Team Trump Gleeful That Shutdown Will Hijack Pelosi's Big Moment  —  The president's aides see a debate being waged on his issues, not hers, and they couldn't be happier.  —  Days into a partial government shutdown that has left tens of thousands of federal workers furloughed …

As 2018 draws to a close, I'm continuing a favorite tradition of mine and sharing my year-end lists.  It gives me a moment to pause and reflect on the year through the books, movies, and music that I found most thought-provoking, inspiring, or just plain loved.

Trump used her slain daughter to rail against illegal immigration.  She chose a different path.  —  BROOKLYN, Iowa — The letters began immediately.  Dozens at first, then hundreds, each day bringing more: from a Texas man telling her this was why we needed to build the wall.

The Latest: White House and Dems are “far apart” on shutdown  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the partial government shutdown (all times local):  —  The White House says President Donald Trump and Democrats are “far apart” on reaching an agreement on ending a partial government shutdown, indicating it could continue for some time.

“Trump Got Lucky”: Why G.O.P. Insiders Fear Beto and Biden Over Warren and Sanders  —  Republicans are happy to run against any progressive who tries to compete with Trump at the game he perfected.  But they desperately fear another Barack Obama.  —  Don't kid yourself: President Donald Trump could absolutely win re-election.

Nation's oldest living veteran Richard Overton dies in Austin at age 112  —  AUSTIN, Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - The nation's oldest living veteran, Richard Overton, has died in a rehab facility in Austin, Texas.  —  He was 112 years old.  —  Family says Overton was admitted to the hospital last week with pneumonia.

Former McKinsey Executive Imprisoned by Saudis  —  Saudi citizen arrested in last year's sweep has been beaten, people familiar with the matter say  —  Saudi Arabian officials arrested a partner at consulting giant McKinsey & Co. in the fall of 2017 and have been holding him in detention since then …

Special Counsel Robert Mueller Seized Russian Trolls' ‘Nude Selfies’  —  The special counsel turned over reams of material from the email and social media accounts of accused Russian trolls.  —  Special Counsel Robert Mueller has collected at least three million pages of material from the email …

Blue Light Floods NYC Sky as Transformer Explodes in Queens  —  A transformer explosion in Queens sent an eerie blue light flooding into the nighttime sky over New York City Thursday night, startling residents.  —  Con Edison says a couple of transformers tripped offline at the substation …

Trump's Syria decision was essentially correct.  Here's how he can make the most of it.  —  Robert S. Ford, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and Yale University, was U.S. ambassador to Syria from 2011 to 2014.  —  President Trump's Dec. 23 tweet promising a “slow and highly coordinated” …

Bre's Story  —  Around 8:30 this morning, December 27th, Bre's friend went into her room and found her unresponsive and barely breathing.  She immediately called 911 and Bre was taken to the hospital where she was admitted to the ICU, sedated & intubated, and doctors began working up a diagnosis.

Agency: Government workers could do painting or carpentry work to help pay rent during shutdown  —  The U.S. Office of Personnel Management has offered federal workers affected by the partial government shutdown a guide for negotiating with creditors, landlords and mortgage companies while their income is cut off.

House Democrats scooping up staff, lawyers to power Trump investigations  —  Trump Organization braces for investigations  —  (CNN)The House Judiciary Committee is looking for a few good lawyers.  —  A recent committee job posting reviewed by CNN asked for legislative counsels with a variety of expertise …

White Referee Fired After Forcing Black Wrestler to Cut Dreadlocks  —  Alan Maloney, the White referee who made a Black high school wrestler cut his dreadlocks to compete, has been let go by the school district.  —  Alan Maloney, the White referee who forced, Andrew Johnson …

Hidden crisis: D.C. area students owe nearly half a million in K-12 school lunch debt  —  As students in the Washington area went home for winter break, a substantial number were in debt — to the school cafeteria.  —  Students in the Washington area owe nearly half a million dollars so far …

Mizzou Official Claims Tall Men Asking Out Short Women Could Constitute Sexual Misconduct  —  Getting up the courage to ask someone out on a date can already be nerve-racking, but now that college campuses have completely gone off the deep end, that fear will be intensified.

With identical tweets, Schumer and Pelosi reveal themselves as mouthpieces for the same propaganda puppet master  —  I have long wondered about who writes the talking points that keep Democrats reading from the same script.  That person - or more likely, persons - evidently issues instructions …

The Inevitability of Impeachment  —  Even Republicans may be deciding that the president has become too great a burden to their party or too great a danger to the country.  —  Ms. Drew is a journalist based in Washington who covered Watergate.  —  An impeachment process against President Trump now seems inescapable.

Trump's New Judges Are Everything Conservatives Hoped For And Liberals Feared  —  WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has gotten more judges confirmed to federal appeals courts in his first two years in office than any president in modern history.  With 30 new circuit judges on the bench …