How the Russia Inquiry Began: A Campaign Aide, Drinks and Talk of Political Dirt  —  WASHINGTON — During a night of heavy drinking at an upscale London bar in May 2016, George Papadopoulos, a young foreign policy adviser to the Trump campaign, made a startling revelation to Australia's top diplomat …

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.

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 …

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.

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 …

Trump Justice Department Pushes for Citizenship Question on Census, Alarming Experts  —  “This is a recipe for sabotaging the census,” said one.  The administration's stated reason for the controversial move: protecting civil rights.  —  The Justice Department is pushing for a question …

Man arrested in ‘Call of Duty’ ‘swatting’ hoax that led to fatal police shooting  —  A 25-year-old California man was arrested in connection to an online quarrel between two “Call of Duty” gamers that prompted a hoax call and led to a man being killed by police in Kansas.

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.

Erica Garner, Who Became An Activist After Her Father's Death, Dies  —  Activist Erica Garner has died, after suffering brain damage following a heart attack.  She was 27 years old.  —  Her official twitter account announced her death Saturday morning.  —  She entered the public eye …

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 …

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 …

How the ‘feminist’ left let women down in 2017  —  Merriam-Webster has named “feminism” its word of the year.  The popular dictionary defines feminism as “the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes” and the “organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests.”

Our Reporter Mike Schmidt on His Golf Club Interview With President Trump  —  WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Shortly after 1 p.m. on Thursday, President Trump came off the 18th hole of his golf course here and walked into the club house's Grill Room.  Waiters scurried to bring menus and drinks …

Does Sheila Jackson Lee Know The Person She's Accused Of Racism For Airline Fiasco Is A Human Rights Activist?  —  So, I bet you've heard about the airline incident between a woman and Texas Democratic Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee.  Katie wrote about it.

10 Falsehoods From Trump's Interview With The Times  —  WASHINGTON — President Trump, in an impromptu interview on Thursday with The New York Times, rattled off at least 10 false or misleading claims about the Russia investigation, wars abroad, health care, immigration and trade.  Here's an assessment.

Trump is right about the FBI  —  Trump lashes out at top leaders of his own FBI  —  Paul Callan is a CNN legal analyst, a former New York homicide prosecutor and current counsel at the New York law firm of Edelman & Edelman PC, focusing on wrongful conviction and civil rights cases.

‘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.