Conservatives plot challenge against Johnson in internal Speaker elections  —  Hardline conservatives are plotting to challenge Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) for the gavel during Wednesday's internal House GOP elections, four sources familiar with the matter told The Hill.

Trump Cabinet Picks So Far Decried as ‘Nightmare Fuel’  —  Progressive advocates voiced alarm Monday over U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's initial leadership picks—including a border czar who oversaw the separation of migrant families during the Republican's first term …

Trump picks Kristi Noem to serve as his Homeland Security secretary  —  President-elect Donald Trump has selected South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as his next secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, according to two people familiar with the selection.

‘Extraordinary circumstances’: NY judge in Trump case pauses all court deadlines, sentencing  —  The 34 convictions could have placed President-elect Donald Trump in prison for up to 4 years  —  The Manhattan judge overseeing President-elect Donald Trump's trial agreed to grant a stay …

Democrat Ruben Gallego wins Arizona US Senate race against Republican Kari Lake  —  Democrat Ruben Gallego has been elected Arizona's first Latino U.S. senator, defeating Republican Kari Lake and preventing Republicans from further padding their Senate majority.

Russia Attempts to Collect Its Winnings  —  Russia has been engaged in a good deal of dick-wagging with Trump since the election.  —  After Trump won, Russia did not call to congratulate — at least as far as we know (though Viktor Orbán seems to be Trump's handler and he did).

What the numbers actually say about the 2024 election  —  In what will likely be the narrowest margin of victory since 2000, Trump probably benefitted from who stayed home.  —  We remain in the post-election period when consultants and politicians try their best to frame the results …

Trump picks former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel  —  President-elect Donald Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel, Trump announced Tuesday.  Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes …

Federal judge blocks Louisiana law that requires classrooms to display Ten Commandments  —  A new Louisiana law that requires the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public classroom by Jan. 1 has been temporarily blocked after a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction on Tuesday.

“Babydog” banned: Jim Justice's bulldog can't visit Senate floor … - Justice, the current West Virginia governor, is in Washington for orientation alongside his fellow incoming senators.  — He asked Tuesday if Babydog could join him on the Senate floor and was told no by staff, the sources said.

No Trump bump: MSNBC hemorrhaging viewers since Election Day, sheds more than half of primetime audience  —  'It's a stale product no one will want to listen to going forward,' Curtis Houck says  —  MSNBC's reliably liberal audience has tuned out the anti-Trump network since Election …

Will the American project survive the anger of white men?  —  At key moments throughout US history, white male anger has been privileged over national security, progress or basic welfare  —  A friend recently asked: “Do you think the United States will survive the anger of white men?”

Melania Trump declines to meet with Jill Biden at White House, citing Mar-a-Lago raid: source  —  Melania Trump declined an offer to head to the White House Wednesday and meet with Jill Biden, citing the Biden administration's past raid on Mar-a-Lago as part of the federal government's investigation into classified documents.

Justice Samuel Alito Plans to Remain on Supreme Court  —  Some Republicans suggest the veteran jurist could step down to let Trump appoint a younger conservative  —  WASHINGTON—Justice Samuel Alito has no plans to step down from the Supreme Court, people close to the justice said …

Trump expected to try to halt TikTok ban, allies say  —  The president-elect promised to ‘save’ the social media app, which faces a deadline early next year to find a non-China-based owner.  —  President-elect Donald Trump is expected to try to halt a potential U.S. ban of TikTok next year …

The Two Donald Trumps  —  The central contradiction of Donald Trump's reelection is this: He owes his victory to the fact that millions of voters appear to have seen him as the stability candidate who would usher in a return to pre-COVID normalcy.  But he has put forward a second-term agenda …

Trump considering former Rep. Chris Stewart for DNI … - Trump reportedly dumped Stewart after learning the Utahn had criticized him as “our Mussolini” in 2016. … - A Trump transition spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Supreme Court rejects Mark Meadows appeal in Georgia election interference case  —  Donald Trump's former White House chief of staff failed in his bid to move the case to federal court to mount immunity arguments.  —  WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday dealt a setback …

The End of American Exceptionalism  —  Trump's Reelection Will Redefine U.S. Power  —  The only thing uncontroversial about Donald Trump is how he won his second term.  Despite polls showing a statistical dead heat and fears of a long, drawn-out wait for election results, Trump was declared the winner early last Wednesday morning.

State: Israel not in violation of US law on humanitarian aid to Gaza  —  The State Department on Tuesday said that Israel is not in violation of U.S. law related to the delivery and access of humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip, despite pushback from aid groups and the United Nations.

John Paulson Drops Out of Running to Become Trump Treasury Secretary  —  Investor says his ‘complex financial obligations’ would prevent him from joining administration  —  Veteran investor John Paulson is dropping out of the running to become President-elect Donald Trump's Treasury secretary …

US Senate Democrats rush to confirm judges before Trump takes office  —  The U.S. Senate's Democratic majority began a crusade on Tuesday to confirm as many new federal judges nominated by President Joe Biden as possible to avoid leaving vacancies that Republican Donald Trump could fill after taking office on Jan. 20.

Blue state govs gear up to protect their people  —  “You come for my people, you come through me.” … 👊  —  Donald Trump's victory in the presidential election last week has led, inevitably, to a miserable round of Democratic blaming, shaming, bitterness, and general panic.

WATCH: Oprah Gets Cornered by Reporter and Asked About That Million Dollars From Kamala (Updated)  —  Update:  —  Harpo, Oprah's production company, has now issued a statement saying, “The campaign paid for the production costs of ‘Unite for America,’ a live-streaming event …