Gov.-elect Tim Walz names first 5 commissioners

From the back left Jennifer Ho, Housing Finance Agency, Margaret Anderson Kelliher, Department of Transportation, Alice Roberts-Davis, Department of Administration, Nora Slawik, Metropolitan Council, and Myron Frans, Department of Management, stood behind Governor-elect Tim Walz and Lt. Governor-elect Peggy Flanagan at the State Capitol in St. Paul Tuesday.

Federal IT giant Leidos wins big using West Virginia-centric strategy

The FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services Division is located at the FBI center in Clarksburg, where employees of the NCIS call center work to sort through gun background checks every day. Leidos has handled the FBI CJIS NextGeneration Identification program since 2008.

Schiff: If Cohen deserves jail time so does Trump

Adam Bennett Schiff Schiff calls on Flynn to testify before House Intelligence Committee Stone admits to publishing false statements on InfoWars Trump White House preparing for 'knock-down, drag-out fight' with new House: report MORE Donald John Trump READ: Transcript of James Comey's interview with House Republicans Klobuchar on 2020: 'I do think you want voices from the Midwest' Israel boycott fight roils Democrats in year-end spending debate MORE 's former longtime lawyer Michael Cohen deserves jail time for campaign finance law violations, the president should not be precluded from facing a similar punishment.

Sherrill Names Legislative Staff

Representative-Elect Mikie Sherrill has named Ethan Saxon, a 12-year veteran of the legislative branch, as her chief of staff, senior campaign staff Kellie Doucette and Jill Hirsch as district directors, and Jackie Burns as communications director. "We're building a team of skilled, passionate, and committed people who are dedicated to serving the people of our community," said Congresswoman-Elect Sherrill.

O’Rourke’s liberal credentials questioned as he eyes 2020

During this year's Texas Senate race, some home-state Democrats grumbled that Beto O'Rourke wasn't softening his liberal positions enough to finish a near-upset of Ted Cruz. Now, as the outgoing congressman mulls a 2020 White House run, a small but vocal segment of activists is suggesting he's not liberal enough, arguing he's more about feel-good flash than commitment to values that will excite his party's ascendant leftist wing.

Arizona’s New Sen. McSally Faces Uncertain Political Future

To the surprise of no one, Republican Rep. Martha McSally was appointed to the U.S. Senate Tuesday and will serve two more years of the term of the late Sen. John McCain, R.-Ariz. "I'm going to commit to holding myself to the standard of service that Sen. McCain exemplified -- putting country before self, and always striving to do the right thing for Arizonans," McSally told reporters in Phoenix, shortly after Republican Gov. Doug Ducey announced her appointment.

Officials baffled by large migrant groups at remote crossing

Large numbers of Guatemalan families and unaccompanied children are surrendering to U.S. immigration agents in an extremely remote and dangerous stretch of New Mexico desert, a new smuggling route that has baffled authorities. It is where 7-year-old Jakelin Caal and her father were found Dec. 6 with 161 others near a border crossing in Antelope Wells.

Dallas GOP donor targets Abbott, pledges to make 100K robocalls defending Confederate plaque

A Dallas man angry over the removal of Confederate monuments has pledged to call 100,000 Texas households in the next few weeks urging them to contact their elected officials. Dallas businessman and GOP donor Christopher Ekstrom said the Conservative Response Team , a politically active nonprofit he leads, plans to make the robocalls before Jan. 12. The calls will urge registered Republicans to call Rep. Dennis Bonnen, the Angleton Republican assumed to become the next speaker of the Texas House, who recently joined Gov. Greg Abbott in calling for the removal of a controversial Confederate plaque at the state Capitol.

Used to bucking establishment, Gabbard eyes White House run Source: AP

One of Rep. Tulsi Gabbard's duties when she deployed to Iraq with the Hawaii Army National Guard in 2005 was to scan a list of U.S. combat casualties for names of her unit's soldiers. This daily confrontation with the cost of war helped propel the 37-year-old Hawaii Democrat on a path to Congress and now, potentially, a run for president.

Chris Matthews predicts Trump may resign in a the coming weeksa |…

The Hill reports that House Democrats are making plans for a prolonged shutdown that could start Saturday and last until Jan. 3. Chris Matthews predicts Trump may resign in the coming weeks: MSNBC's Chris Matthews has suggested that President Donald Trump could resign as part of a deal with special counsel Robert Mueller. "What if [Mueller] were to say he would let the children walk if the old man does the same?" Matthews said Monday, according to a Huffington Post report .

When Republicans decide to love an activist judge: The Affordable…

President Donald Trump talks about drug prices during a visit to the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 25. He's pictured with HHS Secretary Alex Azar. On Friday, members of the GOP hailed a ruling by U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor striking down the Affordable Care Act as unconstitutional.

Chicago police: 2 officers die after being struck by train

Police investigate the scene where two officers were killed after they were struck by a South Shore train near 103rd Street and Dauphin Avenue on Monday, Dec. 17, 2018, in Chicago. Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi posted on Twitter that the "devastating tragedy" occurred when the officers were investigating a shots-fired call.

Two Martinez appointees move into protected jobs

Two more of Gov. Susana Martinez's political appointees - a Gaming Control Board member and the director of adult prisons - have slid into civil service jobs as Martinez prepares to leave office Dec. 31, state government personnel records show. The job changes make it possible - but don't guarantee - that the Martinez appointees will remain employed with the state under the administration of Gov.-elect Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat.

Farm bill’s federal hemp provision could disrupt Humboldt County cannabis economy

A major agriculture bill passed by the U.S. Congress last week could legalize hemp at the federal level, allowing farmers across the country to cultivate hemp, but that doesn't necessarily spell good news for Humboldt County. The bill, which now awaits President Donald Trump's signature, includes a provision that lifts hemp off of a list of federally criminalized drugs.

Obamacare ruling won’t affect coverage a ” yet

A federal judge's ruling that the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional was a Friday-evening bombshell and a first-round victory for opponents of the law. But it will need to survive review by higher courts to have any effect on the program that's credited with expanding health insurance to about 19 million people in the U.S. A crimson banner appeared on the federally run healthcare.gov website over the weekend to reassure potential customers: "Court's decision does not affect 2019 enrollment or coverage."