Pelosi has edge over Trump on budget negotiations, CBS News poll shows  —  Seven in 10 Americans don't think the issue of a border wall is worth a government shutdown, which they say is now having a negative impact on the country.  But partisans don't want their own side to budge …

Covington Catholic Teen on ‘Fox & Friends’: Blackface Is ‘School Spirit’  —  'We haven't been able to wear black paint because of the video, but I know the kids meant nothing by it,' one senior explained to Steve Doocy.  —  Covington Catholic High School's increasing notoriety has only pushed it further into the mud.

Pelosi tells Trump: No State of the Union address in the House until government is opened  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) will not allow President Trump to deliver the State of the Union in the House chamber next week, writing to him on Wednesday afternoon that he can give …

Venezuelan opposition leader declares himself president; U.S. promptly recognizes him as interim president  —  CARACAS, Venezuela — President Nicolás Maduro on Wednesday faced the gravest challenge to his authority since assuming power in 2013, as the U.S.-backed opposition claimed …

Here's Video of Beto O'Rourke Singing “Blitzkrieg Bop” in a Sheep Mask and Onesie  —  By now, most people who follow national politics have probably heard that Beto O'Rourke, the former Democratic congressman from El Paso who is contemplating a run for president, once played bass in a punk rock band called Foss.

Biden's Paid Speech Buoyed the G.O.P. in Midwest Battleground  — A speech by Joe Biden in October helped Fred Upton, a vulnerable Republican, win re-election in Michigan.  — Mr. Biden, who earned $200,000 for the speech, stunned Democrats and elated Republicans by praising Mr. Upton …

Sheila Jackson Lee Leaves 2 Posts After Aide Says She Was Fired for Reporting Sexual Assault  —  WASHINGTON — Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, facing blowback from a lawsuit claiming she fired an aide who said she was sexually assaulted by a supervisor at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation …

Medicare For All Looks Good In New Poll, But There's A Big Asterisk  —  Some of the most popular counter-arguments make voters skittish.  —  Americans are pretty keen on the idea of creating a new government-run insurance program, or at least expanding an existing one …

Gawker 2.0 Implodes as Its Only Reporters Quit  —  The new site's only two full-time writers exited Wednesday in protest of editorial director Carson Griffith's offensive remarks about everything from race to penis size.  —  Gawker 2. is blowing up on the launchpad just two weeks after the site's …

Top Dem: We would support $5.7B for a ‘smart wall’  —  House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) on Wednesday said Democrats would be willing to provide $5.7 billion in border security funding to end the shutdown if the money is used for measures like a “smart wall.”

The Trump-Era Overcorrection  —  It was like a scene out of left-wing protest literature: a group of white, parochial-school boys in “Make America Great Again” gear taunting an American Indian protester, jeering and laughing, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial after attending the anti-abortion March for Life.

Islamberg Muslim Massacre Plot Suspect Invited Trump to His Eagle Scout Ceremony  —  One of four teens police say planned to attack an Islamic community in New York was an adamant supporter of the president and a wall on the southern border.  —  At first glance, 18-year-old Vincent Vetromile appeared …

Shutdown expected to continue as federal workers' woes grow  —  It's been 33 days since the government shut down over a political impasse centered on a border wall most Americans don't support — and as many days have passed without significant movement on the Senate floor that could bring the shutdown to an end.

Trump Administration Grants South Carolina Foster Care Agencies Authority to Discriminate Against Jewish, Muslim Families  —  The Trump administration on Wednesday made a quiet move that opens the door for the religious right to use the Religious Freedom and Restoration Act to discriminate …

Federal Employees Going Through ‘a Little Bit of Pain’ but Border Wall Is ‘Bigger Than’ Them Says Lara Trump  —  The 800,000 furloughed federal employees and 400,000 working without pay due to the government shutdown over $5 billion dollars in funding for a wall on the U.S. southern border are going through …

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey: The Rolling Stone Interview  —  Sometimes 280 characters just aren't enough.  The social media mogul takes on his critics — and tries to explain who he really is  —  When Jack Dorsey co-founded Twitter in 2006, he had no idea he and his colleagues were creating …