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 …

Why the Bernie Movement Must Crush Beto O'Rourke  —  The first skirmish of the 2020 Democratic primary, a wave of attacks on Beto O'Rourke by supporters of Bernie Sanders, took almost everybody by surprise.  On the outside, it looks like one of those inscrutable, personality-driven online spats that characterize the Twitter era.

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.

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.

POLITICO Playbook: Attn.  Mr. President: 6 days until Speaker Pelosi  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN ... DAY 7 ... NANCY PELOSI will be speaker in six days, and she plans to do one of the following things to open the shuttered portion of the government.

Trump did what he always does and changed his mind.  Why was Congress surprised?  —  The only way to deal with Donald Trump is to not do deals with Donald Trump.  The private sector has learned this; when will Congress?  —  For his entire career, our dealmaker in chief has relied …

Welcome to the world of President Rand Paul  —  President's Trump's foreign policy follows no firm ideology but is often a combination of his long-held personal views and the influence of whoever currently has his ear.  These days, Trump is listening more than ever to Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) …

Trump Administration Suggests Furloughed Workers Do Chores for Landlords to Help Pay Rent  —  The U.S. Office of Personnel Management on Thursday tweeted advice to furloughed federal workers on how to explain their precarious financial situation to creditors and landlords …

Pelosi Names Douglas N. Letter New General Counsel of the House  —  San Francisco — Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi announced today that she will appoint Douglas N. Letter to be the new General Counsel of the House of Representatives.  —  Until February 2018, Letter served as the Director …

Trump threatens to close ‘Southern Border entirely’ if Dems don't fund wall  —  President Trump on Friday threatened to “close the Southern Border entirely” if Democrats do not agree to provide money to “finish” building a wall on the Mexican border.  —  Trump made the threat …

Court filing in Russian troll farm case references nude selfie  —  (CNN)A Russian company told a federal court Thursday that it believes that among the terabytes of data collected by special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation is a nude selfie.  —  Concord Management and Catering …

North Carolina Elections Board Dissolves, Adding New Chaos in House Race  —  The North Carolina state elections board dissolved on Friday under a court order, two weeks before its much-anticipated hearing to consider evidence of possible absentee ballot fraud in the disputed November election for the Ninth District's seat in Congress.

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 …

For 2018, my personal challenge has been to focus on addressing some of the most important issues facing our community — whether that's preventing election interference, stopping the spread of hate speech and misinformation, making sure people have control of their information, and ensuring our services improve people's well-being.

Richard Overton, nation's oldest man and WWII vet, dies at 112  —  Austin resident Richard Overton, who was America's oldest man and oldest war veteran, died Thursday.  Overton, who was honored for his military service and beloved for his propensity to enjoy his supercentenarian status …

Angelina Jolie hints at move into politics  —  Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie has hinted that she is considering a move into politics in the future.  —  In an interview on the BBC's Today programme, she said she would have dismissed this 20 years ago but would now go where she was needed.

Living paycheck to paycheck is disturbingly common: “I see no way out.”  —  The struggle is everywhere.  —  “Inescapable.”  —  “It's a constant stressor.”  —  “I see no way out.”  —  What do professors, real estate agents, farmers, business executives, computer programmers and store clerks have in common?

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 …

New York Sky Turns Bright Blue After Transformer Explosion  —  There was a boom; then a hum.  The lights flickered.  A giant plume of smoke filled the New York City sky around 9:12 p.m., and turned it blue.  —  “A sort of unnatural, fluorescent shade of blue,” said Bill San Antonio, 28 …