Trump hits a new high in national poll  —  Donald Trump just got a little more vault in his ceiling.  Nationwide, the polling-obsessed Manhattan multi-billionaire and leading Republican presidential candidate broke into the 40s on Monday.  —  According to the results of the latest Monmouth …

STATEMENT ON DONALD J. TRUMP RECORD OF HEALTH  —  I am proud to share this report, written by the highly respected Dr. Harold Bornstein of Lenox Hill Hospital, stating that I am in excellent health.  I am fortunate to have been blessed with great genes —  both of my parents had very long and productive lives.

On ‘Princess Bride’ Portrayals, Mandy Patinkin Thinks Ted Cruz Doesn't Get It  —  In recent days, the actor Mandy Patinkin, who played the master swordsman Inigo Montoya in the classic 1987 film “The Princess Bride,” has received emails from friends alerting him to pictures on the Internet …

What The Hell Happened To Mickey Kaus?  —  How a godfather of Democratic political blogging became obsessed with immigration — and came around to Donald Trump.  —  BuzzFeed Editor-in-Chief  —  Cheryl A. Guerrero For BuzzFeed  —  Mickey Kaus was  —  sitting at Superba Food + Bread in Venice Beach …

Bowe Bergdahl to Face Court-Martial on Desertion Charges  —  A top Army commander on Monday ordered that Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl face a court-martial on charges of desertion and endangering troops stemming from his decision to leave his outpost in 2009, prompting a huge manhunt in the wilds …

Registration Begins on December 21, 2015, First 30 Days are Free  —  WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today announced a streamlined and user-friendly web-based aircraft registration process for owners of small unmanned aircraft (UAS) …

Americans Name Terrorism as No. 1 U.S. Problem  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — After the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, Americans are now more likely to name terrorism as the top issue facing the U.S. than to name any other issue — including those that have typically topped …

The biggest Pinocchios of 2015  —  It's time for our annual round-up of the biggest Pinocchios of the year.  —  The 2016 presidential campaign has dominated our coverage of false claims.  In particular, businessman Donald Trump—who has soared to the top of the GOP field—kept us busy.

NBA referee Bill Kennedy reveals he is gay; Rajon Rondo alleged to have made slur to him  —  Bill Kennedy, one of the NBA's top referees, has revealed he is gay.  —  “I am proud to be an NBA referee and I am proud to be a gay man,” Kennedy told Yahoo Sports on Sunday night.

2015 Sportsperson of the Year: Serena Williams  —  Real life?  For Serena Williams that's the easy part now.  That's how it works when you zoom—beyond tennis, beyond $74 million in prize money, beyond one of the greatest late-career runs in sports history—into celebrity hyperspace.

Trump Is Going To Break Your Heart  —  As a young man, I learned that sometimes that hot chick you're dating is also completely crazy and, as much fun as it is to go out with her, it's going to end badly.  That's Donald Trump, the super hottie of the “I Hate the GOP Establishment …

The Unbearable Lightness of Being John Kerry  —  NBC's Chuck Todd asked our sainted secretary of state, the French-looking John Kerry (who served in Vietnam, as James Taranto reminds us) how we're going to enforce a global climate “agreement” that has no legally binding provisions beyond a schedule for more meetings to party on.

Paris teacher stabbed by masked man who yelled about ISIS, prosecutor says  —  Paris (CNN)A masked man yelled support for ISIS as he stabbed a French kindergarten teacher in the throat Monday morning, authorities said.  —  The teacher, who is hospitalized with nonlife-threatening injuries …

Sen. Bob Corker Failed to Properly Disclose Millions of Dollars in Income  —  Tennessee Republican files amendments to reports going back to 2007; ‘I am extremely disappointed in the filing errors’  —  WASHINGTON—Sen. Bob Corker failed to properly disclose millions of dollars in income from real estate …

Republican Billionaires Just Can't Seem to Buy This Election  —  Money has poured into the political system.  And yet spending the cash haul effectively has never been more difficult.  —  4.6k  —  3.3k  —  1.2k … You'd think buying an election would be easy.

MSNBC's Harris-Perry Gripes Over ‘Totally Black Guy’ Darth Vader As Evil Character  —  Share it Tweet it  —  On her eponymously named Sunday morning show, MSNBC host Melissa Harris-Perry went into a mini-rant about racism in Star Wars as she complained about villain Darth Vader being …

Negotiating the Whirlwind  —  John Kerry, the sixty-eighth Secretary of State of the United States, was born to a temperament of wintry rectitude.  He is descended from the Winthrops, who helped found the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the Forbeses, a Brahmin clan that made its money in railways …

‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ Director Tackling Ted Kennedy Thriller ‘Chappaquiddick’ (Exclusive)  —  The script was just named to the 2015 Blacklist.  —  Sam Taylor-Johnson, who directed Fifty Shades of Grey, is in talks to direct Apex Entertainment's feature Chappaquiddick.

Why the Press Can't (and Shouldn't) Quit Trump  —  Ever since Donald Trump appeared on Campaign 2016's horizon, journalists have been imploring other journalists not to cover him.  This began, amazingly, five months before he announced he was running for president, when Conor Friedersdorf laid down the dictum in the Atlantic.

A Professor Took Care Of A Single Mom's Kids During An Exam After Her Babysitter Canceled  —  A college professor in Kentucky is getting a ton of online praise after a photo of him babysitting a student's kids so she could take her final exam went viral.  —  Victoria Henry

E.P.A. Broke Law With Social Media Push for Water Rule, Auditor Finds  —  WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency engaged in “covert propaganda” and violated federal law when it blitzed social media to urge the public to back an Obama administration rule intended to better protect …