A Grotesque Spectacle in Jerusalem  —  On Monday, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner and other leading lights of the Trumpist right gathered in Israel to celebrate the relocation of the American Embassy to Jerusalem, a gesture widely seen as a slap in the face to Palestinians who envision East Jerusalem as their future capital.

Trump Orders Help For Chinese Phone-Maker After China Approves Money For Trump Project  —  Trump will profit from Indonesian resort project that will get $500 million in Chinese loans in a deal sealed days before before his tweet ordering help for ZTE.  —  WASHINGTON - A mere 72 hours …

Case against Greitens is dropped, for now.  Legislative leaders say nothing's changed  —  ST. LOUIS  —  In a stunning development, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner on Monday dropped her prosecution of Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens in the face of the defense team's plan to call her as a witness.

The Russians Try to Call Mueller's Bluff, File Request to View Secret Grand Jury Info  —  Attorneys for an alleged component of Russian trolling efforts during the 2016 presidential election are demanding that special counsel Robert Mueller be forced to reveal the grand jury instructions used …

$1 million mystery gift to inauguration traced to conservative legal activists  —  WASHINGTON  —  One of the largest contributions to President Donald Trump's inaugural committee in 2016 appears to have been orchestrated by a set of powerful conservative legal activists who have since …

Scoop: Inside Trump's 2020 startup  —  As President Trump's campaign aides quietly launch his reelection campaign, they're eyeing two states as possible pickups for 2020: Minnesota, where Trump came close in 2016 without even trying; and Colorado, where his hands-off approach to marijuana enforcement is a possible selling point.

Senate GOP chides Trump over McCain treatment  —  ‘Just out of common decency they should apologize,’ one Republican said of the White House ahead of a Trump lunch with GOP senators.  —  Senate Republicans are openly seething over the White House's treatment of John McCain …

Embattled ex-congressman Blake Farenthold finds safe harbor at the Port of Port Lavaca  —  This is Congressman Blake Farenthold's full statement announcing his resignation on Friday, April 6.  Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi, has resigned from Texas' 27th Congressional District following months …

Mueller may have a conflict — and it leads directly to a Russian oligarch  —  has withstood relentless political attacks, many distorting his record of distinguished government service.  —  But there's one episode even Mueller's former law enforcement comrades — and independent ethicists …

Melania Trump undergoes kidney surgery at Walter Reed medical center  —  (CNN)First lady Melania Trump underwent kidney surgery Monday at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center near Washington, DC, according to a statement from her office.  —  Trump had been experiencing an issue …

Seattle Scales Back Tax in Face of Amazon's Revolt, but Tensions Linger  —  SEATTLE — After intense lobbying by local businesses and a bold threat by Amazon to curtail development in its hometown, the Seattle City Council on Monday approved a smaller and more limited tax on big companies than originally envisioned.

Michael Avenatti is using Trump tactics to battle Trump, a strategy that comes with risks  —  Ten weeks ago, Michael Avenatti was a California lawyer known for his successes in class-action lawsuits.  Then he sued President Trump on behalf of adult-film actress Stormy Daniels and …

Reacting to plunging revenues, Salt Lake Tribune lays off a third of its newsroom, cuts back print offerings  —  In a radical restructuring of Utah's largest newspaper, owner Paul Huntsman proceeded Monday with cutting 34 Salt Lake Tribune employees from a newsroom staff of 90 …

Medical Mystery: Something Happened to U.S. Health Spending After 1980  —  The spending began soaring beyond that of other advanced nations, but without the same benefits in life expectancy.  —  The United States devotes a lot more of its economic resources to health care than any other nation …

Mueller team urges federal judge to reject request for hearing on leaks: report  —  is reportedly pressing a federal judge to turn down a request from former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort  —  to hold a hearing about leaks surrounding the investigation into Russia's 2016 election meddling.

Allies fume over Trump's withdrawal from Iran deal but have few options to respond  —  America's three closest friends in Europe — Britain, France and Germany — are near-bursting with anger and exasperation at the United States.  In a frenzy of meetings and phone calls among them over the past week …

Cannes: Spike Lee's ‘BlacKkKlansman’ Draws 10-Minute Ovation  —  The evening was poised to be dramatic if not redemptive given that Lee was famously overlooked for the Palme d'Or in 1989 for ‘Do the Right Thing.’  —  In his long-awaited return to the Croisette, Spike Lee drew a 10-minute ovation …

Trump, Iran and American Power  —  The president sees Tehran's overreach as an opportunity to arrest U.S. decline.  —  America's withdrawal from the Iran deal and relocation of its Israeli embassy to Jerusalem send an unmistakable signal about the emerging Trump foreign policy …

Maverick cleric's election upset could rattle U.S.-Iraq relations … BAGHDAD — The surprisingly strong showing of a ticket backed by maverick cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in Iraqi elections over the weekend will force U.S. officials to recalculate how best to pursue American interests in the region at an especially sensitive moment.