Kelly increasingly isolated as Porter scandal rages on  —  Turbulence in this West Wing is typically generated by President Donald Trump, but for the past week, it's been chief of staff John Kelly — the man brought in to be a steadying hand — who's inspiring what one White House official described as a crisis of confidence.

Trump pitches plan to replace food stamps with food boxes  —  The Trump administration is proposing to save billions in the coming years by giving low-income families a box of government-picked, nonperishable foods every month instead of food stamps.  —  White House OMB Director Mick Mulvaney …

U.S. Strikes Killed Scores of Russian Fighters in Syria, Sources Say  —  More than 200 contract soldiers are said to have been killed  —  The casualties dwarf official Russian army death toll in Syria  —  U.S. forces killed scores of Russian contract soldiers in Syria last week …

Russia Sees Midterm Elections as Chance to Sow Fresh Discord, Intelligence Chiefs Warn  —  WASHINGTON — As the midterm elections approach, Russia is likely to throw more propaganda at Americans, using people sympathetic to their messages and fake personalities on social media …

Megan McArdle named Washington Post Opinions columnist  —  The Washington Post today announced Megan McArdle will be a columnist for the Opinions section starting March 1.  In this role, McArdle will write columns with a focus on the intersection of economics, business and public policy.

As Corker reconsiders, Blackburn campaign calls doubters ‘sexist’ and criticizes ‘tired old men’ … Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), who has clashed with President Trump, is rethinking his political future and considering jumping back into this year's Senate race, according to two Republicans close to him.

The End of the Two-Party System  —  In the first half of the 1990s, I worked in Europe for The Wall Street Journal.  I covered nothing but good news: the reunification of Germany, the liberation of Central Europe, the fall of the Soviet Union, the end of apartheid in South Africa, the Oslo peace process in the Middle East.

GOP Senate candidate's parents max out donations to primary campaign of Democrat he hopes to unseat  —  (CNN)Just months after Republican Kevin Nicholson announced his bid to unseat incumbent Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin in 2018, his own parents donated the legal maximum to her primary campaign.

Inside the halfpipe finals with Chloe Kim's Korean family  —  PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) _ Chloe Kim's father pointed to himself and said “American dream!” then let out a whoop.  —  Nearly a decade after the Korean immigrant quit his job in California to help his precocious daughter become a snowboarder …

Trump's Biggest Potential Conflict Of Interest Is Hiding In Plain Sight  —  The largest American office of China's largest bank sits on the 20th floor of Trump Tower, six levels below the desk where Donald Trump built an empire and wrested a presidency.  It's hard to get a glimpse inside.

Trump's Lawyer Michael Cohen Is Shopping a Book About the First Family, Stormy Daniels, and Russia … Donald Trump's longtime personal lawyer is writing a book about his life and relationship with the president.  —  According to a proposal shopped to multiple publishers and obtained by The Daily Beast …

Trump proposes eliminating federal funding for PBS, NPR  —  's newly proposed budget includes a proposal to end federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), part of a package that includes $300 billion in new spending overall.  —  CPB provides federal funding for PBS and National Public Radio stations.

WLS-Ch.7 blames graphics ‘mix-up’ for confusion between P.F. Chang's and Pyeongchang  —  Pyeongchang is a mountainous county 110 miles southeast of Seoul in South Korea, and the host of the 2018 Winter Olympics.  —  P.F. Chang's is an Asian-inspired chain restaurant with 210 U.S. locations …

Internal Dem polling shows Trump's standing on the rise  —  A leading Democratic group — Priorities USA — is warning party leaders they could squander a strong political climate in 2018 if they don't start to emphasize pocketbook issues over loose and unfocused critiques of Donald Trump.

Celebrity Big Brother: Omarosa calls Vice President Mike Pence ‘scary’  —  Omarosa may be on her way out but she still has plenty more to say about her time in the White House.  —  In this clip from tonight's episode of Celebrity Big Brother, Omarosa tells her fellow houseguests …

Justice Department turnover is bad news for Mueller, ethics and democracy  —  Rachel Brand had the backbone to refuse wrongful orders.  She provided a measure of protection for Mueller and Justice independence.  But now she's gone.  —  CONNECT  —  Under normal circumstances …

Comey told Congress FBI agents didn't think Michael Flynn lied … In March 2017, then-FBI Director James Comey briefed a number of Capitol Hill lawmakers on the Trump-Russia investigation.  One topic of intense interest was the case of Michael Flynn, the Trump White House national security adviser …

Former Prosecutors Take Frustrations With Trump to the Campaign Trail  —  A number of Democrats running for Congress are ex-employees who left Justice Department  —  Chris Hunter was preparing to take a health-care fraud case to trial when he says he became concerned about the dynamics …

KS Sec. of State's Office: Hutch dog not allowed to run for governor  —  HUTCHINSON, Kan. Update 9: 15 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12:  —  Not so fast.  The Kansas Secretary of State's Office says Angus cannot serve as the state's governor.  While there is nothing specifically written …

GOP congressman pulls Issa into ugly divorce  —  Rep. Darrell Issa was a groomsman in Rep. Mike Turner's wedding to Majida Mourad in December 2015.  Now, Turner is locked in a contentious divorce with Mourad — and he wants Issa deposed by his attorneys.  —  Turner (R-Ohio) approached Issa …

Rising star in Michigan Republican Party blasts Trump and resigns  —  BAY CITY, MI — Expressing disappointment over President Donald Trump and vowing to no longer be affiliated with any political party, the chairman of the Bay County Republican Party has stepped down from his post.

Maria Bartiromo Confronts Paul Ryan on Budget Deal: 'You Don't Look Like' a Deficit Hawk  —  Conservatives — true, fiscal conservatives — are not at all happy about the bipartisan budget deal which passed Congress last week.  It's legislation that Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) called “a debt junkie's dream.”