Nuclear weapons agency breached amid massive cyber onslaught  —  The Energy Department and National Nuclear Security Administration, which maintains the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile, have evidence that hackers accessed their networks as part of an extensive espionage operation that has affected …

‘New York Times’ Retracts Hit Podcast Series ‘Caliphate’ On ISIS Executioner  —  Toggle more options  —  The New York Times has retracted the core of its hit 2018 podcast series Caliphate after an internal review found the paper failed to heed red flags indicating that the man it relied upon …

An outraged Kemp blasts pro-Trump conspiracy theorists harassing his family  —  Gov. Brian Kemp is fed up with the unrelenting attacks from conspiracy theorists calling on him to overturn President-elect Joe Biden's victory in Georgia.  But he's even more enraged that some of those peddlers …

Joe Biden Wears a ‘Kick Me’ Sign  —  President-elect Joe Biden went on a rampage early this morning, lashing out at critics within his own party who say his appointments so far lack ideological and demographic diversity and hinting that lawmakers who cross him can expect retribution once he moves into the White House on Jan. 20.

States report confusion as feds reduce vaccine shipments, even as Pfizer says it has ‘millions’ of unclaimed doses  —  Officials in multiple states said they were alerted late Wednesday that their second shipments of Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine next week had been reduced, sparking widespread confusion …

Congress to receive first batch of Covid-19 vaccines, but uncertainty lingers  —  Top congressional leaders will receive the coronavirus vaccine in the coming days with dozens of lawmakers planning to quickly follow suit — an effort designed to maintain a continuity of government while also instilling public confidence in the shot.

White House aides talked Trump out of last-minute demand for stimulus checks as big as $2,000  —  Chaotic chain of events at White House illustrates why stimulus bill remains in flux  —  White House aides intervened Thursday to prevent President Trump from issuing a statement calling …

Democrats fret about Garland for attorney general  —  If Joe Biden picks Merrick Garland to be his attorney general, he could cost his party control of one of the most important judicial appointments in America — and many Democrats do not want the president-elect to take that chance.

Trump's New Brand Is Loser  —  His post-election tantrum is forcing conservatives to affirm, again and again, that he lost the election fair and square.  —  In the six weeks since the Presidential election, various theories—many of them persuasive—have been advanced to explain President Trump's refusal to accept Joe Biden's victory.

ICU availability in Southern California at 0%, and it's going to get worse, officials warn  —  The availability of intensive care unit beds throughout Southern California reached critical mass Thursday with 0% open, and officials warned that conditions in hospitals are expected to erode further COVID-19 continues to spread unchecked.

Trump Bows to Reality, Asks Confidants: Should I Do ‘The Apprentice’ Again?  —  And the show's creator Mark Burnett is intrigued by the money-making potential of a post-presidency reboot, too. … As he begins his final weeks in office, amid a winter surge in coronavirus deaths …

Kelly Loeffler Keeps Posing For Photos With White Supremacists And Other Extremists  —  The senator recently disavowed a photo of her with a former KKK leader, but she's repeatedly aligned herself with racists and far-right supporters.  —  Earlier this week a photo of Georgia GOP …

O Rahm, where art thou?  —  Welcome to POLITICO's 2020 Transition Playbook, your guide to one of the most consequential transfers of power in American history.  —  RAHM EMANUEL had never lost a political campaign.  Until this week.  —  Over the past few weeks, the former Chicago mayor …

Kathleen Rice beats out AOC for spot on coveted House committee  —  Rep. Kathleen Rice has captured a prized seat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee after a contentious showdown with fellow New Yorker, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.  —  Rice and Ocasio-Cortez have been battling behind …

Trump's recognition of Western Sahara is a serious blow to diplomacy and international law  —  James Baker served as the 61st U.S. secretary of state from 1989 to 1992 and as the U.N. secretary-general's personal envoy for Western Sahara from 1997 to 2004.  —  President Trump's recent …

Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon dies of complications from COVID-19  —  Darcie Moran Omar Abdel-Baqui John WiselyDetroit Free Press  —  Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon, a man who dedicated decades to public service and became a household name to metro Detroiters …

Misinformation fatigue sets in  —  “Misinformation isn't going away, but it seems inevitable that people will stop caring.”  —  I expect 2021 will be the year misinformation fatigue sets in — a condition from which I will undeniably suffer and for which I will be partly to blame.

FBI Spied On Fox News, Recorded Phone Call Between Fox Exec And George Papadopoulos, New Texts Show  —  New text messages released Thursday show FBI officials spied on a Fox News executive over the course of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation that targeted President Donald Trump …

The Top 10 Worst Trump-Enabling Takes of 2020  —  As we bid a not-so-fond farewell to 2020, here's a look back at some of the political lowlights.  —  As we close out the year, it's tempting but futile to compile a list of President Trump's worst lies.  But reprinting all of his tweets …

It's time for the ‘Deplorables’ to become the Unconquerables  —  Democrats won the election, but they don't seem very happy about it.  And with reason: The election failed in its main purpose, which was to shut down the Deplorables.  —  The Deplorables, in Hillary Clinton's infamous term …

MAGA leaders call for the troops to keep Trump in office  —  An 1807 law invoked only in the most violent circumstances is now a rallying cry for the MAGA-ites most committed to the fantasy that Donald Trump will never leave office.  —  The law, the Insurrection Act, allows the president …

How Offshore Oddsmakers Made a Killing off Gullible Trump Supporters  —  On Dec. 9, Donald Trump tweeted something incorrect but at least closer to the ballpark of the truth than most of what he's posted since losing his reelection campaign.  —  “At 10 p.m. on Election Evening, we were at 97% …

Exclusive: U.S. to blacklist dozens of Chinese firms including SMIC, sources say  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is set to add dozens of Chinese companies, including the country's top chipmaker SMIC, to a trade blacklist on Friday, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday.

Not the FBI I remember: William Barnett's troubling interview  —  So, where is John Durham and what has become of his investigation into the origins of the Trump-Russia probe?  After serving nearly 28 years in the FBI, I'd like to know just how bad things are for the FBI — or not.

HHS secretary tells staff: My wife is sick with Covid  —  Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar on Thursday night informed staff that his wife, Jennifer, tested positive for Covid-19, according to an email shared by HHS.  —  “Today, my family learned that my wife Jennifer …