After Ayers Turns Down Chief of Staff Job, Trump Is Left Without a Plan B  —  WASHINGTON — President Trump has often bragged about having his pick of only the best people to serve in his administration.  —  Being publicly rejected by his first choice for chief of staff …

We are former senators.  The Senate has long stood in defense of democracy — and must again.  —  By 44 Former U.S. Senators  —  As former members of the U.S. Senate, Democrats and Republicans, it is our shared view that we are entering a dangerous period, and we feel an obligation to speak …

Time's 2018 ‘Person of the Year’ is killed and imprisoned journalists  —  Time magazine is spotlighting a handful of journalists who have one thing in common: They were targeted for their work.  —  “The Guardians.”  —  That's what Time magazine is calling the journalists behind 2018's …

How Michael Cohen could help the feds get the Trump Organization  —  Feds: Cohen broke the law at Trump's direction  —  New York (CNN)In most respects, Michael Cohen was a frustrating witness for New York investigators.  —  He toyed with, but wouldn't commit to, “full cooperation” with prosecutors, according to court filings.

'I wasn't asking for permission': GOP women put leaders on notice  —  The already meager ranks of female House Republicans had just been further decimated in the midterms when Rep. Ann Wagner was readying a play to head the party's campaign arm — in the hopes of leading a recovery.

Maria Butina, accused Russian agent, reaches plea deal with prosecutors that includes cooperation  —  Maria Butina, a 30-year-old Russian gun rights activist who stands accused developing a covert influence operation in the United States, has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy and cooperate with federal …

How the IRS Was Gutted  —  An eight-year campaign to slash the agency's budget has left it understaffed, hamstrung and operating with archaic equipment.  The result: billions less to fund the government.  That's good news for corporations and the wealthy.  —  In the summer of 2008 …

Targets of U.S. Sanctions Hire Lobbyists With Trump Ties to Seek Relief  —  Targets of U.S. Sanctions Hire Lobbyists With Trump Ties  — With the use of sanctions increasing, representing clients who face penalties from Washington is becoming a lucrative new niche.

Military will build border wall if Pelosi, Schumer don't agree to pay for it: Trump  —  Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi are set to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday morning in hopes they can come to a budget agreement to avoid a partial government shutdown next week.

Accused of rape, former Baylor fraternity president gets no jail time after plea deal  —  A former Baylor University fraternity president who was accused of rape will not serve any jail time or be forced to register as a sex offender after a judge accepted a plea deal he had been offered by Texas prosecutors, according to news reports.

In an email to Tablet the Women's March wrote: … But whatever concerns were popping up were ultimately no match for the steamroller of the event's progress.  And when the day came, the reality far exceeded expectations.  Estimates for the March on Washington range between half a million …

Thousands of mailed ballots in Florida were not counted  —  TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida officials say thousands of mailed ballots were not counted because they were delivered too late to state election offices.  —  The Department of State late last week informed a federal judge …

PolitiFact's Lie of the Year: Online smear machine tries to take down Parkland students  —  In the days after 17 people were viciously gunned down at a high school in Florida, the state's Republican governor called for tighter gun laws and President Donald Trump hosted victims' families in the State Dining Room.

How Theresa May blew Brexit  —  Shakespeare famously wrote of the “sceptered isle” of Britain acting as a moat “against the envy of less happier lands.”  Lately, the less happier lands are winning in a rout.  —  Britain is suffering a political meltdown as it struggles to make good on a historic vote …

The Arctic is in even worse shape than you realize  —  The Arctic Ocean has lost 95 percent of its oldest, thickest ice.  If this thinning trend continues, scientists fear an added boost to global warming.  —  Over the past three decades of global warming, the oldest and thickest ice …

Constitution rules out a sitting president's immunity from criminal prosecution  —  Only President Trump seems not to have noticed — or at least refuses to acknowledge — that the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, in his Dec. 7 memo regarding Michael Cohen's sentencing …

McConnell to bring up criminal-justice bill for a Senate vote  —  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday that the Senate will vote on a sweeping overhaul of the criminal justice system that has proven deeply controversial within the Senate Republican ranks.

Theresa May Gets Stuck in Car at Merkel Meeting  —  U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May was stuck in her car for a few moments as she arrived to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin.  May is meeting with European leaders trying to secure concessions on her Brexit deal.  (Source: Bloomberg)

Iowa considers ethics complaint against Trump's acting attorney general  —  Matthew Whitaker, a former attorney in Iowa, was involved in a patent company found to be cheating investors of millions  —  Legal authorities in Iowa are considering an ethics complaint filed against Donald Trump's …

Mayor Garcetti's speech at USC shut down by protesters  —  Mayor Eric Garcetti was forced to halt a speech Monday at USC after demonstrators began shouting at him and criticizing his approach to the city's homelessness crisis, the Los Angeles Police Department's use of force and other issues.

‘Supergirl’ now has a transgender character just to be ‘woke’  —  Television has introduced the first transgender superhero in the fourth season of CW's “Supergirl.”  The character, Nia Nal, is played by Nicole Maines, who is an actress and activist.  She is also transgender in real life as well.