$30,000 rumor?  Tabloid paid for, spiked, salacious Trump tip  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Eight months before the company that owns the National Enquirer paid $150,000 to a former Playboy Playmate who claimed she'd had an affair with Donald Trump, the tabloid's parent made a $30,000 payment …

James Comey: John Kelly Called Trump ‘Dishonorable’ for Firing Me … Within minutes of his firing in May, former FBI Director James Comey received a call from John Kelly, then the head of the Department of Homeland Security and now the White House chief of staff.

Trump weighs rejoining Trans-Pacific Partnership amid trade dispute with China  —  President Trump told top administration officials Thursday to look at rejoining the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the multination trade agreement he pulled the United States out of shortly after taking office.

Lawmakers' Letter Claims Further Spending Abuses by the E.P.A. Head, Scott Pruitt  —  WASHINGTON — Scott Pruitt, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, insisted on staying in luxury hotels that were costlier than allowed by government standards, while also pushing to fly on an airline …

Holocaust Is Fading From Memory, Survey Finds  —  For seven decades, “never forget” has been a rallying cry of the Holocaust remembrance movement.  —  But a survey released Thursday, on Holocaust Remembrance Day, found that many adults lack basic knowledge of what happened …

Former Texas Congressman Steve Stockman found guilty of 23 felonies  —  A federal jury in Houston has ruled that Steve Stockman, a conservative former Texas congressman, is guilty of all but one charge in his federal fraud trial.  —  Steve Stockman, a former Texas congressman …

Trump federal judicial nominee refuses to say whether she supports racial segregation in schools  —  Brown v. Wendy Vitter?  —  A Louisiana lawyer nominated by President Trump for a federal judgeship refused to affirm whether she's opposed to school segregation during a congressional hearing Wednesday.

Trump, Mueller teams prepare to move forward without presidential interview  —  WASHINGTON — Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office and President Donald Trump's legal team are now proceeding with strategies that presume a presidential interview will likely not take place as part of the Russia investigation …

Firing Rosenstein Won't Save Trump  —  Let's be blunt.  Given what we know about President Trump's impulsive nature, there are good odds that sometime soon he will fire the special counsel, Robert Mueller, or perhaps the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein (who, because Attorney General Jeff Sessions …

Mike Pompeo's confusing answer about whether Trump asked him to intervene in the Russia probe … One of the biggest questions hanging over Mike Pompeo's secretary of state nomination is whether he's too willing to do President Trump's bidding.  —  An answer he gave at Thursday's confirmation hearing …

America's Most and Least Popular Senators  —  There's good news and bad news for Senate Democrats up for re-election  — Sanders (I-Vt.) and McConnell (R-Ky.) remains the most popular and unpopular senators, respectively.  —  2018's first quarter was a volatile one for several senators …

This Parkland teacher left his gun in a public bathroom.  It was loaded, BSO says.  —  Not the most normal sight: a gun left in the bathroom stall.  —  But that's exactly what went down on Sunday in a men's room at the Deerfield Beach Pier.  —  The circumstances of how the Glock 9mm got there are unusual.

Bust the budget then vote to balance it: GOP's shameless bid to shred safety net  —  The balanced budget amendment is a shameless GOP attempt to shred Social Security and the whole safety net after busting the federal budget with massive tax cuts.  —  CONNECT

Pennsylvania Will Eliminate Paperless Voting Machines In Time For The 2020 Election  —  The largest swing state that can't fully audit its votes says that'll be fixed by the next presidential election.  —  Pennsylvania, the largest swing state where a substantial number of voting machines leave …

Fire the special counsel.  Please.  —  Let me put it to you this way, Mr. President.  Who are you going to listen to — the voice of the stable genius inside your head, or the timid voices of experience, the ones that said you'd never win?  —  You know what you want to do.  Just do it already.

Ryan may be forced to leave speakership by summer  —  Paul Ryan said he plans to remain as speaker and not call an early leadership election, but well-wired Republicans tell Jonathan Swan and me that Ryan may be forced out sooner.  —  What we're hearing: One source close to leadership told us …

Seahawks postpone visit after Colin Kaepernick won't say if he'll stop kneeling  —  After arranging for Colin Kaepernick to work out for the Seattle Seahawks this week, team officials postponed the trip when the quarterback declined to say he would stop kneeling during the national anthem next season …

U.S. officials: Blood samples show nerve agent, chlorine in Syria gas attack  —  WASHINGTON — The U.S. now has blood and urine samples from last Saturday's deadly attack in Syria that have tested positive for chemical weapons, according to two U.S. officials familiar with the intelligence.

Tucker Carlson Gets Petty After Noah Rothman Bests Him in Intense Syria Showdown  —  For Tucker Carlson, interviews with his detractors have become something of an art form, if that art form consists in churning out the same predictable and petty performance of contention night after night.

The Story Behind TIME's ‘Stormy’ Donald Trump Cover  —  Nothing to See Here, Feb. 27, 2017 Stormy, April, 23, 2018 Illustrations by Tim O'Brien for TIME  —  The April 23 TIME cover, depicting the growing chaos within the Trump White House, may look familiar to some readers …

Donald Trump Takes Out Paul Ryan, and 'It's Going to Be a Civil War' … The news that Paul Ryan is retiring from Congress was received by grim-faced members of the GOP caucus finally realizing what they've done, and what's coming.  Ryan pulled the ripcord today after a 19-year career in Congress …

Mattis Expresses Caution on Imminent Strike Against Syria  —  WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Jim Mattis took pains on Thursday to walk back President Trump's threats of an imminent strike on Syria, reflecting mounting concerns at the Pentagon that a concerted bombing campaign could escalate …

The State Pension Funding Gap: 2016  —  Investment shortfalls, insufficient contributions reduced funded levels for public worker retirement plans  —  Many state retirement systems are on an unsustainable course, coming up short on their investment targets and having failed to set aside enough money …

Diamond, Silk, Facebook, and Facts  —  Facebook has tried several times to reach Diamond and Silk, but the duo have not replied to emails or returned calls.  —  Republicans in Congress have certainly made a lot of hay out of Facebook's handling of the Diamond and Silk situation and I got curious …