The Note: On #metoo, a partisan split

Sen. Al Franken takes a break during the Neil Gorsuch Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing as President Donald Trump's nominee for the Supreme Court on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., March 20, 2017. The coordinated push to get Sen. Al Franken to resign reflects a new, cleaner, and more internally aggressive approach by top Democrats to demonstrate accountability in their own ranks.

Trump officially recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital,…

Sen. Al Franken will resign, Democratic official says - A Democratic official who has spoken to Al Franken and key aides says Franken will resign his Minnesota Senate seat on Thursday, the official tells MPR News. - The official spoke to Franken and separately to Franken's staff.

Democratic powerbroker ends legal fight over improper campaign spending

For four years, Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo waged a court battle against charges he failed to disclose thousands in campaign spending and misused thousands more on trips to Puerto Rico, tickets to sporting events, a gym membership and other expenses. On Wednesday, the powerful Democratic unexpectedly ended his fight with an agreement to settle the long-standing state enforcement action by paying $20,446 in penalties to resolve the case first brought by New Jersey's Election Law Enforcement Commission in 2013.

Minneapolis requests National Guard for Super Bowl security

Minneapolis city officials are asking the governor to mobilize the Minnesota National Guard to help with security during the upcoming Super Bowl. Mayor Betsy Hodges and Mayor-elect Jacob Frey, in a letter to Gov. Mark Dayton, say the city police can't meet all of the safety and security needs during the 10 days of Super Bowl activities while still covering the rest of the city.

Pence spokesman calls assertions in ‘Atlantic’ article ‘categorically untrue’

WASHINGTON, DC - A new report says Vice President Mike Pence considered a push to top the Republican ticket after the Donald Trump Access Hollywood tapes came out. "The people I talk to say he is a lot more ambitious and calculating then he lets on in public," said McKay Coppins, the writer of the article.

Russia probe tests Pence in-the-dark defense

New revelations about Michael Flynn's lies to the FBI are laying bare Vice President Mike Pence's in-the-dark strategy when it comes to Russia's election meddling, raising new questions about whether he could have been left in the dark as he has argued for nearly a year. Advisers have long insisted that Pence was unaware Flynn spoke to then-Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak about a new set of US sanctions on the day they were announced last December.

The Latest: Chafee says if he runs it will be as Democrat

The Latest on the announcement that former Republican lawmaker Joe Trillo is leaving the party and running for Rhode Island governor as an independent : Former Gov. Lincoln Chafee says he's still considering running for governor as a Democrat, and Joe Trillo's announcement that he's running for governor as an independent doesn't change anything. Chafee tells The Associated Press that if he runs, it will be in a Democratic primary.

Bob Dunning: Here are some gifts you didn’t know you needed

While gift-giving this Christmas may be a bit more modest on the east side of the tracks, for some unknown reason, a helpful holiday guide arrived in my humble mailbox the other day that should make the obligatory present exchange bearable. It's titled "uncommongoods - your new favorite things."

Cuomo’s Puerto Rico audition

Count Gov. Cuomo among the Democratic leaders who are responding to the truculent mood sweeping the party's base by serving up tough, pointed critiques of the Republican leadership in Congress and the White House. "In my opinion, the federal government should be ashamed of itself," Cuomo thundered from a podium at Kennedy Airport, condemning the Trump administration's response to the devastation in Puerto Rico caused by Hurricane Maria.

Merging of 2 tax measures next up

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., confer Friday on Capitol Hill before the late-night tax vote. Schumer noted that the effect of some last-minute revisions had yet to be analyzed by the Joint Committee on Taxation.

Woman who inspired the creation of Hope on Haven Hill dies

No details were provided about how Abi Lizotte died, but a statement was posted on the Hope on Haven Hill website Saturday: "Dear friends, the loss of Abi Lizotte has left us utterly heartbroken. Abi will always be our inspiration and her light will live in the dreams and aspirations of all who pass through our doors.

Early Saturday morning the Senate narrowly approved the Republican tax bill with a vote of 51-49

Vice President Mike Pence announcing the final vote, which was mostly along party lines, 51 to 49, with only one Republican voting against the bill, Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee. And while Republicans have touted it as a victory for the middle class, several independent analyses found it's skewed toward corporations and the wealthy, according to the Tax Policy Center.

Candidate’s UT coaching tweet draws call from Jimmy Haslam

Republican gubernatorial candidate Diane Black received a phone call from prominent University of Tennessee football booster Jimmy Haslam , the brother of Gov. Bill Haslam and owner of the Cleveland Browns, after she posted a tweet bemoaning the school's first choice to become the school's next football coach. Bill Haslam has told reporters that his brother had no role in the effort to hire Ohio State defensive coordinator Greg Schiano - a deal that fell through amid public backlash over an unproven claim in court documents that he might have known about sexual abuse of boys when he was an assistant at Penn State.