McConnell Faces Pressure From Republicans to Stop Avoiding Shutdown Fight  —  WASHINGTON — For weeks, Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader, has remained conspicuously on the sidelines, insisting that it was up to President Trump and Democrats to negotiate an end to the partial shutdown of the federal government.

White House Mulls Jim Webb, Ex-Democratic Senator, as Next Defense Secretary  —  WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is considering Jim Webb, a former Democratic senator and Reagan-era secretary of the Navy, to be the next defense secretary, according to three officials …

Ex-US marine accused of spying in Russia is British citizen  —  Paul Whelan revealed to be dual national after being arrested in Moscow for ‘act of espionage’  —  The former US marine who is being held in Moscow on charges of spying is a British citizen, it has emerged.

Iran ‘can do what they want’ in Syria: Trump's comments defy the position of his top aides  —  In his first Cabinet meeting of the year, President Trump stuck a dagger in a major initiative advanced by his foreign policy team: Iran's leaders, the president said, “can do what they want” in Syria.

Bernie Sanders' fans can't be allowed to poison another Democratic primary with personal attacks  —  Bashing Beto O'Rourke (and every other Democrat) doesn't help liberals' cause in 2020.  It only helps Trump.  —  I'm hardly the only political observer who blames Hillary Clinton's general election defeat …

Nancy Pelosi Just Outlined Her Agenda for the Most Diverse Congress Ever  —  Newly-elected House Speaker Nancy Pelosi addressed the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday after Democrats officially took control of the legislative body, invoking two Presidents while laying out her leadership agenda.

The terrifying depths of Donald Trump's ignorance, in a single quote  —  It's been two years since a reality-television mogul, billionaire real estate grifter and sleazy beauty-pageant impresario who somehow ended up on the Republican ticket in the 2016 U.S. presidential election …

Feds charge powerful Ald.  Edward Burke with attempted extortion  —  Ald.  Edward Burke has been charged with attempted extortion after the FBI raided his City Hall and Southwest Side ward offices.  —  Longtime Ald.  Edward Burke, one of Chicago's most powerful figures and a vestige …

That Viral Video of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Dancing Is a Meta-Meme  —  THURSDAY MARKED ONE of the most important days in congressional history for diversity.  A record 102 women took office, 35 whom were newly-elected.  They include Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, the first Muslim women …

How the Border Patrol union became Trump's closest shutdown allies  —  Union officials: it's okay if our agents don't get paid on time, as long as we get the wall.  —  President Donald Trump's hastily called “press conference” on Thursday afternoon — in which neither he nor press secretary …

Why Trump's Generals Have Abandoned Ship  —  After a couple of tumultuous years, President Donald Trump seems to have reached the conclusion that he has had quite enough of generals.  Now, as a retired admiral, I have certainly been annoyed over the years by a number of generals.

House Democrats Not Rushing To Get Trump's Tax Returns  —  The delay by the Ways and Means Committee seems like an effort to be civil and statesmanlike ... in the Trump era.  —  WASHINGTON The first thing Democratic lawmakers have to do to obtain copies of President Donald Trump's personal …

Louis C.K. — and his critics — are a plague on comedy  —  American comedy is slowly dying, under assault from two opposing forces.  From without, PC scolds seek to silence comics whose edgy material makes them feel “unsafe.”  And from within, a growing number of comedians have come …

First On Nancy Pelosi's Agenda: Attacking Free Expression  —  I have zero interest in financially supporting any politician, much less ones I find morally unpalatable.  Yet Democrats want to force me, and every other American taxpayer, to contribute, as a matter of public policy, to the campaigns of candidates we disagree with.

Former Trump club employee says management kept her off Secret Service screening list because she is undocumented  —  A former kitchen employee at one of President Trump's golf clubs in New Jersey said her superiors kept her name and those of other undocumented workers off a list of people …

Congressman Cohen Introduces Constitutional Amendments  —  Would eliminate the Electoral College, limit Presidential pardon power  —  WASHINGTON - Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, introduced two Constitutional Amendments today on the opening day of the new Congress.

As Trump Holds Firm on Shutdown, He Never Mentions One Group: Federal Workers  —  WASHINGTON — He has talked about the need for “protection” along the country's southern border.  He has said he is willing to keep the government shut down indefinitely to ensure the funding of the wall he says will provide that protection.

Judge Rules Ed Sheeran Maybe Plagiarized Marvin Gaye's “Let's Get It On”  —  A U.S. district judge on Wednesday rejected Ed Sheeran's request to dismiss a lawsuit that accuses the pop star of plagiarizing Marvin Gaye's 1973 song “Let's Get It On” on his own 2014 hit “Thinking Out Loud,” Reuters reports.

Apple's stark warning may be ominous news for China  —  ANALYSIS: For most of the past two decades, China - with 400 million middle-class consumers growing richer by the day - was a one-way bet for the world's corporations and a driver of the global economy.

Mitt Romney supports the status quo.  But for everyone else, it's infuriating  —  Newly-elected Utah senator Mitt Romney kicked off 2019 with an op-ed in the Washington Post that savaged Donald Trump's character and leadership.  Romney's attack and Trump's response Wednesday morning on Twitter …

Justice Dept. investigating whether Zinke lied to inspector general  —  The Justice Department's public integrity section is examining whether newly departed Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke lied to his agency's inspector general investigators, according to three people familiar with the matter …