“THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW” SCORES HISTORIC RATING OF 4.5M TOTAL VIEWERS IN EXPLOSIVE INTERVIEW WITH LEV PARNAS  —  Maddow's Exclusive Interview with Giuliani Associate Lev Parnas Dominates News Cycle and Draws Largest-Ever Audience for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” Kicking Off 2020 With Huge Ratings Win

Justice Dept. Investigating Years-Old Leaks and Appears Focused on Comey  —  An inquiry into years-old disclosures of classified information is highly unusual and leaves law enforcement officials open to accusations of politicizing their work.  —  WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors in Washington …

Eleven US Troops Were Injured in Jan. 8 Iran Missile Strike  —  The troops were medevaced this week to Germany and Kuwait to be treated for traumatic brain injury after experiencing concussion symptoms.  —  Nearly one dozen American troops were wounded in Iran's Jan. 8 missile attack on Iraq's al-Asad air base.

GOP senator's vicious outburst shows the corruption of Trump's defenders  —  If you were a United States senator who just snapped angrily at a reporter for politely asking whether compelling new information about a matter of great import to the nation was weighing on your understanding …

Virginia Capital on Edge as F.B.I. Arrests Suspected Neo-Nazis Before Gun Rally  —  The three men had obtained guns and discussed traveling to Virginia for protests against new gun control measures, officials said.  —  RICHMOND, Va. — Alarming calls online for a race war.  The arrest of three suspected neo-Nazis.

Spoiler Alert: There Will Be No Impartial Justice for Donald Trump  —  Shortly after 2 p.m. on Thursday, ninety-nine of the hundred members of the United States Senate raised their hands and swore en masse to do “impartial justice” in the impeachment trial of President Donald J. Trump.

Sanders-Warren: An Alliance, if Not a Close Friendship, Suddenly Fractures  —  The dispute has led to negative attacks and doubts about party unity, exactly what Democratic leaders do not want to happen, for fear of handing an advantage to President Trump.  —  WASHINGTON — For a year …

Georgia election server showed signs of tampering, expert says  —  The server was left exposed to the open internet for at least six months, a problem the same expert discovered in August 2016.  —  BOSTON — A computer security expert says he found that a forensic image of the election server central …

Exclusive: Evelyn Yang reveals she was sexually assaulted by her OB-GYN while pregnant  —  Washington (CNN)Evelyn Yang was reading letters that voters had sent to her husband, Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang, and suddenly stopped in her tracks.

A Meticulous Account of Trump's Tenure Reads Like a Comic Horror Story  —  The essence of irony, Henry Fowler wrote in “A Dictionary of Modern English Usage,” is that it “postulates a double audience” — one that's in on the joke, and another that isn't.  The title of Philip Rucker …

Senator Chris Van Hollen on new GAO report: ‘This is a bombshell’  —  Nonpartisan U.S. Government Accountability Office, the GAO, concluded that the Trump administration violated the law in withholding the aid to Ukraine.  Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, who last month …

Senator Collins' Statement on Impeachment Trial Process  —  Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senator Susan Collins issued the following statement on the impeachment trial process:

HBO won't pursue second season of ‘Watchmen’ after creator bows out  —  PASADENA, Calif. - “Watchmen” won a loyal following and critical acclaim, as the superhero comics series was adapted into a politically relevant drama about race and the criminal justice system.

“It's Quite an Upheaval”: In an Ongoing Makeover of the Times Opinion Babel, the Old Editorial Voice of God Is Being Rationed  —  Even as controversies (Bret Stephens) explode like bombs, Opinion chief James Bennet, the second-most powerful journalist at the Times, pursues his cacophonous plans.

Teacher of the Year Takes a Knee  —  Kelly Holstine is a left-wing Minnesota teacher who was honored as the state's Teacher of the Year for 2018-19, and made headlines locally by refusing to attend the White House ceremony at which the states' honorees were recognized last spring.

This Trump Supreme Court Short-Lister Says God Can Instruct Juries on Guilt and Innocence  —  Judge William Pryor of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, a jurist from Alabama with a long record in law enforcement, has twice now been high on President Donald Trump's short list of potential Supreme Court nominees.

Exclusive: Rep. Ayanna Pressley Reveals Beautiful Bald Head and Discusses Alopecia for the First Time  —  We'd like to have A Word with you.  In The Root's op-ed video series, thought leaders across various disciplines give their perspectives on the important issues you should know about.

A Partisan Impeachment, a Profile in Courage  —  JFK lauded the senator who bucked his party and voted to acquit Andrew Johnson.  —  The John F. Kennedy Library Foundation is accepting nominations for its annual “Profile in Courage” award.  The award recognizes “a public official …

Inside Jared Kushner's Unusual White House Role  —  Jared Kushner's White House office is a shrine to his own influence.  Gold-framed accolades from his father-in-law hang on the walls, written in thick black Sharpie in President Donald Trump's spiky hand.  To Jared, Great job on Mexico.

Bloomberg Campaign To El Bloombito Parody Account: Make Me Look Cool...Por Favor  —  There are very few things on this planet that Michael Bloomberg cannot buy.  Private jets, knighthood, Republican Congressional victories—their costs are droplets in a $59 billion sea of wealth.

Twitter apologises for letting ads target neo-Nazis and bigots  —  Twitter has apologised for allowing adverts to be micro-targeted at certain users such as neo-Nazis, homophobes and other hate groups.  —  The BBC discovered the issue and that prompted the tech firm to act.

‘The View’ Has a Meghan McCain Problem  —  The daytime co-hosts' heated bipartisan debates are played down as disagreement among friends.  But the strain for “civility” is tiring.  —  Ms. Ibrahim is a culture writer and reporter.  —  During an episode of “The View” earlier this month …