Exclusive: Russian Ex-Spy Pressured Manafort Over Debts to an Oligarch  —  When the U.S. government put out its latest sanctions list on Dec. 19, the man named at the top did not seem especially important.  Described in the document as a former Russian intelligence officer …

New Jersey AG has obtained evidence of possible crimes at Trump's golf club — and Mueller, FBI are involved in probe  —  New Jersey prosecutors have collected evidence that supervisors at President Trump's Garden State golf club may have committed federal immigration crimes …

POLITICO Playbook: Did Trump blow the shutdown?  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  DID TRUMP BLOW THIS SHUTDOWN?  PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP had an empty Washington and the captive attention of the media the last eight days.  Why wasn't he on TV blasting Congress for inaction every single day?

McConnell at center of shutdown impasse — but uncharacteristically disengaged  —  The federal government has been partially shut down for a week, hundreds of thousands of workers are furloughed, but there's no sign of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the veteran dealmaker who's brokered an end to so many Washington impasses.

Trump signs order freezing federal worker pay hike  —  President Trump signed an executive order Friday eliminating a 2.1% pay raise for federal workers due to take effect in January, following through on a pledge he made in August, CNN reports.  —  The backdrop: In a letter …

US farmers ‘helpless’ as TPP boosts Aust  —  US farmers are upset that Australia and Canada will soon get a leg up on them under the TPP trade pact, with reduced tariffs selling wheat to Japan.  —  American farmers are facing the “imminent collapse” of key markets and fear uneven trade playing fields …

It's Not That Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Knows Nothing . . .  As tragedy struck an acquaintance this week, I was reminded today of the fleeting nature of life.  The Psalmist begged God, “O Lord, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am!”

A Week Into Government Shutdown, Ire Turns to Fear for Federal Workers  —  When the government shutdown began a week ago, many federal workers were more irked than anxious.  —  They're really anxious now.  What at first seemed like ho-hum political brinkmanship is looking more like a prolonged …

Trump's focus on pleasing his most ardent supporters raises questions about reelection strategy  —  President Trump's headstrong refusal to reopen the federal government without new border wall funding has set him on a risky and defiant path for 2019, relying on brazen brinkmanship to shore …

Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and Other Democrats Shift into High Gear for 2020  —  Senator Kamala Harris of California is eyeing Baltimore or Atlanta as a possible base of operations for her likely 2020 presidential bid and is close to bringing on a top aide to run her campaign.

Delivery of Union-Tribune and other newspapers affected by computer virus  —  Most Union-Tribune subscribers were without a newspaper this morning as a computer virus that infected the company's business systems hobbled the ability to publish.  —  Production of the U-T, LA Times …

Your Cash Is No Good Here.  Literally.  —  As more retailers—including Drybar and Sweetgreen—ban paper money, it's making things awkward for customers without plastic.  —  Sam Schreiber was mid-shampoo at a Drybar blow-dry salon in Los Angeles when someone from the front desk approached …

The Thinnest Skins In Media In 2018  —  What follows is a list of our favorite media piss-babies and corncobs of the past year.  A quick note to the piss-babies and corncobs themselves: Any communication with me regarding this post will be considered on the record.

Trump's Dilemma: Go To Mar-a-Lago And Get Criticized?  Or Disappoint Dues-Paying Members?  —  Members and guests at Trump's for-profit club are shelling out as much as $1,270 each to mingle with him at his New Year's Eve party.  —  WASHINGTON — Is it worse to disappoint your rich …

Tucker Carlson's Show Sheds Advertisers After Immigration Comments: Report  —  Tucker Carlson's nightly show on Fox News has been hemorrhaging advertisers since the conservative host said that immigration makes the United States “poorer and dirtier and more divided” on Dec. 13, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Mueller appears to respond early in subpoena fight at Supreme Court  —  Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office appears to have responded to a foreign company's bid to get the Supreme Court to step into a fight over a grand jury subpoena served on the firm.  —  Most details of the case …

On the Front Line of the Saudi War in Yemen: Child Soldiers From Darfur  —  KHARTOUM, Sudan — The civil war in Darfur robbed Hager Shomo Ahmed of almost any hope.  Raiders had stolen his family's cattle, and a dozen years of bloodshed had left his parents destitute.

Bre Payton Scholarship Fund  —  $3,089 of $50,000 goal Raised by 62 people in 2 hours  —  Thank you for contributing to the Bre Payton Scholarahip Fund.  In loving memory of Bre's beautiful light, joyful spirit, hard-working ethics, and compassionate heart.

German ‘Islamic State’ wife charged with murder of 5-year-old slave  —  German prosecutors have charged a 27-year-old woman with taking a 5-year-old girl as a slave in Syria and then letting the child die of thirst.  The German had traveled to the Middle East to join the “Islamic State.”