Morning Joe Asks Howard Schultz How Much a Box of Cheerios Costs.  He Does Not Know.  —  Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz was asked a question on MSNBC Wednesday that may shed some light on how well he connects with the little things Americans tend to notice in their everyday lives.

Exclusive: Foxconn reconsidering plans to make LCD panels at Wisconsin plant  —  (Reuters) - Foxconn Technology Group is reconsidering plans to make advanced liquid crystal display panels at a $10 billion Wisconsin campus, and said it intends to hire mostly engineers and researchers rather …

GOP delay in naming House Intelligence Committee members may have cost Mueller  —  Democrats have been unable to authorize release of witness transcripts to the special counsel without GOP members who were just named Wednesday.  —  WASHINGTON — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. …

Mueller says Russians using his discovery materials in disinformation effort  —  Russians are using materials obtained from special counsel Robert Mueller's office in a disinformation campaign apparently aimed at discrediting the investigation into Moscow's election interference, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday.

Virginia Governor Defends Letting Infants Die  —  This morning on WTOP's “Ask The Governor,” Virginia governor Ralph Northam defended the new abortion bill introduced by state Democrats this month, the Repeal Act, which would legalize abortion up to the point of birth.

Bezos Launches Investigation Into Leaked Texts With Lauren Sanchez That Killed His Marriage  —  The Amazon chief's security consultants suspect the leak to the National Enquirer may have been politically motivated.  —  Jeff Bezos' personal security team has launched an investigation …

So Roger Stone, Jim Mattis and Lanny Davis walk into a steakhouse . . .  —  Hey, isn't that . . . a cable news hour's worth of President Trump's friends and enemies at Washington's favorite power lunch spot?  —  Just before noon Tuesday, Trump's longtime friend …

Donald Trump's Chance to Bring Peace to Afghanistan and End America's Longest War  —  Afghanistan, in the foreign imagination, has never been associated with certainty.  For centuries, visitors and invaders alike have applied conflicting stereotypes to the country—that Afghans …

Trump blasts U.S. intelligence officials, disputes assessments on Iran and other global threats  —  President Trump lashed out at U.S. intelligence officials Wednesday, calling them “extremely passive and naive” about the nuclear danger posed by Iran and pushing back on their assessments …

Police: No footage yet showing ‘Empire’ actor being attacked  —  CHICAGO (AP) — Detectives have reviewed surveillance footage of “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett walking to a downtown Chicago apartment after an early morning visit to a Subway restaurant, but none of it showed an attack on the actor, a police official said Wednesday.

Mueller Witness' Team Gamed Out Russian Meddling ... in 2015  —  One former analyst at the Wikistrat consulting firm called it “disturbing.”  —  Days after Donald Trump rode down an escalator at Trump Tower and announced he'd run for president, a little-known consulting firm with links …

Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley is charging a whopping $200,000 per speaking gig  — Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley is currently quoting $200,000 and the use of a private jet for domestic speaking engagements, according to five people with knowledge of the arrangement.

Undocumented worker who was fired by Trump Organization to attend State of the Union  —  An undocumented worker who was fired from the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., after she publicly disclosed her immigration status will attend President Trump's State of the Union address next week.

We Asked 2016 ‘Never Trump’ Republicans if They'll Back the President in 2020: 'I Mean, He's in Office'  —  In 2016, a number of Senate Republicans made the rare political decision to oppose their own party's nominee, then-candidate Donald Trump.  They were known as “Never Trumpers.”

We Now Know The Law Firm Representing The Mystery Foreign-Owned Company That Is Fighting A Grand Jury Subpoena  —  WASHINGTON — The law firm of Alston & Bird is representing the mystery company owned by a foreign country that is fighting a grand jury subpoena at the Supreme Court …

McConnell says bill that would make Election Day a federal holiday is a ‘power grab’ by Democrats  —  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday that a Democratic bill that would make Election Day a federal holiday is a “power grab,” sparking a fierce backlash online.

Howard Schultz's 2020 policies: Reduce the debt, cut entitlements, oppose Medicare for all and taxes on wealthy  —  Howard Schultz, the former Starbucks CEO considering a run at the White House as an independent candidate, believes the federal debt is the nation's “greatest threat,” …

Tim Scott still opposes Thomas Farr, and has sharp words for conservative critics  —  U.S. Sen. Tim Scott has a message for the conservatives excoriating him for opposing Thomas Farr to be a district court judge: They ought not challenge the conclusion of the Senate's only black Republican …

Why Trump's superfans dig Ocasio-Cortez  —  They detest what she stands for.  They think her policies would destroy the country.  And they wish she would just go away.  —  All the same, many of President Donald Trump's most media-conscious supporters can't help but admit it: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has got serious political game.

Special Report: Inside the UAE's secret hacking team of U.S. mercenaries  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two weeks after leaving her position as an intelligence analyst for the U.S. National Security Agency in 2014, Lori Stroud was in the Middle East working as a hacker for an Arab monarchy.

The BuzzFeed Layoffs as Democratic Emergency  —  Digital media has always been a turbulent business, but last week's layoffs suggest a reason for panic.  —  Working in digital media is like trying to build a fort out of marshmallows on a foundation made of marbles in a country ruled by capricious and tyrannical warring robots.

Loss of newspapers contributes to political polarization  —  NEW YORK (AP) — The steady loss of local newspapers and journalists across the country contributes to the nation's political polarization, a new study has found.  —  With fewer opportunities to find out about local politicians …

Poll: Voters oppose another shutdown, emergency declaration  —  Voters have little appetite for another government shutdown if Congress does not approve money to build President Donald Trump's proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, according to a new POLITICO/Morning Consult.

'I'm Going to Die Here,' She Told the Guards.  They Didn't Listen.  —  GOSHEN, Ind. — “Offender Dockery stated to me around 0800 at the front counter that she was having stomach pains for 2 days and wanted to go to the hospital,” read the first entry in a corrections officer's log.

Nellie Ohr Researched Trump's Kids For Fusion GPS  — Nellie Ohr, the wife of Justice Department official Bruce Ohr, told Congress in October that she investigated President Donald Trump's children on behalf of Fusion GPS, the opposition research firm behind the Steele dossier.

Is There Room in 2020 for a Centrist Democrat?  Maybe One or Two.  —  Howard Schultz, the former Starbucks chief executive contemplating an independent run for president, stated it as a plain matter of fact: For someone with his views — a distinctly white-collar blend of conservative fiscal instincts …

An early look at the 2020 electorate  —  The 2020 U.S. presidential election is rapidly coming into view - and so is the electorate that will determine its outcome.  —  While demographic changes unfold slowly, it's already clear that the 2020 electorate will be unique in several ways.