In Mississippi, Republican concern rises over a U.S. Senate runoff that should have been a romp  —  JACKSON, Miss. — A U.S. Senate runoff that was supposed to provide an easy Republican win has turned into an unexpectedly competitive contest, driving Republicans and Democrats to pour …

Trump says he'll speak with CIA about Khashoggi killing  —  President Trump said Saturday that he would speak with the CIA about its finding that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.  The Washington Post first reported on Friday …

RIP, California GOP: Republicans lash out after midterm election debacle  —  LOS ANGELES — In the wake of a near-political annihilation in California that has left even longtime conservative stronghold Orange County bereft of a single Republican in the House of Representatives …

‘This would be a very good time to do a shutdown,’ Trump says  —  President Trump suggested Saturday he was prepared to shut down the federal government next month if Congress fails to give him the money he wants to build a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico.

Democratic Rep. Moulton draws fire for campaign to deny Pelosi speaker's job  —  Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton, the hard-charging Marine who served four tours of duty in Iraq is leading the challenge to Rep. Nancy Pelosi and her bid for speaker — and is suddenly taking incoming fire from all quarters.

Are Jared and Ivanka Good for the Jews?  —  Jewish communities stand more divided than ever on whether to embrace or denounce Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump.  —  On election night in Beverly Hills, Jason Blum, the hot shot horror-movie producer, was accepting an award at the Israel Film Festival.

How the Trump Administration Stepped Up Pursuit of WikiLeaks's Assange  —  WASHINGTON — Soon after he took over as C.I.A. director, Mike Pompeo privately told lawmakers about a new target for American spies: Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks.  —  Intent on finding out more about Mr …

American Civil Liberties Union, RIP  —  The ACLU no longer even pretends to believe in civil liberties.  —  In the late 1960s, the ACLU was a small but powerful liberal organization devoted to a civil libertarian agenda composed primarily of devotion to freedom of speech, free exercise of religion, and the rights of accused criminals.

‘Unwanted subject’: What led a Kirkland yogurt shop to call police on a black man  —  He turned out to be supervising a parental visit, and is also a nine-year Air Force veteran.  But the employees were scared of him and the police asked him to leave anyway.

‘Active criminal investigation’: No big deal, just Florida Dems lawyering up as feds and state investigate possible voter fraud  —  Politico's Marc Caputo and Matt Dixon are reporting that the Florida Democratic party has “lawyered up” as it has finally dawned on them that staffers …

Smoke Days Are Now California's Snow Days  —  The particulates in smoke don't destroy homes.  They don't down trees.  But in the case of wildfires, smoke's impacts—and dangers—can reach hundreds of miles further than the flames themselves.  As of Friday evening, the Camp Fire raging in Butte County …

A Gay Councilman in Texas, Ousted From Office, Says He Was Blackmailed With Naked Photos  —  This month's midterm elections resulted in the election of more openly lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people than ever before.  But for Cross Coburn, who served as an openly gay councilman …

What has President Trump learned from defeat?  —  All presidents suffer defeats and setbacks, whether through elections, legislative battles, international events or scandals.  Most learn from them and adapt.  Will President Trump be an exception?  —  That's the question ahead for the president …

Camp Fire refugees create new town of ‘Wallywood’ as officials struggle with housing crisis  —  As searchers sift through dirt and ash for remains of the dead in the Northern California foothills Friday, officials struggled with a growing crisis: How to help the living, many of whom are now homeless.

Number of Witches in U.S. on the Rise, May Surpass 1.5 Million  —  A report in the Christian Post contends that the number of witches (and Wiccans) has dramatically increased since the 1990s, to the degree that there may be at least 1.5 million witches in the United States, which is higher than the 1.4 million mainline Presbyterians.

Sotomayor says Kavanaugh a part of the Supreme Court ‘family’  —  Washington (CNN)Justice Sonia Sotomayor in an interview with CNN's David Axelrod said that Justice Brett Kavanaugh was welcomed into the Supreme Court “family” in the wake of his polarizing confirmation process.

California fire: If you stay, you're dead.  How a Paradise nursing home evacuated  —  How do you evacuate a nursing home when the deadliest wildfire in California history is bearing down and there are 91 men and women to move to safety — patients in need of walkers or wheelchairs or confined …

Ranked-choice voting worked in Maine.  Now we should use it in presidential races.  —  When voters rank their first, second and third-choice candidates, the winner is broadly acceptable.  Let's do it in New Hampshire presidential primary.  —  CONNECT  —  On Thursday, election officials …

Subject of Mueller probe boasts of ties to acting AG Matt Whitaker  —  An obscure conservative podcast recorded by a former Trump administration official last Sunday provided a unique window into acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker and the reasons some have found his appointment alarming.

The New York Hustle of Amazon's Second Headquarters  —  The city of hustlers got hustled.  Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and the world's richest man, is wealthy enough to write a ten-thousand-dollar check to every apartment nabber, Wall Street shouter, what-time-is-it-showtime subway dancer …