Florida Dems planned to use altered forms to fix mail ballots across state after deadline  —  Senator Bill Nelson has called for a recount.  Do the vote margins in his race against Rick Scott call for one?  —  CONNECT  —  TALLAHASSEE — A day after Florida's election left top state races …

White House weighs booting Erdogan foe from U.S. to appease Turkey  —  “Once they realized it was a serious request, the career guys were furious,” a U.S. official said of request tied to Khashoggi killing.  —  WASHINGTON — The White House is looking for ways to remove an enemy …

Ocasio-Cortez gets in closed-door fight with veteran lawmaker over climate change  —  A fight broke out in a closed-door meeting of House Democrats over climate change as a powerful veteran lawmaker fought with freshman star Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other members-elect over the creation of a special panel for the issue.

U.S. Is Optimistic It Will Prosecute Assange  —  Over the past year, U.S. prosecutors have discussed several types of charges they could potentially bring against the WikiLeaks founder  —  The Justice Department is preparing to prosecute WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and is increasingly optimistic …

‘Preparing for the worst’: Mueller anxiety pervades Trump world  —  Lawyers for President Donald Trump and his son Donald Trump Jr. insist they aren't worried about special counsel Robert Mueller.  —  But half a dozen people in contact with the White House and other Trump officials …

These charts show how Democrats represent the growing modern economy - and how Republicans are left behind  —  Among other results, this year's midterm elections affirmed this much: in Washington, the two parties now speak for dramatically different segments of the American economy.

Whitaker told Trump he has concerns over sentencing reform bill  —  Acting attorney general Matthew G. Whitaker has privately voiced concerns directly to President Trump about a new bipartisan criminal justice reform bill, according to a GOP senator Whitaker met with Thursday …

Man shouts ‘Heil Hitler, Heil Trump’ during intermission of Baltimore performance of ‘Fiddler on the Roof’  —  The audience reacts after a man interrupts the “Fiddler on the Roof” performance at the Hippodrome Theatre.  (Video courtesy of Rich Scherr)  —  A man shouted a pro-Nazi …

Mark Zuckerberg Defends Facebook as Furor Over Its Tactics Grows  —  WASHINGTON — On Thursday, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's chief executive and chairman, held a conference call with reporters to discuss how the social network manages problematic posts and its community standards.

Democrat Porter flips GOP House seat in Southern California  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) — Democrat Katie Porter captured a Republican-held U.S. House seat Thursday in the heart of what once was Southern California's Reagan country, extending a rout of the state's GOP House delegation.

Donald Trump Becomes Twitter Laughingstock Over ‘Envy Of The World’ Boast  —  “Take it from an outsider: we feel sorry for Americans.”  —  Donald Trump on Thursday sought to stifle media reports that his administration is engulfed “in chaos” and “in meltdown” by claiming that the U.S. under his presidency was “the envy of the world.”

Even Trump Can't Stop Mocking Sean Hannity's ‘Dumb’ Softball Questions  —  Trump craves friction to set off sparks and drama.  Hannity's slobbering extinguishes them.  —  Donald Trump's close relationship—on air and off—with Sean Hannity hasn't stopped the president from mocking …

The NRA Has Killed Free Coffee for Employees  —  The National Rifle Association is doing away with free coffee and water coolers for employees at its Fairfax, Virginia, headquarters — a cost-cutting move that has NRA insiders “freaking out,” The Trace has learned.

Republican senator claims ‘the left’ will start a civil war unless federal highway system abolished  —  We are ruled by monsters and fools.  —  On Thursday, Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) delivered a speech to the conservative Federalist Society that would have been more at home on Alex Jones' radio show …

Homeless vet, couple allegedly made up story for GoFundMe scam  —  The New Jersey couple who raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in a viral charity campaign for a homeless man were allegedly working with the vagrant as part of an elaborate ruse, according to a new report.

Golden wins Maine's 2nd District race following historic ranked-choice count  —  Democrat Jared Golden won 50.5 percent of the vote versus 49.5 for incumbent Republican Rep. Bruce Poliquin after the elections results were run through the ranked-choice tabulation software.

Trump's Rages and the Case for Optimism  —  If Donald Trump were not so unbalanced, were he not exacting such immeasurable damage on the domestic welfare and the national security of the United States, you might find it in yourself to feel a tinge of sympathy for one so lost.

The Best Way To Save People From Suicide  —  It was still dark outside when Amanda woke up to the sound of her alarm, got out of bed and decided to kill herself.  She wasn't going to do it then, not at 5:30 in the morning on a Friday.  She told herself she would do it sometime after work.

Trump's 2016 Showing Was the Most Important Factor in 2018 House Races  —  Not long after the November 2017 elections, I had lunch with David Petts, a Democratic pollster and longtime veteran of congressional campaigns.  He remarked that the Republican gubernatorial candidates in Virginia …