Democrats unveil 2 articles of impeachment against Trump  —  House Democrats unveiled two articles of impeachment Tuesday morning charging President Donald Trump with abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, a historic step that will define Trump's presidency and plunge Washington even deeper into a state of partisan polarization.

Trump blasts FBI director Wray for backing IG report that 2016 campaign probe was justified  —  “With that kind of attitude, he will never be able to fix the FBI,” the president tweeted.  —  President Donald Trump on Tuesday blasted his “current” FBI Director Christopher Wray …

Washington, Obama, and Trump, Oh My!  —  Biden, Sanders, Warren continue to jockey for 2020 pole position  —  West Long Branch, NJ - Most Americans agree that George Washington was a better president than either Donald Trump or Barack Obama - but there are some interesting partisan divisions in that opinion.

The mystery of Rudy Giuliani's spokeswoman  —  The gatekeeper to the lawyer for the most powerful man in the world is a 20-year-old conservative activist with a thin resume, an inflated biography and an impossible job.  —  For the past three months, Trumpworld has been both abuzz and baffled …

Memo from 1990s pollution case shows Elizabeth Warren in action as corporate consultant  —  The memo from then-Professor Elizabeth Warren was written on Harvard Law School letterhead, a symbol of gravitas for a scholar renowned as a champion for consumers victimized by predatory banks and other big businesses.

Donald Trump Is Bad for the Jews  —  There are things more important than your tax rate.  —  On Saturday Donald Trump gave a speech to the Israeli American Council in which he asserted that many in his audience were “not nice people at all,” but that “you have to vote for me” because Democrats would raise their taxes.

GOP's Yoho announces retirement from Congress  —  Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.) announced he will not seek re-election on Tuesday, citing his pledge to only serve four terms in Congress.  —  “I believed when I ran in term limits.  I ran on a pledge to serve four terms - eight years and come home,” he said.

Get The Brief.  —  Sign up to receive the top stories you need to know right now.  —  Sign Up Now  —  The most crucial point at which Yermak's recollection contradicts the testimony of the inquiry's witnesses relates to a meeting in Warsaw on Sept. 1, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met …

The Decade the Internet Lost Its Joy  —  What began as cheerful anarchy was devoured by vulture capital and ruthless consolidation  —  the beginning of 2015, Alex Balk, then-editor of the now-defunct website the Awl, wrote a post of advice for young people in which he supplied three laws about the internet.

Mysterious lights hovering over Mesa skies Sunday night puzzle residents  —  MESA, AZ — Mysterious lights hovering above the east Valley have many wondering if we've had a close encounter.  —  “It was pretty bright, it was about straight up over here, and it went straight that way, stopped …

A 5,000-Year-Old Plan to Erase Debts Is Now a Hot Topic in America  —  (Bloomberg) — Explore what's moving the global economy in the new season of the Stephanomics podcast.  Subscribe via Apple Podcast, Spotify or Pocket Cast.  —  In ancient Babylon, a newly enthroned king would declare a jubilee, wiping out the population's debts.

Lies, Damned Lies and Washington  —  As President Trump faces impeachment by the House, it is the very concept of truth that often seems to be on trial.  —  WASHINGTON — There are days in Washington lately when it feels like the truth itself is on trial.  Monday was one of those days.

How Are Republicans Going To Explain Voting Against an “Obstruction” Article of Impeachment?  —  Will Hurd has had enough.  —  During the open impeachment hearing on November 21, Hurd used his time to issue a statement declaring that he was against impeachment.  The nub of his argument is the following:

Trump called for Seoul evacuation at height of North Korea tensions, new book says  —  President's diktat was ignored by his top officials, Peter Bergen writes in Trump and his Generals: The Cost of Chaos  —  Donald Trump called for the population of Seoul to be moved during an Oval Office meeting …

New York Deepens Its Investigation Into the N.R.A.  —  The New York State attorney general has issued a new subpoena to the National Rifle Association, deepening her eight-month investigation and providing fresh clues about where it is headed, according to people with knowledge of the document.

Warren wants a “blue new deal”  —  Elizabeth Warren is out with new plans to speed up offshore wind projects, expand marine sanctuaries, and bolster use of oceans to soak up carbon emissions.  —  Driving the news: Those are three pillars of the far wider “Blue New Deal” — a riff on the …

Facebook Tells US Attorney General It's Not Prepared To Get Rid Of Encryption On WhatsApp And Messenger  —  Facebook said it would not weaken end-to-end encryption across its messaging apps, despite pressure from world governments, in a letter to US Attorney General Bill Barr and UK and Australian leaders.