AT WAR WITH THE TRUTH … A confidential trove of government documents obtained by The Washington Post reveals that senior U.S. officials failed to tell the truth about the war in Afghanistan throughout the 18-year campaign, making rosy pronouncements they knew to be false and hiding unmistakable evidence the war had become unwinnable.

The Indispensable Man: How Giuliani Led Trump to the Brink of Impeachment  —  Not so long ago, it seemed to Rudolph W. Giuliani that he would be presiding over a hefty part of the world.  —  Holding court a few nights after the 2016 election in a private cigar bar on Fifth Avenue …

Barr Allows for Release of Additional Details About Ex-Spy Behind Steele Dossier  —  The British former spy was told on the eve of its release that a highly anticipated inspector general's report would contain further information about him than he had expected.

Impeachment tensions flare: Dem counsel says Trump abused power, as GOP rips ‘rubber stamp’ hearing  —  The House Judiciary Committee on Monday kicked off an unruly hearing to receive the impeachment inquiry's findings, with Democrats arguing President Trump put “himself before his country” …

BREAKING: As Impeachment Moves Ahead Trump Surges in Battleground States  —  Firehouse/Optimus December Battleground State Poll: As Impeachment Moves Ahead, President Trump Well-Positioned Against Leading Democratic Contenders  —  This week we continued our quarterly battleground polling series in Michigan …

Seven Outright Falsehoods in GOP Staff Report on Impeachment  —  On December 2, 2019, Republican staff of the three committees overseeing the impeachment inquiry published a report prepared for the GOP Chairs: Representatives Devin Nunes, Jim Jordan, and Michael McCaul.

The massive triumph of the rich, illustrated by stunning new data  —  The triumph of the rich, which is one of the defining stories of our time, is generally described as largely the reflection of two factors.  The first, of course, is the explosion of income among top earners …

Kamala Harris Leads Senators In Demanding ‘Immediate Removal’ Of Stephen Miller  —  More than half of Senate Democrats say Miller's “demonstrable white nationalist ideology has been directly translated” into Trump administration policy.  —  Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) …

Paul A. Volcker, Fed Chairman Who Waged War on Inflation, Is Dead at 92  —  Mr. Volcker helped shape American economic policy for decades, notably by leading the Federal Reserve's brute-force campaign to subdue inflation in the 1970s and '80s.  —  Paul A. Volcker, who helped shape American economic policy …

Claremont Nativity scene depicts Jesus, Mary and Joseph as refugees separated in cages  —  A Methodist church in Claremont unveiled a Nativity scene Saturday night depicting Jesus, Mary and Joseph as refugees in cages, likening one of the most well-known images of the Christmas season to photos …

India Prepares to Block Naturalization for Muslims  —  A bill establishing a religious test for immigration to India is expected to pass Parliament, a major step for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu-nationalist agenda.  —  HYDERABAD, India — India took a major step toward …

2019 Sportsperson of the Year: Megan Rapinoe  —  Playing the world's game, on the world's stage, under attack by a world leader, she dominated.  And in doing so without fear, Megan Rapinoe became a voice for so many across the world.  —  Before the final whistle, before the chants of …

Mob Looted Tax-Break Towers Rising Along The High Line: Feds  —  They'll stand as shining symbols of affluence next to The High Line: two towers known as The XI, housing a hotel and 234 condos going for up to $25 million, rising to take their place in the city skyline.

What Trump has done to the courts, explained  —  No president in recent memory has done more to change the judiciary than Donald Trump.  —  In less than three years as president, President Trump has done nearly as much to shape the courts as President Obama did in eight years.

White House, congressional Democrats on cusp of revised North American trade deal, Trumka says  —  The White House and House Democrats are on the cusp of finalizing a new trade deal for North America, a major achievement for President Trump and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that comes even as Democrats prepare to impeach the president.

What Happened When I Tried to Find Someone Who Bought a Bloomberg T-Shirt  —  Who is buying and wearing T-shirts for the late-entering moderate billionaire candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination?  —  omething curious happens when you visit the official campaign website of Mike Bloomberg …

Sanna Marin of Finland to Become World's Youngest Prime Minister  —  At 34, Ms. Marin will head a coalition made up of five parties, in a government led by women.  —  HELSINKI, Finland — Sanna Marin, 34, is set to become the world's youngest sitting prime minister when she is sworn in this week in Finland …

Michelle Obama speaks out on impeachment proceedings: 'It's surreal'  —  The former first lady opened up about a number of issues in an exclusive interview with TODAY's Jenna Bush Hager.  —  Michelle Obama views the impeachment proceedings involving President Donald Trump as “surreal,” …

Possible pardons loom for former Trump aides  —  Roger Stone's supporters are making a pardon pitch everywhere President Donald Trump looks: Fox News, InfoWars, Twitter, even the White House driveway.  —  Michael Flynn abruptly hired a bombastic lawyer who spouts Trump-friendly theories …

Pensacola Attack Probed for Terrorism Link.  Saudi Suspect Clashed With Instructor.  —  The F.B.I. said it was conducting a terrorism investigation into the shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola, as new information emerged about the gunman's training at the facility.

Amazon Bid Protest on JEDI Claims ‘Improper Pressure’ From Trump  —  Company says president wanted to harm Bezos in awarding of cloud-computing deal to Microsoft  —  WASHINGTON—Amazon.com Inc. said President Trump exerted “improper pressure” on the Pentagon to keep a lucrative cloud-computing deal …

Devin Nunes's explanations for his Parnas phone calls are getting increasingly outlandish  —  Devin Nunes isn't doing a very plausible job answering questions about his involvement in the Ukraine caper.  —  House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Devin Nunes (R-CA) …

This is a nuclear weapons offer Trump ought not refuse  —  IT IS not very often that the Kremlin issues a transcript of remarks by President Vladimir Putin with a sentence marked in highlighter, but that's what happened Dec. 5 when Mr. Putin met with leaders of Russia's defense industry.