Officials rejected Jared Kushner for top secret security clearance, but were overruled  —  Jared Kushner was rejected for a top secret clearance by 2 career security specialists, but their supervisor overruled them and approved him, say sources.  —  WASHINGTON — Jared Kushner's application …

Florida Secretary of State Michael Ertel resigns after Halloween blackface photos emerge  —  Michael Ertel, the newly appointed Secretary of State of Gov. Ron DeSantis, has resigned after photos emerged of him posing as a Hurricane Katrina victim in blackface at a private Halloween party 14 years ago.

Wilbur Ross says furloughed workers should take out a loan.  His agency's own credit union is charging nearly 9 percent  —  The Department of Commerce federal credit union is charging furloughed employees almost 9 percent interest on emergency loans to cover their missing paychecks …

GOP senators read Pence riot act before shutdown votes  —  Frustrated GOP senators read Vice President Pence the riot act at a closed-door meeting Thursday, telling him the partial government shutdown needs to end soon, according to lawmakers in the room.  —  Republican senators …

Elizabeth Warren to propose new ‘wealth tax’ on very rich Americans, economist says  —  Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) will propose a new “wealth tax” on Americans with more than $50 million in assets, according to an economist advising her on the plan, as Democratic leaders vie …

The Covington Boys and the Poison of Trumpism  —  For five days since the footage of an altercation between MAGA-clad Catholic school boys and the elder Native American activists Nathan Phillips near the Lincoln Memorial first caught fire online, the political Internet has been agonizing with itself …

The Unfinished Business of Bernie Sanders  —  He went from the rumpled bit player of the progressive movement to a legit presidential candidate and liberal kingmaker.  But now that Sanders wields such enormous power in Democratic politics, the question is, what's he going to do with it?

Skripal poisoning: Trump admin yet to impose new Russia sanctions required by law  —  The European Union punished 4 Russians this week in connection with the Skripal poisoning, but the U.S. hasn't moved forward with its own penalties.  —  WASHINGTON — Nearly three months after deeming Russia …

Koch network tells donors it plans to stay out of 2020 race, once again declining to back Trump  —  The conservative Koch political network has told donors that it plans to once again stay out of the presidential race and will not work to help reelect President Trump in 2020 …

Exclusive: U.S. to begin returning asylum seekers to Mexico on Friday - official  —  MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The United States will return the first group of migrants seeking asylum in the United States to the Mexican border city of Tijuana on Friday, a spokesman for Mexico's president said on Thursday.

Caring: House Democrats Defeat Second (UPDATE - Third) Bipartisan Effort to Pay Federal Workers During the Shutdown  —  A few days ago, a tweet from Texas Congressman Dan Crenshaw caught my attention.  He mentioned an effort by House Republicans to force a vote on a bill that would have ensured …

Sen. Michael Bennet slams Ted Cruz for ‘crocodile tears’ over the shutdown  —  Sen. Michael F. Bennet, typically a mild-mannered, congenial guy, on Thursday unleashed all of his furor over the partial government shutdown on Sen. Ted Cruz.  —  In a fiery exchange that played …

With risks ahead, Trump administration pins hopes on Venezuela's opposition  —  President Trump's bold decision to throw U.S. support behind a self-declared opposition government in Venezuela carries risks for a president whose foreign policy is staked on prizing American interests over others …

Witness in special counsel probe, former Stone associate, collected payments from Infowars through job Stone arranged  —  Over the past several months, author and conspiracy theorist Jerome Corsi has emerged as one of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's most vexing witnesses in his probe of Russian interference in the 2016 campaign.

Trump's Disney Robot Obsession and Anthony Scaramucci's Dick Joke: Scenes From a White House Insider  —  They are who we thought they were.  —  Shortly after Donald Trump's election, a Disney crew was dispatched to the White House to record the new president's voice, which would be played through …

Oregon Man Sentenced to 20 Months for Sexually Assaulting a Horse  —  Remember Kenneth Lijah Duyck?  Law&Crime wrote about him back in April of last year.  The Oregon man was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a horse.  That case closed this week.

Yesterday was a reassuring day for me.  I was on my way to Walter Reed Military Hospital for an exam.  As I drove along Interstate 495 my left front tire blew out.  I am a car guy and knew I could change it but it was cold outside and the lug bolts were very tight.

JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon recently had private meetings with top Democratic Wall Street critic Maxine Waters  — J.P. Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon recently met in private with leading Wall Street critic Rep. Maxine Waters …

Shoot Someone In A Major US City, And Odds Are You'll Get Away With It  —  A shocking number of shootings go unsolved.  In some police departments, hundreds of cases aren't investigated at all.  A joint investigation by The Trace and BuzzFeed News. … Devon Little was shot …

AOC Thinks Concentrated Wealth Is Incompatible With Democracy.  So Did Our Founders.  —  In 1835, Alexis de Tocqueville produced one of the earliest accounts of the American dream.  In his famous study of the Jacksonian U.S., the Frenchman wrote that Americans possessed “the charm of anticipated success” …