Pelosi privately disses Trump's manhood after White House meeting  —  Nancy Pelosi was on fire with her fellow Democrats.  —  Minutes after a very public showdown with Donald Trump on Tuesday over his border wall with Mexico, the House minority leader returned to the Capitol and railed …

Beto O'Rourke narrowly tops wide-open MoveOn 2020 presidential straw poll; Biden runner up  —  The progressive group had backed Bernie Sanders in 2016 over Hillary Clinton.  —  An early straw poll of members of the progressive group MoveOn.org shows a wide-open competition for liberal voters …

Stormy Daniels Is Ordered to Pay Trump $293,000 in Fees and Sanctions  — Judge cuts Trump requested attorneys fees by 25 percent  — Michael Avenatti vows actress won't have to pay a dime  —  Stephanie Clifford, the adult-movie star professionally known as Stormy Daniels …

N.C. GOP says fresh misconduct allegation should trigger new House election  —  The North Carolina Republican Party said Tuesday that a new election should be held in North Carolina's 9th Congressional District if a new allegation regarding the leak of early-voting results before Election Day is proven.

Former Canadian diplomat detained in China: sources  —  SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) - A former Canadian diplomat has been detained in China, two sources said on Tuesday, and his current employer, the International Crisis Group, said it was seeking his prompt and safe release.

Gap continues to widen between Trump and intelligence community on key issues  —  President Trump continues to reject the judgments of U.S. spy agencies on major foreign policy fronts, creating a dynamic in which intelligence analysts frequently see troubling gaps between the president's public statements …

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 …

At least two dead, 11 wounded in French Christmas market shooting  —  STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) - A lone gunman shot dead at least two people and wounded 11 others near a Christmas market in the city of Strasbourg on Tuesday evening before fleeing, police said.

The Democrats' Best Response to Republican Power Grabs  —  The best option goes beyond retaliation or restraint.  —  Mr. Levy is a professor of political theory at McGill University.  —  In Michigan and Wisconsin, lame duck Republican-majority legislatures are enacting laws to limit the powers of incoming Democratic governors.

Slate's Newly Unionized Writers and Editors Give OK to Strike  — Outlet's editorial staff authorize walkout by 52 to 1 vote  — Company's “right-to-work” stance riles its employees  —  Writers and editors at Slate have voted nearly unanimously to green-light a strike …

Emmer, NRCC Start to Rebuild for 2020  —  The incoming chair doesn't think the GOP is doomed in the suburbs or that Trump will be a liability in 2020.  —  Ally Mutnick and Kyle Trygstad  —  ADD TO BRIEFCASE  —  Rep. Tom Emmer spent last Monday in a briefing on an email hack that plagued …

Instability and populist unrest is the new world order  —  The particulars might be different, but the upheavals playing out in Britain and France this week have familiar and common undercurrents, born of the same forces — rebellion against globalization, fear of immigrants and distrust …

Trump allies becoming increasingly aware of his legal and political jeopardy  —  Last week's stunning court filings detonated what one official calls a “reality tremor” that has White House officials and key allies increasingly aware of President Trump's rising legal and political vulnerability.

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 …

The foundation of Trump's coalition is cracking  —  (CNN)Cracks have emerged in Donald Trump's hold on his core constituency of white working class voters, new data from the 2018 election reveals.  —  Though Republican candidates almost everywhere registered large margins among white voters without …

Congresswoman to Google CEO: Why when I search ‘idiot’ do I get pictures of Trump?  —  In an effort to understand how Google search algorithms work, a Democratic congresswoman asked the tech company's chief executive a simple question: “If you Google the word ‘idiot’ under images, a picture of Donald Trump comes up.

You've hired me before, Mr President, so hire me again.  I'm the one person whose reputation can't be tarnished by becoming your Chief of Staff and I'm perfectly qualified for the job!  —  I wish to formally apply to be your new Chief of Staff.  —  You might not immediately recognize …

Former Koch adviser to oversee Interior Department's FOIA requests  —  A political appointee and former adviser to Charles and David Koch will oversee Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests sent to the Interior Department, a position typically held by career staff.