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.

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.

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.

What Do Mueller and the Kremlin Know About Michael Cohen's Alleged Prague Trip?  —  No aspect of the scandal surrounding President Donald J. Trump's hidden relations with Russia has been more controversial than the reputed summer 2016 trip to the Czech Republic by Michael Cohen, Trump's longtime consigliere.

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.

Shutdown could block federal aid to farmers hit by trade war  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The end of 2018 seemed to signal good things to come for America's farmers.  Fresh off the passage of the farm bill, which reauthorized agriculture, conservation and safety net programs …

The Trump team just gave weird, insulting advice to furloughed federal workers who can't make rent  —  The Trump Administration just offered up bizarre and insulting advice for furloughed federal workers, proposing that they beg their landlords to exchange manual labor instead of rent …

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 …

Margot Kidder Played Every Character, No Matter How Small, With a Vivid Inner Life … Her fierce portrayals were informed — if not powered — by personal upheaval.  —  B. 1948  —  MARGOT KIDDER'S ONLY child, Maggie McGuane, wasn't sure she wanted to talk with me.

Pelosi Announces Appointment of Congresswoman Kathy Castor to Chair Select Committee on the Climate Crisis  —  San Francisco - Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi issued this statement announcing that Congresswoman Kathy Castor of Florida will chair the new Select Committee on the Climate Crisis:

Shutdown Leaves Government Contractors Without Work And Likely No Back Pay  —  While federal employees will likely get retroactively paid, many contractors will not.  —  Six days into the government's partial shutdown, with no end in sight, hundreds of thousands of federal employees …

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.

House Republicans wrap their investigation into FBI's handling of Clinton and Russia probes  —  (CNN)The Republican leaders of two House committees say their investigation into the FBI's handling of Hillary Clinton's email server and its probe of alleged coordination between the Trump campaign …

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.

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 …

Syria's Kurds, Feeling Betrayed by the U.S., Ask Assad Government for Protection  —  BEIRUT, Lebanon — Syria's most powerful Kurdish militia has called on President Bashar al-Assad's government to send forces to protect it against an attack by Turkey, the first sign of shifting political alliances …

The Justice Department's Integrity Is at Stake  —  I worked at the Justice Department for 25 years, most of them as a line prosecutor.  For the last seven and a half of those, I served as the U.S. attorney in the Northern District of Alabama.  I didn't work in the Justice Department's headquarters building …

Trump Hasn't Ordered Afghan Troop Withdrawal, White House Says  — Official last week said 7,000 U.S. troops were coming home  — Latest Pentagon report describes conflict as at ‘an impasse’  —  Donald Trump hasn't ordered the Pentagon to withdraw troops from Afghanistan …

E.P.A. Proposes Rule Change That Would Let Power Plants Release More Toxic Pollution  —  WASHINGTON — The Trump administration announced on Friday a plan designed to make it easier for coal-fired power plants, after nearly a decade of restrictions, to release into the atmosphere more mercury …

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 …