Donald Trump and Sean Hannity Like to Talk Before Bedtime  —  Life inside the bunker of Fox News' resident Trumplegänger.  —  Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Pool via Bloomberg/Getty Images (Trump head); Rob Kim/Getty Images (Hannity head); NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images (phone)

White House Aide's Plan to Stop Leaks: Spy on His Co-Workers … A former National Security Council official now working for Attorney General Jeff Sessions explored ways to surreptitiously monitor the communications of White House staff for leaks or perceived political disloyalty to Donald Trump …

Israel Feels Pride but Senses Peril as U.S. Moves Embassy  —  JERUSALEM — When Israel declared its independence in 1948, President Harry Truman rushed to recognize it.  He took just 11 minutes, and Israelis, about to go to war to defend their infant state, were euphoric.

Michael Cohen's D.C. Consulting Career: Scattershot, With Mixed Success  —  Pitching himself as the president's lawyer to companies expecting a Clinton win, Mr. Cohen won AT&T and Novartis but was spurned by Ford and Uber  —  When Michael Cohen came knocking after the 2016 election …    SL 

He Was a Tireless Critic of the Iran Deal.  Now He Insists He Wanted to Save It.  —  WASHINGTON — While many hands gripped the sword that undercut the Iran nuclear deal, no one outside the Trump administration was a more persistent or effective critic than Mark Dubowitz, the chief executive of a hawkish Washington think tank.

‘Buckle up’: As Mueller probe enters second year, Trump and allies go on war footing … The grand jury witnesses arrive one by one at the windowless room in the federal courthouse on Constitution Avenue in downtown Washington.  They are struck first by how commonplace the setting feels …

Trying for House Gains, Democrats Bless Moderates and Annoy Liberals  —  CONWAY, Ark. — To many Democratic leaders, the path to power in Washington looks like Clarke Tucker.  —  He supports the Affordable Care Act, but not a single-payer system.  He signals misgivings about Nancy Pelosi as the next House speaker.

Mueller's Investigation Crosses the Legal Line  —  It's unconstitutional under Morrison v. Olson—the decision, not the dissent.  —  Judge T.S. Ellis has expressed skepticism about the scope of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation.  “What we don't want in this country is …    SL 

Kudlow brings kill 'em with kindness approach to White House  —  He's trying to avoid the collapse of NAFTA and a trade war with China by seeking consensus and sticking close to Trump.  —  Larry Kudlow thinks he can steer Donald Trump's chaotic White House away from economic disaster by being the nicest guy in the West Wing.

Trump's improved standing, energized GOP voters worry Democrats  —  After months of confidence that public discontent with President Trump would lift Democrats back to power in Congress, some party leaders are fretting that their advantages in this year's midterms are eroding amid a shifting political landscape.

All the problems at NBC News aren't just coincidence.  They're symptoms.  —  As months go, this has been a terrible one for NBC News.  Among the low points:  —  The ace reporter whose work the network's management couldn't seem to support adequately — Ronan Farrow — broke another huge story for the competitor he fled to.

Qatari Investor Accused in Bribery Plot Appears With Michael Cohen in Picture Posted by Stormy Daniels' Lawyer  —  Members of the Trump transition team appear to have met on December 12, 2016 with a group from Qatar that included Ahmed Al-Rumaihi, the former Qatari diplomat and current head …

Trump vs. the “Deep State”  —  How the Administration's loyalists are quietly reshaping American governance.  —  Two months after Donald Trump's Inauguration, the White House took a sudden interest in a civil servant named Sahar Nowrouzzadeh.  At thirty-four, she was largely unknown outside …

Graham considers Jolly for running mate  —  MIAMI — Democrat Gwen Graham said she would consider Republican David Jolly as a Florida gubernatorial running mate, a move that opens her to criticism from a progressive rival, and that contradicts her own campaign and supporters who had said a bipartisan ticket isn't legal in the state.

Trump says US will help penalized Chinese company  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — In a surprising overture to China, President Donald Trump said Sunday he would help a Chinese telecommunications company get “back into business,” saying too many jobs in China are at stake after the U.S. government cut off access to its American suppliers.

How The Congressional Baseball Shooting Didn't Become The Deadliest Political Assassination In American History  —  You don't know the whole story of how close we came to one of the deadliest political shootings in US history last year.  —  Bureau Chief, BuzzFeed DC  —  Lissandra Villa

Why Traditional TV Is in Trouble  —  Television networks will draw hordes of advertisers to New York City this week for their annual bonanza of presentations and parties, a decades-old tradition known as the upfronts that is meant to dazzle marketers and loosen their purse strings.

Trump is more popular than Dems want to admit  —  It's time for the Democrats to stop bashing President Trump.  —  It's not going to be easy, given his policies and personality.  It might even mean checking into a 12-step program.  But setting a winning agenda is like maneuvering an aircraft carrier.

‘A rogue state’  —  As California defies federal immigration policy, calling itself a sanctuary, the state's conservatives are pushing back  —  For nearly two decades, Alameda County sheriff's Sgt. Don Laventure has kept inmate records at what was once one of the nation's largest jails …

Jerusalem soccer team to be renamed ‘Beitar Trump’  —  Controversial sports team permanently rebrands itself in honor of US president recognizing Israel's capital and moving embassy  —  Jerusalem's largest soccer club announced Sunday that it has changed its name to “Beitar Trump Jerusalem …

Jake Tapper: ‘The very notion of empirical fact is being attacked and corroded’  —  Washington (CNN)CNN's Jake Tapper urged graduating students to be kind to one another and to be critical and independent thinkers in a commencement speech at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

GOP tax cut not why economy is booming  —  Economists are rolling their eyes at candidates' claims.  —  Republicans facing a tough midterm election season are pointing to the strong economy as proof their new tax law is working its magic.  —  But as campaign ads tout swelling payrolls …

Wellstone legacy ‘goes dormant’ after family ousted in Democratic feud  —  A rift at an influential progressive group named for the late Minnesota senator offers a glimpse into a thorny party debate.  —  In the Democratic Party's reckoning following the election of Donald Trump …