Mick Mulvaney in 2015: Trump's views on border wall ‘simplistic,’ ‘absurd and almost childish’  —  (CNN)Incoming White House acting-chief of staff Mick Mulvaney once called President Donald Trump's views on a border wall and immigration “simplistic” and “absurd and almost childish.”

Trump warns shutdown could last ‘very long time,’ urges McConnell to go ‘nuclear’ and end filibuster  —  “Mitch, use the Nuclear Option and get it done!  Our Country is counting on you!”  Trump tweeted.  —  President Donald Trump on Friday said the chances of a partial government shutdown were …

Supreme Court Won't Revive Trump Policy Limiting Asylum  —  WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday refused to revive a Trump administration initiative barring migrants who enter the country illegally from seeking asylum.  —  The court was closely divided, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joining …

As Markets Tumble, Tech Stocks Hit a Rare and Ominous Milestone  —  When it comes to the stock market, America's technology giants have become a harbinger of more pain to come.  —  If Facebook, Apple or Google looked shaky this year — as investors worried about growth, regulation or mismanagement — the rest of the market felt it.

The budget breakdown of a 25-year-old who makes $100,000 a year and is excellent with money  —  Trevor Klee, he admits, is a “terrible employee.”  But he's great at working for himself — and at taking tests.  —  So the 25-year-old entrepreneur started a thriving business of his own.

Trump lashed out at Whitaker after explosive Cohen revelations  —  Cohen says he lied about project in Moscow  —  Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump has at least twice in the past few weeks vented to his acting attorney general, angered by federal prosecutors who referenced …

Billionaire megadonor Robert Mercer cuts back on support for GOP after being scrutinized for backing Trump  — Yet people close to Mercer say he's “disappeared” and he's no longer playing as big a role in supporting the Republican Party as he used to.  — “He's out,” said a former associate of Mercer.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg undergoes surgery  —  Washington (CNN)Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had two malignant nodules removed from her left lung Friday at a New York hospital, the Supreme Court announced.  —  There is no evidence of any remaining disease, says a court spokesperson …

Retreating ISIS army smuggled a fortune in cash and gold out of Iraq and Syria  —  IRBIL, Iraq — More than a year after the collapse of its self-declared caliphate, the Islamic State is sitting on a mountain of stolen cash and gold that its leaders stashed away to finance terrorist operations …

Michael Cohen discussed mysterious $1.8 million loan to pool boy that Jerry Falwell Jr and his wife befriended: report  —  Jerry Falwell Jr. confirmed that he loaned $1.8 million to a young pool attendant he and his wife had befriended while staying six years ago at a luxury hotel.

Please don't wish me ‘Merry Christmas’  —  It's impolite and alienating to assume I follow your religion.  —  'Twas five nights before Christmas, and my Lyft driver was the umpteenth person to wish me a “Merry Christmas” that day.  He probably just meant it the way most people do …

Build a Giant Escalator Over the Wall  —  $1,658 of $200.0M goal Raised by 105 people in 21 hours  —  The wall is never going to be built but just in case it is we will build a series of giant escalators that are spaced out a half mile along the wall on either side and if that doesn't happen we'll …

Jamal Khashoggi's final months as an exile in the long shadow of Saudi Arabia  —  Jamal Khashoggi had been in the United States for only a few months when the forces he had fled in Saudi Arabia made clear that he would never fully escape.  —  He was at a friend's home in suburban Virginia …

Why Are Hershey's Kisses Suddenly Missing Their Tips?  —  Bakers are perplexed as to why the iconic candy isn't up to snuff this holiday season.  —  Bad kisses sound like a problem you haven't dealt with since your teenage years, but they're a serious concern right now for bakers …

After More Than Two Decades of Work, a New Hebrew Bible to Rival the King James  —  The pre-eminent scholar Robert Alter has finally finished his own translation.  —  One morning this fall, at his home high in the Berkeley hills, the literary critic and translator Robert Alter chatted …

Taliban greets Pentagon's withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan with cries of victory  —  “The 17-year long struggle and sacrifices of thousands of our people finally yielded fruit,” said a senior commander in Helmand.  —  PESHAWAR, Pakistan — News that the White House had ordered the Pentagon …

Life After Horrific Death for the Journalist James Foley  —  On a cool October evening, in a Brooklyn studio crowded with canvases, some still wet, Diane Foley stood before an oil painting of two solemn grade-school boys in the Libyan civil war.  One of the boys held aloft a photo of a middle-aged man, a relative, who was missing.

Republicans are responsible for the Trump fiasco  —  Let's put aside for the moment the question of whether President Trump committed crimes in obtaining the presidency (conspiracy to violate campaign finance laws by hush-money payments or receipt of assistance from a foreign power) …

Amy McGrath says she won't run for governor of Kentucky  —  Democrat Amy McGrath, who ran a nationally watched campaign for Congress, said Friday she will not seek her party's nomination for Kentucky governor in 2019.  —  “I am humbled by the encouragement to throw my hat back in the ring right away …