Va. Gov. Ralph Northam says he wants to focus rest of his term on racial equity  —  RICHMOND — Gov. Ralph Northam (D) said Saturday that he believes there is a higher reason for the “horrific” reckoning in the past week over a racist photograph in his medical school yearbook …

Matthew Whitaker Plays to an Audience of One  —  It took about five minutes of questioning for the acting attorney general to provoke gasps and jeers in the congressional hearing room.  “Your five minutes is up,” Matthew Whitaker, an ex-U.S. attorney turned toilet salesman …

Emails Reveal Jake Tapper Ripping BuzzFeed Editor Ben Smith as ‘Irresponsible’ For Publishing Trump Dossier  —  CNN's Jake Tapper sent BuzzFeed News editor in chief Ben Smith a furious email after the outlet made the controversial decision to publish the Steele dossier on President Donald Trump.

Trump campaign slams Warren as ‘fraud’  —  President Trump's campaign wasted no time going after Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Saturday shortly before she was expected to formally announce her candidacy for the White House in 2020.  —  “Elizabeth Warren has already been exposed as a fraud …

White House hunts for ‘executive time’ schedule leaker  —  The White House is aggressively investigating several leaks of President Donald Trump's private schedules, a source of repeated embarrassment to the White House and the president himself.  —  West Wing officials managing the hunt …

West Virginia GOP lawmaker compares gays to the Ku Klux Klan after using ‘f*ggot’ on the House floor  —  A West Virginia Republican delegate compared gay people to the KKK — and drew ire for making homophobic remarks for the second time last week.  —  The Charleston Gazette-Mail reported …

The President is coming to El Paso Monday.  He will promise a wall and will repeat his lies about the dangers that immigrants pose.  With El Paso as the backdrop, he will claim that this city of immigrants was dangerous before a border fence was built here in 2008.

Trump Defies Congressional Deadline on Khashoggi Report  —  WASHINGTON — President Trump refused to provide Congress a report on Friday determining who killed the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, defying a demand by lawmakers intent on establishing whether the crown prince of Saudi Arabia was behind the grisly assassination.

Don't make the mistake of dismissing Iran's ideology  —  Tony Blair was the prime minister of Britain from 1997 to 2007.  —  This piece has been updated.  —  We view Iran as a state with an ideology; but it is more accurately seen as an ideology with a state.

Private Eyes Detail Inner Workings of National Enquirer ‘Blackmail’ Machine  —  Threatening to reveal Jeff Bezos' “dick p*ck” was just the latest strong-arm tactic.  “The nice way of calling it was quid pro quo,” one veteran said, “but really it was blackmail.”

Accused murderer spared abortion charge thanks to Cuomo's new law … Prosecutors initially included a charge of abortion against the Queens man arrested Friday in his pregnant girlfriend's murder — but rescinded it because of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's new Reproductive Health Act.

'It's Cold as Hell': Inside a Brooklyn Jail's Weeklong Collapse  —  Electricity and heat had been faltering for weeks, but complaints were ignored until a crisis trapped inmates in cold, dark cells.  —  [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.]

With Another Shutdown Looming, Flight Attendants Plan Demonstrations on February 16  —  Congressional negotiators told Politico on Friday that they're working on a deal that will prevent a second government shutdown on February 15.  If they fail- or if President Trump again refuses …

Hundreds rally to preserve right not to vaccinate children amid measles outbreak  —  Olympia, Wash. — With more than 50 cases of measles in Washington state, there's been a new push to change the law.  Washington is one of 17 states that allow parents to refuse vaccines for philosophical reasons.