The GOP Abandons Democracy  —  When Donald Trump was granted a coat of arms for his Scottish golf courses in 2012 (after a lengthy court battle, of course), he chose as its motto “Numquam concedere”: Never concede.  He has not, even as it has become clear that he lost the presidential election by a wide margin.

Barr Worked to Keep Hunter Biden Probes from Public View During Election  —  The attorney general knew for months about investigations into Biden's business and financial dealings  —  Attorney General William Barr has known about a disparate set of investigations involving Hunter Biden's business …

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris Are TIME's 2020 Person of the Year  —  Together, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris offered restoration and renewal in a single ticket.  And America bought what they were selling

Covid-19 caused the sudden death of a top state lawmaker in New Hampshire.  —  The New Hampshire State Legislature was already fiercely divided over the coronavirus when the new Republican speaker of the House of Representatives, Richard Hinch, died suddenly on Wednesday.

Trump Administration Executes Brandon Bernard After Jurors Plead For His Life  —  Bernard was an accomplice to a crime at age 18.  He is the ninth person to be executed as part of the Trump administration's end-of-office killing spree.  —  The Trump administration executed 40-year-old Brandon Bernard …

Pentagon pick may need GOP rescue  —  Lloyd Austin will begin courtesy calls with Congress next week, but his nomination to be Defense secretary may not even make it out of committee unless Republicans help grant the waiver he needs to hold the job, people familiar with the matter say.

‘Get off our damn asses’: Stimulus debacle exposes broken Washington  —  Congressional leaders are barely talking.  Renegade centrists are trying to cut a deal that Republicans don't like.  And the president is predominantly focused on overturning an election that he lost.

Rep. Dan Crenshaw Linked to Smear Campaign of Female Vet Led by VA Secretary, Watchdog Says  —  An investigation from the government watchdog that oversees the Department of Veterans Affairs concluded Thursday that a Republican member of Congress was involved in an orchestrated campaign by V …

F.D.A. Advisory Panel Gives Green Light to Pfizer Vaccine  —  The blessing of these experts means that the agency will OK the vaccine's use, paving the way for health care workers to begin getting shots next week.  —  Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine passed a critical milestone on Thursday …

Biden is picking a Cabinet built for comfort.  What he needs is vision.  —  The “comfort-level” Cabinet that President-elect Joe Biden is assembling has some obvious benefits, especially after four years of the petulance and backbiting that turned the White House into what one Trump chief of staff reportedly called “Crazytown.”

Utah Sen. Mike Lee blocks votes to establish Smithsonian museums for Latinos and women  —  Washington (CNN)Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah on Thursday blocked consideration for legislation to establish a National Museum of the American Latino and an American Women's History Museum as part …

‘It Is Roiling Him’: Reporter Maggie Haberman Unpacks Trump's Refusal To Admit He Lost  —  With only a few weeks until President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, President Trump still won't admit defeat.  White House correspondent Maggie Haberman, who has reported on Trump over the past 20 years, sheds light on his refusal to concede.

After coming under fire from Pompeo, State Department watchdog to leave, citing vacancies act  —  The State Department's acting inspector general is leaving his job Friday following an attack on his office by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's spokesperson concerning a report about official trips Pompeo took …

Secession?  Rush Limbaugh floats a startling notion — then quickly backs off.  —  Rush Limbaugh isn't saying he wants the country to split into red and blue factions as a result of conservative fury over the election results.  As he attempted to make clear Thursday, he's just saying that other people are saying it.

In leaked recording, Biden says GOP used defund the police to ‘beat the living hell’ out of Democrats  —  WILMINGTON, Del. — President-elect Joe Biden appeared to blame the “Defund the Police” movement for contributing to surprising Democratic downballot losses in the November election …

The Conservative Idea That Would Let Biden Seize Control of Washington  —  Despite President Donald Trump's landslide defeat at the ballot box in November, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his GOP caucus have embarked on a course to stack the federal administrative state with eleventh-hour appointees.

FBI agents seek Texas attorney general records in Paxton probe  —  Federal agents served at least one subpoena Wednesday on the office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in an ongoing investigation into allegations that Paxton abused his authority by helping a friend and campaign donor.

Coronavirus updates: US death toll surpasses World War II combat fatalities; Pfizer vaccine clears final review before FDA authorization  —  John Bacon Elinor Aspegren Joel Shannon Steve KigginsUSA TODAY  —  The U.S. death toll from COVID-19 surpassed the number of World War II combat fatalities …