Trump's ‘marching orders’ to the Pentagon: Plan a grand military parade … President Trump's vision of soldiers marching and tanks rolling down the boulevards of Washington is moving closer to reality in the Pentagon and White House, where officials say they have begun to plan …

FBI lovers' latest text messages: Obama ‘wants to know everything’  —  Newly revealed text messages between FBI paramours Peter Strzok and Lisa Page include an exchange about preparing talking points for then-FBI Director James Comey to give to President Obama, who wanted “to know everything we're doing.”

Democrats Win Special Election In Missouri District That Went Big For Trump  —  Democrats have dominated at the ballot box during Trump's time in office.  —  Democrats flipped a Missouri state House seat Tuesday, marking the 35th seat that has changed from red to blue since Donald Trump became president.

Trump Meets Rosenstein About Democratic Surveillance Memo  —  White House must decide whether to allow release of rebuttal to GOP document  —  WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump met Tuesday with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to discuss a classified Democratic memo rebutting GOP allegations …

Billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong reaches deal to buy L.A. Times, San Diego Union-Tribune  —  Biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong has agreed to purchase the Los Angeles Times from its parent company Tronc, restoring local ownership and perhaps ending a turbulent period for the storied 136-year-old institution.

Russian Trolls Ran Wild On Tumblr And The Company Refuses To Say Anything About It  —  Tumblrs run by Russian trolls generated hundreds of thousands of interactions with anti-Hillary Clinton, pro-Bernie Sanders content.  —  Russian trolls posed as black activists on Tumblr and generated hundreds …

Openly gay figure skater Adam Rippon declined chance to speak with Vice President Pence  —  PYEONGCHANG, South Korea - Vice President Pence is set to arrive here soon to lead the official U.S. delegation to the 2018 Winter Olympic opening ceremony, a delegation that is making a strong political statement …

Holder won't rule out presidential run  —  refused to rule out running for president while speaking to reporters at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast in Washington on Wednesday.  —  “We'll see,” Holder said in response to a question about whether he could run for the White House.

Trump wants to talk to Mueller despite lawyers' concerns  —  (CNN)President Donald Trump's lawyers have aimed to hit the brakes on a potential sit-down with Robert Mueller, but Trump remains eager to speak with the special counsel, according to his allies.  —  One person familiar …

How the Republicans rigged Congress — new documents reveal an untold story  —  Exclusive: Insider documents unveil Republicans' years-long scheme to gerrymander America and undermine democracy  —  Delegates to the 2009 Republican Legislative Campaign Committee's national meeting stayed …

Cash for Coalition Against Trump Going Into Consultants' Pockets Instead … Omar Siddiqui couldn't make it to an August fundraiser in Beverly Hills for the Democratic Coalition Against Trump.  But he ponied up the $2,000 ticket price after the group's senior adviser, Scott Dworkin, sent him a personal invitation.

Senate leaders see two-year budget deal within their grasp … Top Senate leaders were working Tuesday to finalize a sweeping long-term budget deal that would include a defense spending boost President Trump has long demanded alongside an increase in domestic programs championed by Democrats.

GOP's Jeff Johnson, DFL's Tim Walz get wins in tests at Minnesota caucus meetings  —  Party activists weighed in for the first time on the governor's race in a busy year for state politics.  —  Republican Jeff Johnson and DFLer Tim Walz scored victories Tuesday with party activists who weighed …

How Facebook Is Killing Comedy  —  Last month, in its second round of layoffs in as many years, comedy hub Funny or Die reportedly eliminated its entire editorial team following a trend of comedy websites scaling back, shutting down, or restructuring their business model away from original online content.

Here's what the critics are saying about “Black Panther” — it's a “masterpiece”  —  The first reviews of the Marvel film are streaming in, and they're even better than expected  —  “Black Panther,” the new Marvel film starring Chadwick Boseman, was always going to make history …

EXCLUSIVE: Adam Schiff sent his staff to try and collect ‘classified materials for the FBI’ after Russian pranksters told him Putin has NAKED blackmail pictures of Trump  — Adam Schiff, the ranking Democratic member of the House Intel Committee was recorded speaking to Russian pranksters who spun elaborate ‘kompromat’ tale

Chipotle rolls out new benefits, cash bonuses due to tax cut  —  Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) became the latest company to enhance compensation after the tax cut enacted in December.  —  The company is rolling out benefits reaching all of its 71,000 employees, including special cash …

Trudeau to Start U.S. Tour With Talk at University of Chicago  —  Chicago (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is embarking on a four-day U.S. tour with the first stop in Chicago to discuss how public service can contribute to stronger economic and political ties between the two countries.

Republicans and those ‘attacks’ on the FBI … The news is filled with reports that Republicans in Washington are “attacking” the FBI over the Trump-Russia investigation.  —  The Washington Post recently compiled a collection of statements by GOP lawmakers under the heading, “Republicans launch attack after attack on the FBI.”

Ben Carson, or the tale of the disappearing Cabinet secretary … It was Christmastime in Washington, and Ben Carson couldn't stop talking about the apocalypse.  —  “Did you know,” the secretary of housing and urban development asked his acting chief of staff, Deana Bass …

Suicide Rate Highest in Decades But Worst in Rural America  —  Demographics, gun ownership and the economy largely account for the regional differences.  —  For years, confronting mental health issues has been a persistent challenge in a sparsely populated part of Alaska known as the Kusilvak Census Area.