Trump threats, U.S. troop build-up raise specter of battle for Hormuz  —  Israelis said securing the strait for energy shipments could become the war's main goal now that regime change and ending Iran's ability to obtain a nuclear weapon seem out of reach.  —  TEL AVIV — A surge …

Pressure builds on Congress as DHS shutdown threatens to drag into April … Trump threw a curveball into the rekindled talks Sunday night when he declared on Truth Social he would not back any deal unless it includes the GOP's partisan elections bill, the SAVE America Act.

Trump installs Christopher Columbus statue on White House grounds  —  The president has condemned efforts to take down statues of Columbus and other historical figures, saying the removals are an “assault on our collective national memory.”  —  President Donald Trump has installed a statue …

“A California sheriff seized 650,000 ballots.  Election experts say it's a big deal”  —  SF Chronicle:  —  Election security expert Gowri Ramachandran said the seizure by Bianco, a Republican candidate for governor investigating a group's disputed claim of a 45,000-vote miscount …

Voice of America staffers sue, alleging Kari Lake put on propaganda  —  In the latest battle over the future of Voice of America, a fresh group of veteran Voice of America journalists are suing Trump administration official Kari Lake, alleging that she is promoting pro-Trump propaganda on air.

Trump Has Detained the Parents of More Than 11,000 U.S. Citizen Kids  —  Reporting Highlights  — More Moms Deported: An exclusive data analysis found Trump has deported moms of U.S. citizens at four times the rate of his predecessor.  — Left Stranded: Because American-born kids …

Inside the Turmoil at Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s C.D.C.  —  Forty-three current and former C.D.C. employees on the changes they say are replacing science with ideology — and making Americans more vulnerable.  —  Almost as soon as he recaptured the White House, President-elect Trump announced …

Republicans fear this Democrat in Georgia Senate race: 'This guy's no slouch'  —  Behind closed doors, Republicans have tamped down their hopes of unseating Jon Ossoff, a 39-year-old powerhouse fundraiser, as he seeks another term.  —  Rep. Buddy Carter warned a crowd of Republicans in Roberta …

Air Canada Express plane hits ground vehicle at New York's La Guardia airport, FlightRadar24 says  —  An Air Canada (AC.TO) Express plane flying from Montreal collided with a ground vehicle upon landing at New York's La Guardia Airport, according to flight tracking website FlightRadar24.

Morning Digest: Trump issues his most bizarre endorsement yet  —  Leading Off  —  Donald Trump executed a bizarre reverse-reversal on Friday when he re-endorsed Rep. Jeff Hurd just four weeks after urging primary voters to deny the Colorado Republican a second term.

Pete Hegseth is promoting a nihilist cult of death  —  The Trump administration is embracing violence for the sake of violence  —  It appears that members of Trump's cabinet get chosen not despite their endorsements of violence, but because of them.  Pete Hegseth was primarily known as a dapper TV host willing to defend war crimes.

Arson attack on Jewish community ambulance service being investigated as hate crime  —  Four ambulances at a Jewish community rescue service in London were set ablaze on Monday morning in what local law enforcement authorities are investigating as an antisemitic hate crime.

War's Attacks on Energy Could Turn Economic Shock Into Long-Term Damage  —  A new phase targeting oil and gas infrastructure in the Persian Gulf threatens to hurt businesses and customers around the world for months or even years.  —  The game has changed.

How Epstein Helped Solve a Billionaire's Problems With Women … In October 2017, a yoga instructor emailed Jeffrey Epstein with a delicate question: When might she receive the tens of thousands of dollars she'd been promised by the billionaire Leon Black?  —  She and Mr. Black …