Rising White House fear: Nunes memo is a dud  —  Inside the Trump administration, sources who've been briefed on the Nunes memo expect it will be underwhelming and not the “slam dunk” document it's been hyped up to be.  —  What we're hearing: There is much more skepticism inside the administration …

“F—ing Sith Lord,” “Horrific Leakers," and “Berserkazoid Craziness”: The Mooch Recalls His Brief Shining Fortnight at the Center of American Politics  —  Steve Bannon is the ultimate swamp creature, Reince Priebus acts like Richie Cunningham, Donald Trump is like Michael Jordan, and other observations of Anthony Scaramucci.

Lawyers for Rick Gates withdraw from Russia case  —  Three attorneys representing Rick Gates told a federal court Thursday they are immediately withdrawing as counsel for the former Donald Trump campaign aide, who is fighting special counsel Robert Mueller's indictment of him on money laundering and other charges.

White House Wants Pentagon to Offer More Options on North Korea  —  WASHINGTON — The White House has grown frustrated in recent weeks by what it considers the Pentagon's reluctance to provide President Trump with options for a military strike against North Korea, according to officials …

Geraldo to Hannity: Nixon Wouldn't ‘Have Been Forced to Resign’ If You Were In Media Then  —  How influential does Geraldo Rivera think Sean Hannity is?  So influential that he could have led to Richard Nixon serving out his second term.  —  Appearing on Hannity's radio program this afternoon …

Judge strikes down Florida's system for restoring felons' voting rights  —  U.S. District Mark Walker said Florida's voter restoration process unfairly relies on the personal support of Gov. Rick Scott.  —  TALLAHASSEE — A federal judge ruled Thursday that Florida's lifetime ban on restoring …

Republicans give up on Obamacare repeal  —  WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Republicans are giving up on their years-long dream of repealing Obamacare.  —  Though the GOP still controls both chambers of Congress and maintains the ability to jam through a repeal-and-replace bill via a simple majority …

Green card veteran facing deportation starts hunger strike  —  A U.S. Army veteran and green card holder with a felony drug conviction began a hunger strike Wednesday to protest his likely deportation, after a federal court denied his appeal to remain in the U.S., where he has lived since age 8.

White Supremacists Are Targeting Colleges “Like Never Before,” Researchers Say  —  A new report by the Anti-Defamation League says the amount of white supremacist messaging on college campuses increased 258% between fall 2016 and fall 2017.  —  White supremacists are targeting colleges …

‘Seeing someone cry at work is becoming normal’: Employees say Whole Foods is using ‘scorecards’ to punish them  — Whole Foods uses checklists called “scorecards” and tests called “walks” to ensure stores comply with a new inventory-management system.  — “The stress has created …

The Publisher of Newsweek And The International Business Times Has Been Buying Traffic And Engaging In Ad Fraud  —  Several of Newsweek Media Group's business websites are buying and manipulating traffic that originates on pirated video streaming sites.  The company acknowledged buying traffic, but denies engaging in ad fraud.

BuzzFeed News in talks with Powell Jobs group  —  The editor of BuzzFeed has had discussions with the company started by Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of the late Steve Jobs, about investing in the digital media company's news division, according to two people with knowledge of the talks.

4 students hit by gunfire at Los Angeles school; 12-year-old girl in custody  —  (CNN)Police arrested a 12-year-old girl Thursday after a morning shooting at a Los Angeles middle school left five people injured, including two with significant gunshot wounds, officials said.

McConnell urges Mississippi governor to consider Cochran Senate seat … Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has asked the governor of Mississippi to consider appointing himself to the Senate if ailing Republican Sen. Thad Cochran resigns from office, according to two people familiar with the conversations.

Nicholas von Hoffman, Provocative Journalist and Author, Dies at 88  —  Nicholas von Hoffman, a provocative author, broadcast commentator and syndicated columnist who examined American politics and culture for five decades from a left-wing perspective, died on Thursday in Rockport, Me.  He was 88.

CDC to cut by 80 percent efforts to prevent global disease outbreak … Four years after the United States pledged to help the world fight infectious-disease epidemics such as Ebola, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is dramatically downsizing its epidemic prevention activities …

Democratic congresswoman caught on camera playing CANDY CRUSH while Trump delivered State of the Union while two others answered emails and read tweets  — Michigan Democratic Rep. Brenda Lawrence tapped her way through Candy Crush during Tuesday's State of the Union Address

Humane Society keeps CEO after sexual harassment complaints, prompting seven board members to resign … The Humane Society of the United States voted Thursday to keep chief executive Wayne Pacelle in his job after an internal investigation identified three complaints of sexual harassment against him.