Outgoing White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly defends his rocky tenure … In August 2017, shortly after John F. Kelly became White House chief of staff, he convened crucial meetings on Afghanistan at President Trump's golf club in Bedminster, N.J.  —  Top officials from the Pentagon and the CIA …

Retired Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal: President Donald Trump immoral, doesn't tell the truth  —  The former top commander of U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan, retired four-star Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, criticized President Donald Trump's behavior and handling of the presidency …

Sen. Graham Floats Temporary DACA Permits Deal For Wall Funding  —  Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) floated the idea of a compromise deal to end the government shutdown on Sunday, proposing an extension of work permits for “Dreamers” who entered the country illegally as children in exchange …

Trump's tweets: Judges in government secrecy cases say they are ‘speculation’ and not ‘pure fact’  —  “Speculation.”  “Unofficial information.”  “Political statements rather than assertions of pure fact.”  —  Those are words federal judges have used to describe President Donald Trump's tweets …

Here's how Paradise ignored warnings and became a deathtrap … The fate of Paradise was cast long before a windstorm last month fueled the deadliest fire in California history.  —  The ridge settlement was doomed by its proximity to a crack in the mighty wall of the Sierra Nevada, a deep canyon that bellowed gale-force winds.

Donald Trump is completely transforming the Democrats  —  Washington has long been a stranger to principle other than the principle of self advancement.  Yet, something new seems to be emerging across the country.  Politicians have long felt the need to disguise raw political agendas in the pretense of principle.

French hero who saved hundreds of Jewish children dies aged 108  —  Jewish resistance fighter Georges Loinger helped smuggle kids across the French border into Switzerland  —  PARIS, France — French Resistance hero Georges Loinger, who used his ingenuity and athletic prowess to save the lives …

Stephen Miller steps into spotlight amid chaos in ‘zombie’ White House press shop  —  WASHINGTON — In recent weeks, the White House has been shaken by an ongoing government shutdown, tumbling markets and the abrupt departure of Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis.  With

A Holiday Mystery: Why Did John Roberts Intervene in the Mueller Probe?  —  A mysterious grand jury subpoena case has been working itself through the D.C. courts since August.  Doughty reporting by Politico linked the grand jury case to special counsel Robert Mueller.

These two Democratic senators are waging a bigoted campaign against Catholics … Funny who is an “extremist” these days.  —  Senators Kamala Harris and Mazie Hirono (Democrats of California and Hawaii, respectively) are challenging the nomination of Brian Buescher to the US District Court …

Alice Walker's Terrible Anti-Semitic Poem Felt Personal — to Her and to Me  —  When I first read Alice Walker's The Color Purple, I leaned into every word, inhaling Celie's tragic and triumphant story.  In Celie, I felt the presence and pain of my female family members brought up in rural Alabama.

Facebook apologizes for banning evangelist Franklin Graham for 24 hours  —  Facebook is apologizing to evangelist Franklin Graham for banning him from posting on the site for 24 hours last week, a Facebook spokesperson told The Charlotte Observer on Saturday.

Malware attack disrupts delivery of L.A. Times and Tribune papers across the U.S.  —  What first arose as a server outage was identified Saturday as a malware attack, which appears to have originated from outside the United States and hobbled computer systems and delayed weekend deliveries …

A year of unprecedented deception: Trump averaged 15 false claims a day in 2018  —  President Trump's year of lies, false statements and misleading claims started with a series of morning tweets.  —  Over a couple of hours Jan. 2, Trump made false claims about three of his favorite targets …

Glorified and Vilified, Representative-Elect Ilhan Omar Tells Critics: ‘Just Deal’  —  WASHINGTON — As a 12-year-old refugee from Somalia adjusting to life in the Virginia suburbs, Ilhan Omar fended off bullies who stuck gum on her scarf, knocked her down stairs and jumped her when she changed clothes for gym class.

Mattis, U.S. Commander Sought to Temper Saudi-Led War in Yemen  —  Backstage effort by defense secretary and Gen. Joseph Votel seen as helping bring about a fragile cease-fire  —  WASHINGTON—When the United Arab Emirates began drawing up new plans earlier this year to launch a risky operation …