For Trump, ‘a War Every Day,’ Waged Increasingly Alone  —  At the midpoint of his term, the president has grown more sure of his own judgment and more isolated from anyone else's than at any point since he took office.  —  WASHINGTON — When President Trump grows frustrated with advisers during meetings …

Trump forgets his base is populists and conservatives  —  When candidate Donald J. Trump steamrolled American politics in 2016, he seemed to understand the coalition available to him was an eclectic bunch that felt its issues had been ignored.  —  They were both populists and conservatives, and they placed him in office.

White House says Erdogan promised Trump he'd finish off ISIS in Syria  —  What took place during Trump's phone call with the Turkish leader has been a central question in the debate over Trump's decision to pull all U.S. troops out of Syria.  —  In his phone call with President Donald Trump …

Mystery Filing Appears to Ask High Court to Act in Mueller Probe  — Grand jury dispute has been long been shrouded in mystery  — Special counsel is investigating Russian election meddling  —  A new legal filing appears to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene …

‘A rogue presidency’: The era of containing Trump is over  —  For two years, they tried to tutor and confine him.  They taught him history, explained nuances and gamed out reverberations.  They urged careful deliberation, counseled restraint and prepared talking points to try …

John Huber, Justice Dept. Sheriff Who Never Quite Rode Into Town  —  John Huber has developed almost mythical status among pro-Trump tweeters since former Attorney General Jeff Sessions directed him to investigate why the FBI spied on Trump's aides and whether they protected Hillary Clinton and her foundation over alleged misdeeds.

Closed until further notice  —  The government of the greatest country the world has ever known, the wealthiest, most powerful nation on the planet: closed until further notice.  —  This shutdown - hundreds of thousands of our fellow Americans working without pay during the holidays …

Indonesia tsunami kills at least 222 after striking without warning  —  JAKARTA — At least 222 deaths have been reported in Indonesia on Sunday after a tsunami struck the Sunda Strait without warning, the latest disaster to befall a Pacific nation repeatedly stricken this year.

Simcha Rotem, last surviving fighter in Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, dies at 94  —  Rotem fought Nazis in city streets, later helped rebels flee through sewers; Netanyahu says, ‘His story will forever be with our people’  —  Simcha Rotem, last surviving fighter in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943 …

A Weak Attack on William Barr's Nomination to Be Attorney General  —  A response to Daniel Hemel and Eric Posner  —  University of Chicago law professors Daniel Hemel and Eric Posner have penned an op-ed for the New York Times in which they argue that William P. Barr is disqualified to serve as President Trump's attorney general.

Laura Ingraham taunted David Hogg over college rejections.  He just said he got into Harvard.  —  In mid-December, Harvard's early-entry candidates began logging on to the application status portal to learn whether they'd been accepted to one of the world's most prestigious universities.

Charter Schools and Race in New Orleans  —  Thursday night, New Orleans public schools as we knew them ended.  With a 5-2 vote by the Orleans Parish School Board, the last remaining public high school in New Orleans became its latest charter school.  —  In a room filled to capacity …