Republican Senators Recommend Charges Against Author of Trump Dossier  —  WASHINGTON — More than a year after Republican leaders promised to investigate Russian interference in the presidential election, two influential Republicans on Friday made the first known congressional criminal referral …

Roy Moore accuser's Gadsden home burns; arson investigation underway  —  Roy Moore accuser Tina Johnson lost her home Tuesday in a fire that is now under investigation by the Etowah County Arson Task Force.  —  Tina Johnson, who first came to public notice for accusing Senate candidate Roy Moore …

Sarah Sanders: Americans who aren't “celebrating” Trump are “mentally unfit”  —  The White House press secretary wants you to know that Trump is not the one with mental issues — you are, if you don't think he has made your life better.  —  Donald Trump and his allies are fiercely resisting …

Trump campaign digital director: ‘Not one person made a decision’ without Kushner and Eric Trump's ‘approval’  — The digital director of the Trump campaign on Friday painted Jared Kushner and Eric Trump as “joint deputy campaign managers.”  — Brad Parscale's statement came amid …

The Increasing Unfitness of Donald Trump  —  The West Wing has come to resemble the dankest realms of Twitter, in which everyone is racked with paranoia and everyone despises everyone else.  —  What made the Emperor Nero tick, Suetonius writes in “Lives of the Caesars,” was …

CDC to hold briefing on how public can prepare for nuclear war  —  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has scheduled a briefing for later this month to outline how the public can prepare for nuclear war.  —  “While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results …

World Leaders on Twitter  —  There's been a lot of discussion about political figures and world leaders on Twitter, and we want to share our stance.  —  Twitter is here to serve and help advance the global, public conversation.  Elected world leaders play a critical role in that conversation …

‘Romantic encounter’ set off Australia's role in triggering Donald Trump investigation  —  It was a chance romantic encounter by George Papadopoulos that set in train the events that led to the Australian government tipping off Washington about what it knew of Russian hacking efforts to swing the US presidential election.

First phase of Trump border wall gets $18 billion price tag, in new request to lawmakers  —  The Trump administration has told lawmakers that it wants $18 billion over the next decade for the initial phase of a Mexico border wall, laying out for the first time a detailed financial blueprint …

FBI documents: Andrew McCabe had no conflict in Hillary Clinton email probe  —  WASHINGTON — FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, whom President Trump has blamed for influencing the decision not to criminally charge Hillary Clinton for her use of private email server, did not oversee that inquiry …

Exclusive: Top Pence aides quietly depart in new year  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  (CNN)Vice President Mike Pence's chief lawyer and domestic policy director are leaving his office at the beginning of the New Year, according to four sources familiar with the staff turnover.

NPR Host Robert Siegel Signs Off  —  The Bureau of Labor Statistics says the median number of years that American workers have been working for their current employer is a little over four.  —  I say that to acknowledge how unusual it is that I have been working at National Public Radio for a little over 40 years — 41, to be precise.

The Trouble With Kirsten Gillibrand … Back when she had an A rating from the NRA, Kirsten Gillibrand used to brag that she and her family shot their own turkeys for Thanksgiving.  —  But in her relentless positioning for a possible presidential run in 2020, was she too quick on the trigger …

Krasner fires 31 from Philly DA's Office in dramatic first-week shakeup  —  Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner asked 31 members of the office to resign Friday, a dramatic shake-up and the first major staffing decision announced by the city's new top prosecutor, just three days after he was sworn in.

4 women accuse filmmaker Paul Haggis of sexual misconduct  —  LOS ANGELES (AP) — A civil lawsuit charging Oscar-winning filmmaker Paul Haggis with raping a publicist has prompted three additional women to come forward with their own sexual misconduct accusations, including another publicist …

Letterman Netflix series gets Obama as first guest: See trailer  —  Ready for your first look at David Letterman's new talk show?  —  Above is the first teaser trailer for the series, titled My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman.  —  That title suggests a show that's setting …

For Kraft, Brady and Belichick, is this the beginning of the end?  —  THE PROBLEM WITH living your life under the spotlight is that the camera captures only the public eruption, not the months of silent anger.  On Dec. 3, when the New England Patriots played the Buffalo Bills …

The U.S. Wanted to Discuss Iran.  Russia Brought Up Black Lives Matter.  —  UNITED NATIONS — Efforts by the Trump administration to marshal a muscular international response to Iran's crackdown on anti-government protesters appeared to backfire on Friday, as members of the United Nations …

Pulse gunman's wife: I knew he was going to Orlando to attack  —  A handwritten statement given to the FBI by the wife of Pulse nightclub gunman Omar Mateen says she saw him prepare for the deadly attack for months and knew that the LGBT nightclub was his target.

An Eyelash-Freezing ‘Icy Hell’: The One Spot That Could Feel Like Minus 100  —  GORHAM, N.H. — The moment you step out into the frozen air on the way up Mount Washington — considered the most frigid spot in the lower 48 — the icy wind steals your breath and freezes your eyelashes.  You can't blink.

The Bannon Fallacy  —  No one destroyed Bannon save Bannon himself.  —  EDITOR'S NOTE  —  The following is Jonah Goldberg's weekly “news"letter, the G-File.  Subscribe here to get the G-File delivered to your inbox on Fridays.  —  D  —  ear Reader (including those of you with merely average-size nuclear buttons),

If the poor must work to earn every dollar, shouldn't the rich?  —  The argument over which poor people deserve aid has begun anew thanks to incipient Republican efforts to harshen work requirements attached to welfare programs.  For conservatives and thus-inclined Democrats …

Judge won't block Republican in tight Virginia House race tainted by ballot mix-up … A federal judge denied a request to block a Republican from taking office in a Virginia House race tainted by more than 100 voters casting ballots in the wrong district, dimming Democrats' hopes for ending the Republican majority in the chamber.

Trump cools to idea of taking on welfare programs, seeing little chance of success in Congress  —  President Trump has begun telling advisers that it will likely be impossible to advance legislation this year reducing welfare spending and enrollment — a priority he has previously embraced …

Black unemployment rate falls to record low  — The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 6.8 percent unemployment rate for black workers in December, the lowest in the 45 years the data has been tracked.  —  Unemployment among black workers is at its lowest since at least the early 1970s, when the government began tracking the data.