Bernie Sanders leads the Iowa Poll for the first time, just weeks before the Iowa caucuses  —  U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders leads the Democratic field three weeks ahead of Caucus Day in Iowa — narrowly overtaking his closest competitors, who remain locked in a tight contest just behind him.

White House considers expanding travel ban to more countries  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is considering expanding its much-litigated travel ban to additional countries amid a renewed election-year focus on immigration issues by President Donald Trump, according to four people familiar with the deliberations.

George Conway and Neal Katyal: How Pelosi should play her impeachment cards  —  George T. Conway III is a lawyer in New York and an adviser to the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump super PAC.  Neal Katyal, a law professor at Georgetown University, is the author of “Impeach: The Case Against Donald Trump” …

Trump Allies Explore Buyout of Conservative News Channel One America News Network  —  Hicks Equity Partners, a family investment firm tied to Republican National Committee co-chair Thomas Hicks Jr., is pitching GOP donors on possible deal  —  Allies of President Trump are pursuing an effort …

On the day U.S. forces killed Soleimani, they launched another secret operation targeting a senior Iranian official in Yemen  —  On the day the U.S. military killed a top Iranian commander in Baghdad, U.S. forces carried out another top secret mission against a senior Iranian military official in Yemen, according to U.S. officials.

Trump angered by House ally's push to limit his authority on Iran  —  Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican and staunch Trump ally, pushed other Republicans to vote in favor of limiting the president's authority in the military confrontation with Iran, drawing ire from the president …

Donald Trump Is Starting To Fixate On Bernie Sanders  —  President Donald Trump's reelection campaign is beginning to aggressively attack a rising threat to his power: Bernie Sanders.  —  The Trump campaign put out two statements centered on Sanders this week, and the Vermont senator …

Texas governor to reject new refugees, first under Trump  —  HOUSTON (AP) — Texas will no longer accept the resettlement of new refugees, becoming the first state known to do so under a recent Trump administration order, Gov. Greg Abbott said Friday.  —  Abbott's announcement …

We Found Major Trump Tax Inconsistencies.  New York's Mayor Wants a Criminal Investigation.  —  ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power.  Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they're published.  —  New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said Friday …

AOC riles Dems by refusing to pay party dues, bankrolling colleagues' opponents  —  EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has already topped the fundraising charts in her short time in Congress, but the liberal darling won't donate a cent of her millions to Democrats' House campaign organization …

Farewell to Rock's Greatest Drummer (and Randian)  —  Neil Peart, the Canadian drummer and leader of the Seventies hard-rock band Rush, has died.  Peart had battled brain cancer for three years.  —  I saw Peart and his band perform at the now-demolished New Haven Coliseum during Rush's Power Windows tour …

With love and gratitude...  I ran for president to help forge another direction for our country.  I wanted to discuss things I felt needed to be discussed that otherwise were not.  I feel that we have done that.  —  I stayed in the race to take advantage of every possible effort to share our message.

You Won't Believe What Trump Said About His Middle Name  —  Special correspondent Gabriel Sherman dishes on the White House's Iran scramble, Don Jr.'s electoral ambitions, and—most importantly—the latest evidence of the president's mental decay.  —  In the midst of the Golden Globes …

BREAKING: Iranian National With Machete, Pick Ax Detained on Bridge Near Mar-a-Lago  —  Authorities in and around President Donald Trump's home, Mar-a-Lago, in Florida are no doubt used to dealing with threats and crazy people.  —  But with the uptick in tension because of trouble with Iran …

Swiss Back Channel Helped Defuse U.S.-Iran Crisis  —  The U.S. sent an encrypted fax via the Swiss Embassy in Tehran urging Iran not to escalate, followed by a flurry of back and forth messages  —  BERN, Switzerland—Hours after a U.S. strike killed Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani …

Instagram says it's removing posts supporting Soleimani to comply with US sanctions  —  Washington DC (CNN Business)Instagram and its parent company Facebook are removing posts that voice support for slain Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani to comply with US sanctions, a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement to CNN Business Friday.

The Real Backstory of Why Trump Ordered the Killing of Suleimani Is Becoming More Clear  —  The Trump-Iran story continues to develop in alarming ways.  On Thursday, reports that Western governments believe Iranian military forces mistakenly shot down a Ukrainian passenger jet …

Iran says it ‘unintentionally’ shot down Ukrainian jetliner  —  A woman mourns outside the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton, Alberta, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020, during a vigil for those killed after a Ukrainian passenger jet crashed, killing at least 63 Canadians, just minutes after taking off from Iran's capital.

DOJ says neo-Nazi group used ‘swatting’ to target officials, journalists, church  —  Federal officials said a Virginia man arrested Friday is linked to a string of fake bomb threats and “swatting” attacks on journalists, government officials and others as part of an international group sympathetic to neo-Nazi ideology.

Feces from a giant kettle of vultures is disrupting CBP communications on the US-Mexico border  —  Global Economic Disruptions  —  Globalization, automation, and inequality—oh my!  —  A US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) radio tower near the Texas-Mexico border has become home to some 300 vultures …

Sultan Qaboos of Oman dies aged 79  —  Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said of Oman, the Arab world's longest-serving ruler, has died aged 79, state media say.  —  Last month he returned home after undergoing medical checks and treatment in Belgium.  There were reports he was suffering from cancer.

Trump, red states ask Supreme Court to refuse Obamacare case before election  —  The Trump administration and Republican-led states are urging the Supreme Court to swat away Democrats' request to immediately review a lawsuit threatening Obamacare, which would ensure the politically fraught case …

‘We want to be a no-kill state.’ Newsom calls for end to animal euthanasia in California  —  Gov. Gavin Newsom wants California to stop euthanizing animals, and he's ready to put taxpayer money toward the cause.  —  “We want to be a no-kill state,” Newsom said during a press conference where he presented his 2020-21 budget.

‘Hillbilly Elegy’ Author Starts VC Fund Backed by Peter Thiel  — Narya Capital to finance “scientifically complicated” startups  — Eric Schmidt, Marc Andreessen are said to invest with Thiel  —  With backing from Peter Thiel, Eric Schmidt, Marc Andreessen and other Silicon Valley kings …

Fieldston, Elite Private School, Faces Backlash From Jewish Parents  —  The New York City school is once again embroiled in a debate over its handling of race, religion and ethnicity.  —  Ethical Culture Fieldston, one of New York City's most proudly progressive private schools …

Preview clip: President Trump on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal exit  —  President Trump told Fox News' Laura Ingraham in an exclusive interview his thoughts on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepping down as ‘senior members’ of the royal family.

Kerry on $1.7 Billion Payment to Iran: ‘We Gave Them a Little Bit of Money’  —  Former secretary of state John Kerry, who along with his wife Teresa Heinz is estimated to be worth $1 billion, on Friday referred to the $1.7 billion payment the United States made to Iran in 2016 as a “little bit of money.”