump began his inaugural address, a cold rain began to fall.  —  A few hours later, Trump claimed the rain had not begun to fall.  —  “The crowd was unbelievable today …

VP Mike Pence gets message from Aspen neighbors: Make America Gay Again  —  For Vice President Mike Pence, the message was unmistakable and the banner that carried it unmissable.  —  “Make America Gay Again,” the rainbow banner reads.  —  Neighbors of the home near Aspen where Pence and his wife …

State Department releases Huma Abedin emails found on Anthony Weiner's laptop  —  The State Department on Friday released a batch of work-related emails from the account of top Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin that were discovered by the FBI on a laptop belonging to Abedin's estranged husband …

Week 32: Trump Binges on Collusion Talk to Ring Out Year  —  In what otherwise would have to be counted as a sleepy week in the annals of the Trump Tower scandal, President Donald Trump gave the press a much-needed news peg by granting New York Times reporter Michael S. Schmidt a 30-minute interview …

Of All the Blogs in the World, He Walks Into Mine  —  A man born to an Orthodox Jewish family in Toronto and schooled at a Yeshiva and a Japanese-American man raised on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, were married in the rare books section of the Strand Bookstore in Greenwich Village before a crowd of 200 people …

‘Everyone has parents but us’  —  Orphaned Rohingya brothers escape a massacre but now must survive a refugee camp  —  Three months ago, these two Rohingya brothers had a loving family, a little house near a river, a worn soccer ball to play with and 15 cows for fresh milk.  —  It's all gone now: The family killed.

The Modern Campaign-Finance Loophole: Governors Associations  —  In many states, corporations can't give large sums directly to campaigns, but they can funnel funds through groups that support Democratic and Republican gubernatorial candidates  —  In October 2014, the Republican Governors …

Gov. Brownback, it's time to resign and let Kansas move on  —  By The Kansas City Star Editorial Board  —  Governor Brownback, it's time to walk away.  —  As a convert to Catholicism — someone who wasn't just born into the faith, but chose it — maybe think of it this way …

Erica Garner, daughter of police chokehold victim, dies in Brooklyn  —  The daughter of police chokehold victim Eric Garner died in Brooklyn Saturday morning, sources said.  —  Erica Garner, 27, had been fighting for her life since she suffered a massive heart attack a week ago, family members told the Daily News Thursday.

After Saving Many From Fire, Soldier Died Trying to Rescue One More  —  Emmanuel Mensah was a handsome, strongly built young man in his late 20s who immigrated to the Bronx from Ghana about five years ago.  He joined the Army but returned to his apartment on Prospect Avenue in December after undergoing training.

Dem senators fight to out-liberal one another ahead of 2020  —  It used to be that Bernie Sanders was an ideological lone ranger in the Senate.  Now, a whole host of potential presidential hopefuls are racing to represent the liberal grass roots on their issues of the day …

Military to begin accepting transgender recruits after Trump delays appeal  —  The Pentagon will begin accepting transgender military recruits on Monday, Jan. 1, after the Trump administration decided not to appeal a court order blocking the president's ban.