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 …

‘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.

Trump issues executive order freezing federal workers' pay in 2019  —  Federal workers brace for long shutdown  —  Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump issued an executive order Friday freezing federal workers' pay for 2019, following through on a proposal he announced earlier in the year.

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 …

The Beauty of Bre Payton  —  It would have been easy to resent Bre Payton.  —  Blessed with rare natural beauty—she was even more stunning in person than she was in photos or on television—Bre seemed unaware or unaffected by her own physical gifts.  I know this because when she sat next …

Is the Michael Cohen ‘Prague’ Story True?  —  The reporters behind it are either the new Woodward and Bernstein—or the new Judith Miller.  —  Three weeks after 9/11, Vice President Dick Cheney was already trying to tie the horror to Iraq.  He floated a bogus story that earlier in 2001 …

Will Trump show up for New Year's Eve party?  —  President Donald Trump has canceled plans to spend the New Year's holiday at Mar-a-Lago.  A source who had planned to attend the Mar-a-Lago New Year's Eve party said Friday Palm Beach was abuzz with members and guests talking about their own plans …

Trump pulled out of a massive trade deal.  Now 11 countries are going ahead without the US  —  New York (CNN)A major 11-country agreement goes into effect Sunday, reshaping trade rules among economic powerhouses like Japan, Canada, Mexico and Australia — but the United States won't be a part of it.

McConnell at center of shutdown impasse but uncharacteristically disengaged  —  The federal government has been partially shut down for a week, and hundreds of thousands of workers are furloughed, but there's no sign of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), the veteran dealmaker who's brokered …

2-year-old Yemeni boy whose mom sued US to see him has died  —  OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The 2-year-old son of a Yemeni woman who sued the Trump administration to let her into the country to be with the ailing boy has died, the Council on American-Islamic Relations announced.

California organizers cancel Women's March due to ‘overwhelmingly white’ participants  —  A crowd fills Independence Avenue looking towards the U.S. Capitol and the stage, lower right, during the Women's March on Washington, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017 in Washington.  THE ASSOCIATED PRESS  —  AA

Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and Other Democrats Shift Into High Gear for 2020  —  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.

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!”