William Barr is unfit to be attorney general  —  Eric H. Holder Jr., a Democrat, was U.S. attorney general from 2009 to 2015.  —  As a former U.S. attorney general, I am reluctant to publicly criticize my successors.  I respect the office and understand just how tough the job can be.

2 GOP senators say McConnell will move to acquit Trump, not merely dismiss charges  —  (CNN)Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is expected to hold a final vote to acquit President Donald Trump should he be impeached, when a majority of senators believe his trial has run its course instead …

Report: Trump's Ukraine Extortion Scheme Was Financed by Russia  —  President Trump is facing impeachment primarily for abusing his power for political gain, extorting a foreign country to discredit his political rivals.  The secondary aspect of the plot is that the target of his extortion is hardly random.

President Trump considering adding controversial lawyer Alan Dershowitz to impeachment legal team: Sources  —  Donald Trump is gearing up for his impeachment defense in the Senate.  —  Gearing up for an impeachment trial in the Senate, President Donald Trump and his top advisers …

Can You Spot the Fake?  Hint: Look at the pundits.  —  The week before the last Democratic primary debate of 2019, a panel of pundits on MSNBC's Morning Joe gathered to make an explicit critique of one of the candidates.  Citing a “whiff of fraudulence,” political writer John Heilemann talked …

Republican lawmaker asks Lindsey Graham to ‘rethink’ Senate's impeachment strategy  —  “It is urgent we fight fire with fire,” said Rep. Jim Banks.  —  Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham.  J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo  —  Rep. Jim Banks is calling on fellow Republican …

Bevin pardons include convicted killer whose brother hosted campaign fundraiser for him  —  The family of a man pardoned by Gov. Matt Bevin for a homicide and other crimes in a fatal 2014 Knox County home invasion raised $21,500 at a political fundraiser last year to retire debt from Bevin's 2015 gubernatorial campaign.

Pentagon watchdog plans to review award of $400M border wall contract to firm touted by Trump  —  Fisher Sand & Gravel has been publicly and privately endorsed to build the wall by members of the Trump administration, including the president himself.  —  WASHINGTON — The Defense Department's …

Trump mocks Greta Thunberg after she wins Time Person of the Year  —  “So ridiculous,” Trump tweeted.  “Greta must work on her Anger Management problem, then go to a good old fashioned movie with a friend!  Chill Greta, Chill!”  —  Trump mocks Time's Person of the Year on Twitter

Fox host lambasts Trump over ‘most sustained assault on press freedom in US history’  —  Chris Wallace, admired for breaking ranks with some in the conservative network, drew applause with most stinging critique yet  —  A leading host on Fox News, a conservative network notorious for its loyalty …

DOJ charges 10 former NFL players in alleged health care fraud scheme  —  The scheme involved over $3.9 million in false health care claims.  —  The Department of Justice announced charges Thursday against 10 former NFL players over an alleged scheme to defraud millions of dollars from the league's health care benefits program.

In a Turnabout, Kentucky to Give Voting Rights to 100,000 Former Felons  —  The state's new Democratic governor has said he will restore rights to many former felons, easing one of the nation's strictest policies.  Iowa would be alone in barring voting by all felons.

NBC News, MSNBC to host February Democratic debate in Las Vegas  —  The event, the third NBC News debate of the 2020 election cycle, comes in the midst of the early-state primary voting.  —  NBC News and MSNBC will host a Democratic presidential primary debate Feb. 19 in Las Vegas, the Democratic National Committee announced Thursday.

What if Trump Weren't Nuts?  —  A moment when the president of the United States is on the verge of being impeached and also enacting a major bipartisan trade agreement is a good time to ponder the question: What if Donald Trump were not, um, you know ... what is the phrase we are groping for?

Lachlan Murdoch Sets L.A. Record by Paying $150 Million for a Château-Style Mansion  —  Once listed for $350 million, the Bel-Air estate of late media tycoon A. Jerrold Perenchio is the second priciest home ever to have traded in the U.S.  —  Lachlan Murdoch, media executive and son …

Three die as marauding Pakistan lawyers rampage through cardiac hospital  —  Three heart patients died after a mob of lawyers rampaged through a Lahore hospital in a dispute with doctors.  —  Up to 200 lawyers wearing traditional black suits stormed the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) …

Online posts tied to suspected New Jersey deli shooter pushed anti-Semitic conspiracies  —  Multiple years of social media posts connected to one of the suspects indicated that he also advocated for violence against police officers.  —  One of the two suspects in Tuesday's shooting …

The False Romance of Russia  —  Sherwood Eddy was a prominent American missionary as well as that now rare thing, a Christian socialist.  In the 1920s and '30s, he made more than a dozen trips to the Soviet Union.  He was not blind to the problems of the U.S.S.R., but he also found much to like.

My position on the Confederate flag has been constant.  Our country's culture has changed.  —  Nikki Haley, a Republican, was governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017 and served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations from 2017 through 2018.  —  Four years ago, the removal …

POLITICO Playbook: Do Democrats have a Plan B?  —  BY THE END OF TODAY, the House Judiciary Committee will have reported out two impeachment articles aimed at removing President DONALD TRUMP from office.  This is the front end of a momentous few weeks, during which the Senate will try …