House Democrats now asking questions about Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin  —  Mnuchin will give the House a classified briefing Thursday, after a request from the Democratic chairs of the main House investigative panels.  —  WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has agreed …

Trump walks out of latest shutdown talks with Democrats, call them ‘waste of time’ … Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said that after Trump asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi whether she would “agree to my wall,” and she said, “No,” Trump said, “We have nothing to discuss,” got up and left.

Law firm that represented Russian interests part of mystery Mueller subpoena case  —  Supreme Court rules against mystery company  —  Washington (CNN)One law firm involved in a foreign government-owned company's challenge of a mysterious grand jury subpoena related to the Robert Mueller investigation …

Coast Guard families told they can have garage sales to cope with government shutdown  —  Employees of the U.S. Coast Guard who are facing a long U.S. government shutdown just received a suggestion: To get by without pay, consider holding a garage sale, babysitting or serving as a “mystery shopper.”

Tom Steyer, Billionaire Impeachment Activist, Won't Run Against Trump  —  Tom Steyer, the California billionaire who has crusaded for President Trump's impeachment, said on Wednesday that he would not join the pack of Democrats running for president in 2020 and would instead redouble his efforts to topple Mr. Trump before the election.

Trump's Oval Office address was a pure propaganda opportunity.  Networks shouldn't allow it next time.  —  After Tuesday night's debacle in the Oval Office, television network executives should be spending the day in their spacious offices practicing a simple word: No.

Reduced inspections ‘put our food supply at risk’  —  The furloughing of hundreds of Food and Drug Administration inspectors has sharply reduced inspections of the nation's food supply — one of many repercussions of the partial government shutdown that make Americans potentially less safe.

A beefed-up White House legal team prepares aggressive defense of Trump's executive privilege as investigations loom large  —  A beefed-up White House legal team is gearing up to prevent President Trump's confidential discussions with top advisers from being disclosed to House Democratic investigators …

Modern Monetary Theory Doesn't Make Single-Payer Health Care Any Easier  —  You may have heard of Modern Monetary Theory, an approach to economics that is increasingly popular on the left, and which is sometimes mischaracterized (by advocates and especially detractors) as holding that budget deficits …

Tensions rise between 2 of Hawaii's Congressional leaders over ‘religious bigotry’ comments  —  HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard appears to have “called out” Hawaii Senator Mazie Hirono over her questioning of a judicial nominee, accusing her and others of religious bigotry.

People older than 65 share the most fake news, a new study finds  —  And the finding holds true across party lines  —  Older Americans are disproportionately more likely to share fake news on Facebook, according to a new analysis by researchers at New York and Princeton Universities.

Josh Hawley to furloughed federal workers: No comment  —  Josh Hawley, Republican U.S. senator from Missouri  —  Josh Hawley has a message to federal workers in Kansas City who won't receive paychecks this week: No comment.  —  Wednesday, the freshman Republican Missouri senator was asked …

Drugs and syringes have become such a problem in Starbucks bathrooms that the company is installing needle-disposal boxes in certain locations  — Starbucks is installing needle-disposal boxes in some bathrooms, as well as exploring other solutions to workers' concerns regarding improperly disposed …

Repeated radio signals coming from galaxy 1.5 billion light years away, scientists announce  —  Scientists pick up large number of blasts over a few weeks  —  Scientists have spotted repeated blasts of radio signals coming from deep in space.  —  The breakthrough is only the second …

How Cartographers for the U.S. Military Inadvertently Created a House of Horrors in South Africa  —  The visitors started coming in 2013.  The first one who came and refused to leave until he was let inside was a private investigator named Roderick.  He was looking for an abducted girl, and he was convinced she was in the house.

Angela Davis Says She's ‘Stunned’ After Award Is Revoked Over Her Views on Israel  —  Angela Davis, the activist and scholar, said this week that she was “stunned” after a civil rights group in her native Birmingham, Ala., reversed its decision to honor her with an award amid protests over her support for a boycott of Israel.