The real reason Trump allies are attacking Mueller  —  President Donald Trump insists he's not going to fire Robert Mueller, but that's not stopping Republicans and others close to the president from orchestrating a relentless stream of attacks on the credibility and integrity of the special counsel and his team of Russia investigators.

Who are we as a country?  Time to decide: Sally Yates  —  Stand up and speak out on America's core founding values.  We are not living in ordinary times, and it's not enough to admire them from afar.  —  Over the course of our nation's history, we have faced inflection points …

‘Silicon Valley’ Star T.J. Miller Accused of Sexually Assaulting and Punching a Woman … Warning: This story includes graphic content.  —  An alleged victim of former Silicon Valley star T.J. Miller is coming forward with accusations that Miller hit and sexually assaulted her while in college.

Public opposition to tax bill grows as vote approaches  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  — Trump's 35% approval is a new low in CNN polling, below previous first-year presidents at this point  —  WASHINGTON (CNN)With the House of Representatives set to vote on the Republican tax reform bill Tuesday …

White House Blatantly Admits Trump Probably Didn't Read His Own National Security Strategy  —  Trump national security spokesman Michael Anton said he “can't say” whether the commander-in-chief of the world's most powerful military has read the 55-page document.

Heritage's New President  —  The Heritage Foundation Names Kay Coles James New President … The Heritage Foundation today announced Kay Coles James will become the sixth president in the think tank's 44-year history.  James will officially take over as president from founder Edwin J. Feulner on Jan. 1, 2018.

Trump talked about rescinding Gorsuch's nomination … For nearly eight months, President Trump has boasted that appointing Neil M. Gorsuch to the Supreme Court ranks high among his signature achievements.  —  But earlier this year, Trump talked about rescinding Gorsuch's nomination …

The Senate's Russia Investigation Is Now Looking Into Jill Stein, A Former Campaign Staffer Says  —  The Senate Intelligence Committee has asked Green Party candidate Jill Stein's campaign to turn over documents, a former employee says.  Stein is expected to release them publicly as well.

The G.O.P. Tax Bill Is Unworkable  —  With the House of Representatives set to pass the final version of the Republican tax bill on Tuesday, and a vote in the Senate expected later in the week, here is a prediction: no matter which party controls Congress after next year's midterms …

Democrats have a new Southern strategy  —  MAGIC WALL: Jones' big Alabama win & its impact on 2018  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  (CNN)With Doug Jones' upset victory in last week's Alabama US Senate race, Democrats are solidifying a new model for rebuilding their tattered competitiveness in the South.

Conservatism Can't Survive Donald Trump Intact  —  On Monday morning the conservative-media world woke up to a savagely personal attack in National Review on the Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin.  The outburst might seem a textbook case of the narcissism of petty differences within the conservative world.

‘I Was An Easy Pickup’: How Trump Lost Manchin on Taxes  —  Subscribe to Off Message on Apple Podcasts here.  Subscribe via Stitcher here.  —  During the transition last year and several times since, Donald Trump repeatedly pushed Joe Manchin to switch parties and become a Republican …

Leaked memo schooled Tillerson on human rights  —  Three months into his tenure as secretary of state, Rex Tillerson alarmed veteran diplomats with remarks that sounded like a potential shift in American foreign policy: The U.S., he said, should be careful not to let values like human rights create …

Bob Corker's suspicious yes on the tax bill  —  IT IS HARD to say what is most damning about the process Republicans used to produce their $1.5 trillion overhaul of the tax code.  Is it the suggestion by critics that a key senator dropped his opposition because of a last-minute change that would benefit him personally?

Former Pentagon UFO official: ‘We may not be alone’  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  (CNN)A former Pentagon official who led a recently revealed government program to research potential UFOs said Monday evening that he believes there is evidence of alien life reaching Earth.

Trump's first year is starting to look like a big win  —  Republicans have tried, on and off, to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil drilling since the 1980s.  The effort has always engendered intense opposition and always been abandoned.  A provision for drilling in ANWR …

Le Bilboquet Owner Speaks Out About Donald Trump Jr.'s ‘Offensive’ Obama Cake  —  He expressed shock that Trump Jr. and Ted Cruz used his restaurant as a “platform to spread hatred”  —  What the... ?  Over the weekend, the French eatery Le Bilboquet played host to Donald Trump Jr., Ted Cruz …

Decades after the company tried to tackle sexual misconduct at two Chicago plants, continued abuse raises questions about the possibility of change. … CHICAGO — The jobs were the best they would ever have: collecting union wages while working at Ford, one of America's most storied companies.

Lakewood mayor had predicted new Amtrak rail line would lead to fatalities  —  The city of Lakewood sued the Washington State Department of Transportation in 2013 seeking to halt the project, arguing it had not undergone sufficient environmental review.  The city lost its case in part …

Secretary of State launches investigation into voter fraud concerns in Senate special election  —  Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill is investigating a concern over potential voter fraud in last Tuesday's special Senate election.  —  It all stems from a brief interview FOX10 News …

The Daily 202: Why a Louisiana GOP senator keeps bringing down Trump judicial nominees  —  THE BIG IDEA: John Neely Kennedy, a freshman Republican senator from Louisiana, complained three weeks ago that the White House was ignoring his concerns about the subpar quality of President Trump's judicial nominees.