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.

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 …

Trump signs order freezing federal worker pay hike  —  President Trump signed an executive order Friday eliminating a 2.1% pay raise for federal workers due to take effect in January, following through on a pledge he made in August, CNN reports.  —  The backdrop: In a letter …

McConnell at center of shutdown impasse — but uncharacteristically disengaged  —  The federal government has been partially shut down for a week, hundreds of thousands of workers are furloughed, but there's no sign of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the veteran dealmaker who's brokered an end to so many Washington impasses.

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.

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.

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 …

Your Cash Is No Good Here.  Literally.  —  As more retailers—including Drybar and Sweetgreen—ban paper money, it's making things awkward for customers without plastic.  —  Sam Schreiber was mid-shampoo at a Drybar blow-dry salon in Los Angeles when someone from the front desk approached …

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!”

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.

Delivery of Union-Tribune and other newspapers affected by computer virus  —  Most Union-Tribune subscribers were without a newspaper this morning as a computer virus that infected the company's business systems hobbled the ability to publish.  —  Production of the U-T, LA Times …

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.

Melania Trump's trip to Iraq marked first war zone visit by a first lady for over a decade  —  When Melania Trump accompanied her husband President Trump to Iraq this week, it was the first time in more than a decade that a first lady of the United States had visited a war zone.

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.

Egyptian forces kill 40 suspected militants after tourist bus bombed  —  CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian security forces have killed 40 suspected militants in three separate incidents in North Sinai and Giza, the Interior Ministry said on Saturday, a day after a bombing on a Vietnamese tourist bus in Giza killed four people.

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 …