Exclusive: Russian Ex-Spy Pressured Manafort Over Debts to an Oligarch  —  When the U.S. government put out its latest sanctions list on Dec. 19, the man named at the top did not seem especially important.  Described in the document as a former Russian intelligence officer …

New Jersey AG has obtained evidence of possible crimes at Trump's golf club — and Mueller, FBI are involved in probe  —  New Jersey prosecutors have collected evidence that supervisors at President Trump's Garden State golf club may have committed federal immigration crimes …

‘You Control Nothing’: House Republicans Brace for Life in the Minority  —  About two-thirds of Republicans returning to the House for the 116th Congress this week have never experienced the exquisite pain of being on the outs in an institution where the party in charge is totally in charge.

Four Key Senators Shift 2020 Presidential Planning Into High Gear  —  Senator Kamala Harris of California is eyeing Baltimore or Atlanta as a possible base of operations for her likely 2020 presidential bid and is close to bringing on a top aide to run her campaign.

Trump's Dilemma: Go To Mar-a-Lago And Get Criticized?  Or Disappoint Dues-Paying Members?  —  Members and guests at Trump's for-profit club are shelling out as much as $1,270 each to mingle with him at his New Year's Eve party.  —  WASHINGTON — Is it worse to disappoint your rich …

A Week Into Government Shutdown, Ire Turns to Fear for Federal Workers  —  When the government shutdown began a week ago, many federal workers were more irked than anxious.  —  They're really anxious now.  What at first seemed like ho-hum political brinkmanship is looking more like a prolonged …

Departing senators warn: There's a problem with the current state of politics  —  (CNN)As departing senators said their goodbyes to Washington, a number of Democrats and Republicans took the opportunity to express concern about the state of the Senate and the political climate.

Bre Payton, Beloved Staff Writer At The Federalist, Has Passed Away  —  Bre Payton, our beloved staff writer for The Federalist, passed away on Friday in San Diego, California following a sudden illness.  —  Bre was born in California on June 8, 1992, to George and Cindy Payton.

Mueller appears to respond early in subpoena fight at Supreme Court  —  Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office appears to have responded to a foreign company's bid to get the Supreme Court to step into a fight over a grand jury subpoena served on the firm.  —  Most details of the case …

The Thinnest Skins In Media In 2018  —  What follows is a list of our favorite media piss-babies and corncobs of the past year.  A quick note to the piss-babies and corncobs themselves: Any communication with me regarding this post will be considered on the record.

Tucker Carlson's Show Sheds Advertisers After Immigration Comments: Report  —  Tucker Carlson's nightly show on Fox News has been hemorrhaging advertisers since the conservative host said that immigration makes the United States “poorer and dirtier and more divided” on Dec. 13, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

On the Front Line of the Saudi War in Yemen: Child Soldiers From Darfur  —  KHARTOUM, Sudan — The civil war in Darfur robbed Hager Shomo Ahmed of almost any hope.  Raiders had stolen his family's cattle, and a dozen years of bloodshed had left his parents destitute.

POLITICO Playbook: Did Trump blow the shutdown?  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  DID TRUMP BLOW THIS SHUTDOWN?  PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP had an empty Washington and the captive attention of the media the last eight days.  Why wasn't he on TV blasting Congress for inaction every single day?

Majority in poll want Trump impeached or censured  —  Nearly 60 percent of U.S. voters surveyed say President Trump should be either impeached and removed from office or formally censured, according to a new Harvard CAPS/Harris poll released exclusively to The Hill.

US farmers ‘helpless’ as TPP boosts Aust  —  US farmers are upset that Australia and Canada will soon get a leg up on them under the TPP trade pact, with reduced tariffs selling wheat to Japan.  —  American farmers are facing the “imminent collapse” of key markets and fear uneven trade playing fields …

It's Not That Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Knows Nothing . . .  As tragedy struck an acquaintance this week, I was reminded today of the fleeting nature of life.  The Psalmist begged God, “O Lord, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am!”

Two-year-old whose Yemeni mother fought for U.S. visa to visit him dies in hospital  —  Abdullah Hassan's mother was granted a waiver last month after being barred from entering the country under the Trump administration's travel ban.  —  A terminally ill boy whose Yemeni mother fought …

UK to spend £108m on no-deal ferries  —  The UK will spend more than £100m chartering extra ferries to ease “severe congestion” at Dover, in the case of a no-deal Brexit.  —  Over the last few months, additional ferry contracts were awarded to French, Danish and British companies.

These Are 50 Of The Biggest Fake News Hits On Facebook In 2018  —  After spending two years launching third-party fact-checking programs, rolling out News Feed updates, and investing in other anti-misinformation initiatives, Facebook is still the home of viral fake news.

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 …