How Amy Klobuchar Treats Her Staff  —  Senator Amy Klobuchar was hungry, forkless and losing patience.  —  An aide, joining her on a trip to South Carolina in 2008, had procured a salad for his boss while hauling their bags through an airport terminal.  But once onboard, he delivered the grim news …

Florida human trafficking: Billionaire equity firm owner John Childs wanted on prostitution charge in Vero Beach  —  Billionaire equity firm owner John Childs is one of several men accused of soliciting prostitution in connection with a Florida spa tied to an international human trafficking ring, police said Thursday.

Even if Mueller's probe concludes soon, things are far from over  —  Predictions for when special counsel Robert S. Mueller III will deliver his much-anticipated report to the attorney general have yo-yoed between days and weeks.  —  Two things are more definitive: In January …

Judge tosses North Carolina mandatory voter ID amendment citing gerrymandering  —  A judge in North Carolina on Friday tossed out the state's constitutional amendment requiring a voter ID, citing prevalent gerrymandering in the state's General Assembly.  —  Wake County Superior Court Judge …

Cohen Gave Prosecutors New Information on the Trump Family Business  —  Michael D. Cohen, President Trump's former lawyer and fixer, met last month with federal prosecutors in Manhattan, offering information about possible irregularities within the president's family business and about a donor …

YouTube Just Demonetized Anti-Vax Channels  —  YouTube on Friday said it would prevent channels that promote anti-vax content from running advertising, saying explicitly that such videos fall under its policy prohibiting the monetization of videos with “dangerous and harmful” content.

Court records reveal a Mueller report right in plain view  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump was in full deflection mode.  —  The Democrats had blamed Russia for the hacking and release of damaging material on his presidential opponent, Hillary Clinton.  Trump wasn't buying it.

Do Not Disturb: How I Ditched My Phone and Unbroke My Brain  —  My name is Kevin, and I have a phone problem.  —  And if you're anything like me — and the statistics suggest you probably are, at least where smartphones are concerned — you have one, too.  —  I don't love referring to what we have as an “addiction.”

Trump's Trade Chief Lectures His Boss and Gets an Earful in Return  — Lighthizer tries to shape debate on key element in China talks  — Trump rejects Lighthizer case for memorandums of understanding  —  An exasperated Robert Lighthizer, the U.S. trade representative …

Average tax refund down 17 percent, IRS reports  —  The average tax refund issued so far this year is down by 17 percent, the IRS said, a steep decline that promises more headaches for Republican lawmakers.  —  The agency released data late Friday showing refunds are down for the third consecutive week …

Grand jury is examining whether former interior secretary Ryan Zinke lied to federal investigators  —  Prosecutors have begun presenting evidence to a grand jury in Washington in their probe of whether former interior Secretary Ryan Zinke lied to federal investigators, according to two individuals briefed on the matter.

Trump announces nomination of Kelly Knight Craft to be ambassador to United Nations  —  President Trump announced Friday evening that he will nominate Kelly Knight Craft, the U.S. ambassador to Canada and a major Republican donor, to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

How Esquire lost the Bryan Singer story  —  On February 11, news broke that Millennium Films was delaying Bryan Singer's Red Sonja, which was to begin production this year.  This was, on the face of it, a remarkable turn of events.  Singer's Queen biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody, had just been nominated for five Oscars.

South Dakota governor says Trump trade wars have ‘devastated’ the state  —  South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said Friday that President Donald Trump's trade wars have “devastated” her state, and though she agreed that countries like China were not following fair trade practices …

2020 Democrats' progressive gamble is about to get real  —  Democrats' embrace of sweeping progressive ideas like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal is about to get its first reality check on Capitol Hill — as both parties make huge bets about which message will sway voters in 2020.

Gallup: Liberals outnumber conservatives in only 6 states, down from 9  —  The number of states where liberals outnumber conservatives has dropped more than 30 percent, with just six now in that category: Massachusetts, Hawaii, Vermont, Washington, New York, and New Hampshire.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's call for a ‘living wage’ starts in her office  —  Claudia Pagon Marchena, like so many Hill staffers, moonlighted at a Washington, D.C., eatery to pay her rent until she took a job with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.  She celebrated her last day at her coffee shop job that same week.

Democrat predicts House will get Trump's tax returns — but there are a few complications  —  WASHINGTON — House Democrats are planning to ask for a confidential copy of President Trump's tax returns from the IRS, but obtaining them won't be simple or fast, Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., said during an interview on