Money is power. In our system of government, that power was intended to rest squarely with Congress. Yet in recent years, we’ve seen presidents of both parties find ways to sidestep Congress’s “power of the purse” authority, steadily chipping away at their Article I powers and turning appropriations into suggestions rather than binding ...Read more

Scapegoating is an old ruse of authoritarian leaders to get their followers to support action against the minority scapegoated, or even commit crimes themselves against the scapegoated.

The Nazi's used the burning of the Reichstag (the German equivalent of the Capitol), which they blamed on a Communist, to convince the German President to issue...Read more

MIAMI — Donald Trump’s planned presidential library in Downtown Miami is already breaking norms — after a lightning-quick land deal, discussions of a hotel on-site and an unusual early source of funds from lawsuit settlements.

Since the state of Florida only had one requirement in the land transfer — that construction begin within five ...Read more

Amid a funding stalemate in Congress and a federal government shutdown, President Donald Trump’s planned termination of nearly $8 billion for energy projects primarily in states that didn’t vote for him includes $583 million in cuts for projects in Illinois.

Among those set to lose tens of millions of dollars in anticipated funding are ...Read more

The U.S. Department of Energy is canceling 12 grants for energy projects in Minnesota, including a $464 million proposal to build large transmission lines in seven states, according to a list reviewed by The Minnesota Star Tribune.

The projects are part of $7.5 billion in Energy Department cuts announced by the Trump administration Wednesday ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The partial government shutdown rolled on Thursday with both sides dug in and President Donald Trump using the funding lapse as an excuse to cut billions of dollars in “dead wood,” as he put it, throughout the executive branch.

Trump said in a social media post that he’d meet with Office of Management and Budget Director ...Read more

California Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened to pull “billions of dollars” in state funding from any California university that signs a Trump administration proposal offering preferential funding in exchange for certain demands, including a cap on international students.

“California will not bankroll schools that sell out their students, ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Vice President JD Vance has emerged as President Donald Trump’s lead attack dog on the government shutdown as some Democrats lambaste what they see as a lack of White House leadership.

Vance, a former Ohio senator, helped Republicans negotiate a tax and spending bill among themselves earlier this year, but he has stepped into ...Read more

Starting next year, offering money or prizes for voting or registering to vote will be criminalized in California.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday said he signed two election reform bills into law, including one that criminalizes lotteries for voter registration or participation.

From state Sen. Tom Umberg, a Santa Ana Democrat, the idea is to ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is weighing slashing “thousands” of federal jobs ahead of a meeting with his budget director, Russell Vought, as the White House looks to ratchet up pressure on Democrats to end a government shutdown that has entered its second day.

“It’s likely going to be in the thousands,” White House press ...Read more

The controversial statue of President Trump and Jeffrey Epstein holding hands has been reinstalled on the National Mall almost a week after it was taken down by the National Park Service.

“Just like a toppled Confederate general forced back onto a public square, the Donald Trump Jeffrey Epstein statue has risen from the rubble to stand ...Read more

President Donald Trump is declaring drug cartels to be “unlawful combatants” and informed members of Congress the United States is in an “non-international armed conflict” with them.

“The president determined these cartels are non-state armed groups, designated them as terrorist organizations, and determined that their actions ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is weighing slashing “thousands” of federal jobs ahead of a meeting with his budget director, Russell Vought, as the White House looks to ratchet up pressure on Democrats to end a government shutdown that has entered its second day.

“It’s likely going to be in the thousands,” White House press ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration sent letters to a group of top-tier universities this week laying out a proposed compact that would cap international students, ban the use of race or sex in hiring, and require standardized testing as part of the admissions process in exchange for preferential access to federal funding.

The effort — ...Read more

President Donald Trump is weighing slashing “thousands” of federal jobs ahead of a meeting with his budget director, Russell Vought, as the White House looks to ratchet up pressure on Democrats to end a government shutdown that has entered its second day.

“It’s likely going to be in the thousands,” White House press secretary Karoline...Read more

LOS ANGELES — President Donald Trump has said many things about "Saturday Night Live" over the years. Few of them are favorable, highlighting his disdain for the late-night sketch comedy show, though his previous stints as host would suggest otherwise.

The president hosted the show in 2004 and in 2015, shortly after announcing his first run ...Read more

President Donald Trump Thursday vowed to take advantage of the government shutdown to permanently shutter federal agencies that he brands “a political scam” and taunted Democrats for giving him the authority to act unilaterally by not voting to keep the government funded.

With no end to the shutdown in sight, Trump said he would meet with ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court begins a new term Monday that could shape the power of the presidency, determine the role of race and federal control of elections and curtail LGBT rights nationwide — with more cases on the horizon on contentious policy and political issues.

The 6-3 conservative-controlled court has agreed to decide cases on ...Read more

President Donald Trump said he would meet with White House Budget Director Russell Vought to discuss potential cuts to the federal workforce, heightening pressure on Democrats to end the government shutdown, which has entered its second day.

Trump on social media said the Thursday meeting would “determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, ...Read more