Exclusive: Email shows effort to give Trump campaign WikiLeaks documents  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  Washington (CNN)Candidate Donald Trump, his son Donald Trump Jr. and others in the Trump Organization received an email in September 2016 offering a decryption key and website address …

The G.O.P. Is Rotting  —  A lot of good, honorable Republicans used to believe there was a safe middle ground.  You didn't have to tie yourself hip to hip with Donald Trump, but you didn't have to go all the way to the other extreme and commit political suicide like the dissident Jeff Flake, either.

Arizona's Trent Franks to Resign Jan. 31  —  Updated 7:24 pm |  Arizona Republican Trent Franks said Thursday he is resigning from Congress effective Jan. 31 amid an Ethics Committee investigation into discussions he had with two female staffers about surrogacy.

Congressional Democrats Left Out of White House Hanukkah Party  —  WASHINGTON — The latkes were fried and the kosher lamb chops were prepared on Thursday, just as in past years, for the first White House Hanukkah party of the Trump era.  But there was one prominent break with tradition …

Stark Partisan Divisions Over Russia Probe, Including Its Importance to the Nation  —  Trump's style, Twitter use top ‘disappointments’ among supporters  —  A majority of Americans say they think senior members of Donald Trump's administration definitely or probably had improper contacts …

Dossier author was in contact with Obama Justice Department  —  It's been ten months since Washington learned that former British spy Christopher Steele, author of the so-called “Trump dossier,” took the Hillary Clinton-funded opposition research document to the FBI, which considered sponsoring …

Another strong jobs report  —  U.S. economy continues its strong performance  —  The American economy continues its strong performance.  —  Employers added 228,000 jobs in November, while the unemployment rate remained at a 17-year low of 4.1%, the government reported Friday.

George Papadopoulos' fiancee: He's a patriot, not a Trump campaign coffee boy  —  The Italian fiancee of George Papadopoulos offered the first public defense of the embattled former Trump campaign adviser, who in October was revealed as the first campaign adviser to plead guilty and cooperate with the special counsel's Russia probe.

Al Franken's Resignation and the Selective Force of #MeToo  —  On what he called the worst day of his political life, Senator Al Franken articulated two points that are central to understanding what has become known as the #MeToo moment.  In an eleven-minute speech, in which Franken announced …

Fox's pro-Trump hosts are working overtime to discredit Robert Mueller  —  This is why Trump loves ‘Fox & Friends’  —  What's President Trump hearing when he watches Fox News?  —  He's hearing that special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation is “illegitimate and corrupt.”

Zinke booked government helicopters to attend D.C. events  —  Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke spent more than $14,000 on government helicopters this summer to take himself and staff to and from official events near Washington, D.C., in order to accommodate his attendance at a swearing-in ceremony …

Collins' Obamacare deal faces moment of truth  —  House conservatives thumb their nose at the Maine moderate's bid to slow the demise of the health law.  —  Sen. Susan Collins is barreling toward yet another health care showdown with her own party.  But this time, she might not have the leverage to get what she wants.

Private War: Erik Prince Has His Eye On Afghanistan's Rare Metals  —  BuzzFeed News is publishing the slide presentation by the founder of Blackwater to privatize the Afghan war and mine Afghanistan's valuable minerals.  He pitched the proposal to the Trump administration.

Trump's richest friends are asking for changes to the GOP tax plan, and he's listening … Some of President Trump's wealthiest New York friends have launched a last-minute campaign to pressure him for changes to the GOP tax bill, telling the president personally that the current plan would drive up their taxes and hurt his home state.

The Bitcoin Whales: 1,000 People Who Own 40 Percent of the Market  —  A few massive investors can rock it with a shrug.  —  On Nov. 12, someone moved almost 25,000 bitcoins, worth about $159 million at the time, to an online exchange.  The news soon rippled through online forums …

Roy Moore accuser Beverly Young Nelson: 'I pray that he's changed'  —  One of the women accusing Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore of sexual misconduct, Beverly Young Nelson, told ABC News it “sickens” her to think what might happen if Moore is elected to the U.S. Senate.

Black Mothers Keep Dying After Giving Birth.  Shalon Irving's Story Explains Why  —  On a melancholy Saturday this past February, Shalon Irving's “village” — the friends and family she had assembled to support her as a single mother — gathered at a funeral home in a prosperous black neighborhood in southwest Atlanta to say goodbye.

Ex-Mesa Officer Philip Brailsford found not guilty of murder in shooting of unarmed man  —  Former Mesa police Officer Philip “Mitch” Brailsford is on trial for second-degree murder in the shooting of Texas man Daniel Shaver in January 2016.  Here's an overview of the case.  Wochit  —  CONNECT

The Finance 202: GOP drive to repeal estate tax risks making its tax plan more unpopular  —  THE TICKER  —  House Ways and Means Committee Chairman.  Kevin Brady (R-Calif.).  (Reuters/Aaron P. Bernstein)  —  If you didn't know better, you might think some Republicans were trying …

Justice Department Moves To Investigate Planned Parenthood's Fetal Tissue Practices … The Justice Department is taking steps to investigate Planned Parenthood, The Daily Beast has learned.  —  The head of Justice's office of legislative affairs has sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee asking …

Bredesen Announces, Putting the Race in Toss Up  —  In a recruiting victory for Democrats, former Gov. Phil Bredesen announced today that he will run for the open seat created by the retirement of GOP U.S. Sen. Bob Corker.  Bredesen's announcement puts the race into the Toss Up column …