Intimidation, Pressure and Humiliation: Inside Trump's Two-Year War on the Investigations Encircling Him  —  President Trump's efforts have exposed him to accusations of obstruction of justice as Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel, finishes his work.

The Washington Post sued by family of Covington Catholic teenager  —  The family of the Kentucky teen who was involved in an encounter with a Native American advocate at the Lincoln Memorial last month filed a defamation lawsuit against The Washington Post on Tuesday, seeking $250 million in damages for its coverage of the incident.

Jussie Smollett Was Involved In Creating Racist Letter, Which Later Led To Attack, Sources Say  —  CHICAGO (CBS) — The two brothers involved in the Jussie Smollett attack told police that Smollett was behind creating a racist letter that was sent to the actor on the set of his show, “Empire …

CNN Staffers ‘Demoralized’ by Hiring of GOP Operative Sarah Isgur to Edit 2020 Coverage  —  The former Jeff Sessions flack has zero journalistic experience and yet she is tasked with guiding CNN's 2020 reporting.  CNN staffers and media critics alike are not pleased.

Justice Clarence Thomas Calls for Reconsideration of Landmark Libel Ruling  —  WASHINGTON — Justice Clarence Thomas on Tuesday called for the Supreme Court to reconsider New York Times v. Sullivan, the landmark 1964 ruling interpreting the First Amendment to make it hard for public officials to prevail in libel suits.

Reihan Salam poised to bring Manhattan Institute to new highs  —  Our favorite think tank, the Manhattan Institute, just got a new president: the brilliant, heterodox writer Reihan Salam.  —  Born and bred in Brooklyn and a graduate of the city's public schools, he's an excellent choice …

Bernie Sanders Hires Top Progressive Advocate, Faiz Shakir, as Campaign Manager  —  For his second run at the White House, the Senator is leaning on one of the most-seasoned progressives in the party.  —  Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has tapped Faiz Shakir to serve as his campaign manager …

Why Mueller tucked a big Roger Stone reveal in a Russia filing on a technical matter  —  Mueller says Stone communicated with WikiLeaks and the GRU.  He could be holding back charges for strategic reasons.  That's what I did as a prosecutor.  —  CONNECT11  —  TWEET11  —  COMMENT11  —  EMAIL11

Trump administration launches global effort to end criminalization of homosexuality  —  The administration is responding in part to a reported hanging of a young gay man in Iran, Trump's top geopolitical foe.  —  BERLIN — The Trump administration is launching a global campaign to end …

Trump grows frustrated with Coats, leading some to fear he might be fired  —  President Trump has grown increasingly disenchanted with Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats, who has served as the nation's top intelligence official for nearly two years, leading some administration officials …

AP source: FBI had backup plan to save Russia probe evidence  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI developed a backup plan to protect evidence in its Russia investigation soon after the firing of FBI Director James Comey in the event that other senior officials were dismissed as well, according to a person with knowledge of the discussions.

Trump admin. says it will cancel $929 million for California rail project  —  The Transportation Department said Tuesday it intends to cancel $929 million in federal grant funds for California's scaled-back high-speed rail network, and that it is “actively exploring every legal option” …

Facing ethics violation, Wilbur Ross says he didn't mean to file inaccurate financial disclosures  —  The U.S. government's top ethics watchdog has ruled that Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross violated his ethics agreement by inaccurately reporting stock holdings in his 2018 financial disclosure form.

Flynn-backed plan to transfer nuclear tech to Saudis may have broken laws, say whistleblowers  —  Investigators fear President Trump is still considering the plan, which was pushed by Flynn and Trump friend Tom Barrack.  —  WASHINGTON — Whistleblowers from within President Donald Trump's …

Top North Korean official says his country faces major food shortages, blaming weather and sanctions  —  In a letter obtained by NBC News, North Korea pleads for help in feeding its people from international organizations.  —  A senior North Korean official says his country …

California Republicans look into the abyss  —  SACRAMENTO — California's establishment Republicans are making their final stand.  —  After decades of decline and a devastating 2018 election cycle that gutted an already decimated state party, the GOP's more moderate wing is gearing …