Des Moines Register, partners cancel release of Iowa Poll over respondent concerns  —  The Des Moines Register, CNN and Selzer & Co. have made the decision to not release the final installment of the CNN/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll as planned this evening.

Sanders and Steyer closing gap on Biden as SC 2020 presidential primary nears  —  COLUMBIA — Joe Biden's hold atop South Carolina Democratic presidential primary polls has never wavered over nearly a year.  —  But the former vice president's lead continues to slide with the South's first primary just under a month away.

Rivals warn Sanders campaign plans to game Iowa results  —  Fueling the rising anxiety is a change to how the caucuses will report their results in 2020.  —  Sen. Bernie Sanders addresses a campaign rally Saturday in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  M. Scott Mahaskey/Politico

Inside the Senate trial: McConnell stops rebel push in GOP for witnesses  —  Inside the Mansfield Room at the Capitol, where Senate Republicans have held daily strategy sessions during President Trump's impeachment trial, senators began walking through their arguments on why they should block witnesses …

As New Coronavirus Spread, China's Old Habits Delayed Fight  —  At critical turning points, Chinese authorities put secrecy and order ahead of openly confronting the growing crisis and risking public alarm or political embarrassment.  —  WUHAN, China — A mysterious illness had stricken seven patients …

Trump, Unrepentant and Unleashed  —  The diabolical duo of Donald and Mitch, serving their own interests, not the national one.  —  WASHINGTON — During a meeting with Donald Trump at Trump Tower in June of 2016, with the opéra bouffe builder improbably heading toward the nomination despite …

NOAA emails reveal internal alarm over Trump's claims about Hurricane Dorian  —  Senior National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officials privately slammed an unsigned NOAA statement contradicting forecasters and backing President Trump's claims that Hurricane Dorian was threatening Alabama …

Trump's Ugly Media Obsessions: ‘Fat’ Meghan McCain, ‘Bitch’ Katy Tur & More  —  EXCERPT  —  In this selection from their new book, “Sinking in the Swamp,” Daily Beast reporters Lachlan Markay and Asawin Suebsaeng lay bare Trump's petty, relentless rants about the media.

A U.S. Plane Crashed in Afghanistan.  Why So Many Believed a CIA Chief Was On It.  —  The wreckage of a U.S. military plane that crashed and burned in a snowy mountainous region in Afghanistan on Monday was still fresh when Iranian state TV ran a story claiming a top CIA officer was among the dead.

Billings legislator insists Constitution says it's OK to shoot socialists  —  HELENA — A Billings Republican legislator said Saturday he believes the U.S. Constitution calls for the shooting or jailing of those who identify as socialists.  —  State Rep. Rodney Garcia …

Wisconsin voters are warming to Trump, despite impeachment  —  PEWAUKEE, Wis. — Katrina Goetz is fully invested in her community.  A wife, mother of three and volunteer, she is also an executive overseeing 65 employees at TLX Technologies in suburban Milwaukee.

NBC/WSJ poll: Country remains divided over Trump's impeachment trial  —  Majorities of Americans believe the president abused his power and obstructed Congress but split over whether it was enough to remove him.  —  WASHINGTON — Majorities of American voters believe that President Donald Trump abused …

John le Carré on Brexit: 'It's breaking my heart'  —  This week the novelist received the Olof Palme prize for achievement in the spirit of the assassinated Swedish statesman.  He reflects on how a lack of leadership today has allowed us to ‘sleepwalk’ into Brexit