Trump Plans National Emergency to Build Border Wall as Senate Passes Spending Bill  —  WASHINGTON — President Trump plans to declare a national emergency so he can bypass Congress and build his long-promised wall along the border even as he signs a spending bill that does not fund it, the White House said Thursday.

Amazon Pulls Out of Planned New York City Headquarters  —  Amazon on Thursday canceled its plans to build an expansive corporate campus in New York City after facing an unexpectedly fierce backlash from some lawmakers and union leaders, who contended that a tech giant did not deserve nearly $3 billion in government incentives.

Every Day Is a New Low in Trump's White House  —  The president steps over bright ethical and moral lines wherever he encounters them.  Everyone in America saw it when he fired my boss.  But I saw it firsthand time and time again. … On Wednesday, May 10, 2017, my first full day on the job …

DNC announces fundraising, polling thresholds for early debates  —  The Democratic National Committee will limit its first presidential debates this year to 20 candidates, dividing the field over two nights, if necessary, and requiring candidates to meet either a fundraising or polling threshold …

Immigration Landmines in the Funding Bill  —  The text of the funding bill was released last night/this morning, and lawmakers are expected to vote on the 1,169-page measure as early as this evening.  The bill is disappointing in many respects, but if it had been as advertised earlier, it might have been tolerable.

“My Only Goal Has Been to Protect Jeff and Lauren”: Michael Sanchez, Suspected Bezos Leaker, Supplies His Own Theory About the Affair, the Enquirer, Some Below-the-Belt Selfies, and “a Legendary Romance”  —  Weeks ago, Michael Sanchez was a minor player on the fringes of Hollywood …

'Here's the system, it sucks': Meet the Hill staffers hired by Ocasio-Cortez to upend Washington  —  One is the daughter of an immigrant from Nigeria who wanted to understand the causes of her mom's plight, starting a search that would lead her to Spelman, Oxford, Harvard, Georgetown …

You may be disappointed by the Mueller report  —  The special counsel operates under rules that severely constrain how much information can be made public.  —  WASHINGTON — Millions of Americans are waiting for Robert Mueller to give them the final word on whether the Trump campaign conspired …

Prosecutors Are Moving to Indict R. Kelly, After the Discovery of Another Videotape  —  According to a senior law-enforcement official, the tape shows Kelly sexually assaulting an underage girl.  —  A videotape from the R. & B. superstar R. Kelly's past may soon lead to his indictment in Illinois …

Trump technically obese, despite doctor's clean bill of health  —  President Donald Trump gained four pounds over the last year, according to a new assessment from his doctor, a weight increase that makes him technically obese.  —  But Trump's doctor, Sean Conley, nonetheless determined that the president …

Daily Kickoff: Rep. Ilhan Omar vs. Elliott Abrams |  Why Howard Schultz keeps a stone from Auschwitz on his desk |  Annie Leibovitz's early years  —  Tell your friends to sign up for the Daily Kickoff here or for early 7AM access via Debut Inbox  —  SCOOP: HEARD LAST NIGHT — Sen. Bernie Sanders …

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Isn't Looking to Retire Yet, But Is Another Supreme Court Justice Ready to Go?  —  No one tells a Supreme Court Justice when to retire.  But there are currently two retirement dramas under way at the Court—one semi-public and the other semi-private …

Blaming Political Climate, Trumps Give Up on New Hotels  —  In the early months of the Trump administration, with the president no longer running his family business, his eldest sons embarked on a plan to roll out two new hotel lines in dozens of American cities.

U.S. Border Patrol Detained U.S. Citizens for Speaking Spanish in Montana  —  & Caitlin Borgmann, Executive Director, ACLU of Montana  —  For Ana Suda and Martha “Mimi” Hernandez, May 16, 2018, began like any other in Havre, Montana: work, school, and a trip to the gym once their kids were in bed.

Anti-Vaccine Facebook Ads Target Women in Measles-Stricken States  —  Nearly 150 spots are targeting women over the age of 25—the group most likely to include mothers of children who might need to be vaccinated.  —  BEAST INSIDE … Facebook's advertising platform is being used …