A note to readers  —  I have been uncharacteristically silent these past ten months.  I had thought that silence would soon be coming to an end, but I'm afraid I must tell you now that fate has decided on a different course for me.  —  In August of last year, I underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumor in my abdomen.

CNN's Anthony Bourdain dead at 61  —  New York (CNN)Anthony Bourdain, a gifted storyteller and writer who took CNN viewers around the world, has died.  He was 61.  —  CNN confirmed Bourdain's death on Friday and said the cause of death was suicide.  —  “It is with extraordinary sadness …

Justice Dept. Seizes Times Reporter's Email and Phone Records in Leak Investigation  —  WASHINGTON — Federal law enforcement officials secretly seized years' worth of a New York Times reporter's phone and email records this year in an investigation of classified information leaks.

Under Trump, “America First” Really Is Turning Out to Be America Alone  —  From trade to the Iran deal to NAFTA, the President has created the highest level of tension between the U.S. and its allies in decades.  —  The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was less than forty-eight hours away …

Trump's bedtime story: “The Book”  —  It's not true President Trump doesn't read.  It's just exceptionally hard to get him to do it.  —  So the workarounds by savvy aides have become legendary in the West Wing.  Many of them revolve around the briefing binder that goes …

Trump's Justice Department says the ACA is unconstitutional  —  The Justice Department will not defend the Affordable Care Act in court, and says it believes the law's individual mandate — the provision the Supreme Court upheld in 2012 — has become unconstitutional.

Des Moines DREAMer dies within weeks after being sent back to Mexico's violence  —  Editor's note: This column has been updated from the original online version with a statement from ICE.  —  Manuel Antonio Cano Pacheco should have graduated high school in Des Moines last month.

Trump says he may pardon Muhammad Ali — a move the late boxer's attorney calls unnecessary  —  Continuing to draw on his clemency powers, President Trump said Friday that he may soon pardon Muhammad Ali — a sentiment that a lawyer for the late boxer quickly said was appreciated but unnecessary.

Trump says he is likely to support ending federal ban on marijuana … President Trump said he likely will support a congressional effort to end the federal ban on marijuana, a major step that would reshape the pot industry and end the threat of a Justice Department crackdown.

Scoop: Michael Wolff is back with “Fire and Fury” II  —  After torching the White House with “Fire and Fury,” Michael Wolff is coming back for more:  —  Wolff tells me he has signed with the same publisher, Henry Holt, for a sequel — although he says it's unclear what that means …

U.S. officials prepare to thwart Chinese spying at Singapore summit  —  WASHINGTON — China may not have a seat at the table during President Donald Trump's upcoming nuclear summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but U.S. officials say they are preparing to counter the Chinese spies …

With Mueller Closing In, Manafort's Allies Abandon Him  —  WASHINGTON — The special counsel's accusation this week that Paul Manafort, President Trump's former campaign chairman, tried to tamper with potential witnesses originated with two veteran journalists who turned on Mr. Manafort …

The internet was supposed to save democracy.  I asked 4 tech optimists what went wrong.  —  After Cambridge Analytica, social networks look less like a savior than a menace.  —  The internet was supposed to save democracy.  —  The web, and in particular social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter …

One Koch Brother Forces The Other Out Of The Family Business  —  An arch-conservative political machine will be down one billionaire but have more clout than ever.  —  The retirement of David Koch from Koch Industries will make it easier to see more clearly what has been true from the start …

Romney: Trump will be reelected in 2020  —  DEER VALLEY, UTAH — Republican Senate candidate Mitt Romney bluntly predicted here on Thursday evening that President Donald Trump would win reelection in 2020.  —  Addressing a group of major GOP donors, Romney — who bitterly collided …

Mueller Indicts Konstantin Kilimnik, Manafort's Ukraine Fixer  —  Konstantin Kilimnik, who worked with former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort on a U.S. lobbying effort on Ukraine's behalf, was indicted on federal charges Friday by U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Bourdain  —  I've had a leasehold on davidsimon.com for years now.  People smarter than I am told me that even if I had no sense of its use at present, I should throw a few shekels down in case.  But until recently, I saw no reason to do much of anything with the site.  —  My ambivalence rests on a couple basic ideas: