Mike Bloomberg Statement on Independent Run  —  Last fall I spent over $100 million of my own money to elect Democrats to the House because I believed it was absolutely imperative to ensure a congressional counterweight to President Trump.  Thankfully, we were successful.

‘Want to see the Lincoln bedroom?’:  Trump relishes role as White House tour guide  —  When President Trump brings senators, New York friends or other guests to the Oval Office, he occasionally opens a door near his desk summoning guests to follow.  Flashing a grin, he wants his friends …

Howard Schultz May Save the Democratic Party From Itself  —  The Starbucks founder Howard Schultz is the Twitter villain of the hour.  If hot takes actually generated heat, Schultz would already have been vaporized under the onrush of magma.  His offense: contemplating a run for president as a self-funded independent centrist.

The government shutdown cost the economy $11 billion, including a permanent $3 billion loss, Congressional Budget Office says  — The federal government shutdown cost the economy $11 billion, according to a new analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

Do You Still Have A Job At BuzzFeed?  —  “As you know, the company is going thru a reorganization...”  —  This post has not been vetted or endorsed by BuzzFeed's editorial staff.  BuzzFeed Community is a place where anyone create a post.  Learn more or post your buzz!

As Trump slides in new poll, he retreats deeper into Fox News fantasyland  —  A new Post-ABC News poll finds that most Americans believe President Trump is failing spectacularly by many different metrics.  Large majorities say he doesn't have the temperament to be president …

Trump calls Bible literacy classes in schools ‘great’  —  President Donald Trump on Monday cheered on the controversial push to introduce Bible literacy classes to public schools.  —  “Numerous states introducing Bible Literacy classes, giving students the option of studying the Bible.

Woman Stuck in Elevator of Manhattan Townhouse for Entire Weekend  —  [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.]  —  The owners of a Manhattan townhouse arrived home Monday morning after a weekend away to discover that a female employee had been stuck …

Kamala Harris' big challenge  —  Kamala Harris: America, we are better than this  —  David Axelrod, a CNN commentator, was senior adviser to President Barack Obama and chief strategist for the 2008 and 2012 Obama presidential campaigns.  The opinions expressed in this commentary are his.

$1.5 trillion U.S. tax cut has no major impact on business capex plans: survey  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration's $1.5 trillion cut tax package appeared to have no major impact on businesses' capital investment or hiring plans, according to a survey released a year …

Another Side of #MeToo: Male Managers Fearful of Mentoring Women  —  DAVOS, Switzerland — Men attending the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this year were worried about a lot of things.  A global economic slowdown.  Threats to cybersecurity.  Populism.  War.

State of the Union will not take place Tuesday, Pelosi aide says  —  Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump's second State of the Union address will not take place on Tuesday, an aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told CNN.  —  The aide confirmed that the address, which was originally scheduled for Tuesday …

The Trump Administration Is Making a Mockery of the Supreme Court  —  It promised to create a ‘robust’ waiver process for visa applicants from countries affected by the travel ban.  The process is a sham.  —  Ms. Fisher and Ms. Power advocate for the rights of refugees.

Who's Benefiting from Medicaid Expansion?  —  There's a new study of how the Affordable Care Act, especially the Medicaid expansion, played out in California: … In other words, the expansion brought in federal money that benefited hospitals and government budgets, and it made care …

Women's March Leader Omits Jews From Holocaust Remembrance Statement  —  Linda Sarsour attacked the White House for the same thing in 2017  —  Women's March leader Linda Sarsour penned a Holocaust Remembrance Day statement that omitted any mention of the Jewish people …

U.S. and Taliban Agree in Principle to Peace Framework, Envoy Says  —  KABUL, Afghanistan — American and Taliban officials have agreed in principle to the framework of a peace deal in which the insurgents guarantee to prevent Afghan territory from being used by terrorists …

Trump Is Destroying His Own Case for a National Emergency  —  It has now been more than three weeks since President Donald Trump first began his public flirtation with declaring a national emergency as a way of getting funding to build a wall on the southern border.

Private company launches “largest fleet of satellites in human history” to photograph Earth  —  A private company has set off a revolution in space by launching hundreds of small satellites, enough to photograph the entire landmass of the Earth every day  —  For decades the U.S. Has relied …

Latest polling data point to major re-election challenges for Trump in Wisconsin  —  With less than two years to go before the 2020 election, President Donald Trump faces an uphill climb in winning a second victory in Wisconsin, a battleground that will be at the epicenter of the next presidential campaign.

Chicago's record for coldest temperature ever could fall as polar vortex has city ‘in the crosshairs’  —  Snow over the Chicago area arrives ahead of an arctic blast of air that may set new record cold temperatures.  —  One of the coldest air masses in years will envelop the Midwest …

Hiding Out With Randy Credico, the Stand-Up Comic Who Could Help Put Roger Stone in Prison  —  It is the Wednesday after the midterms, and comedian and longtime New York political stuntman Randy Credico is smoking an e-cigarette at the Friars Club bar, expounding on his theory that the president …

Stone indictment makes clear there was no Trump-Russia conspiracy  —  Special counsel Robert Mueller's indictment of Roger Stone elucidates what has been apparent to the public for a year, and therefore must have been known to prosecutors and the FBI for much longer: There was no criminal conspiracy between …

Twitter diplomacy: How three former Trump rivals influence foreign policy  —  Three years ago, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul and Lindsey Graham were fighting to stay in Donald Trump's orbit as he pulled away in the Republican presidential primary.  —  Now, the three senators with distinct foreign policy views …