Editorial: Monday Briefing

A recent post on Amarillo Animal Management and Welfare's Facebook page serves as a stark reminder - put the safety of your pets first, even when finding them a new home. From the post: "A very well-known offender to AAM&W has just surrendered another one of their dogs that they got off Craigslist.

The Democrat party is now officially a domestic terrorism group: DNC…

Democratic National Committee Deputy Chair Keith Ellison was recently spotted posing in a Twitter photo with the book Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook , written by Mark Bray, followed by a caption he wrote stating that the racist reading material should "strike fear in the heart" of President Donald Trump. In case you aren't aware, this Antifa "handbook" is filled with anti-white rhetoric, including how to set up so-called "kill zones" for ending the lives of conservatives and white people.

Things to watch in Washington Legislature this year

The 60-day legislative session begins Monday, with lawmakers hoping they'll finish their work - which includes finalizing the last piece of a court mandate on education funding - without having to go into overtime. After a win in a key Senate seat in November, Democrats are back in charge of both legislative chambers for the first time in five years, holding a razor thin 25-24 majority in the Senate and a slim 50-48 edge in the House.

DC forecast: Gathering winter storm over wall vs. DACA, possible shutdown

Democrats are trying to flex their muscles noting that their votes are typically needed on issues such as spending and debt; Mike Emanuel explains on 'Special Report.' A meteorological "bomb cyclone" ravaged the East Coast last week. A political bomb cyclone could wreck Washington come January 19. That's the date Congress has to fund government operations and avoid a government shutdown.

Hotel staff interacted with Las Vegas shooter more than 10 times before massacre

Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino staff interacted with Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock more than 10 times in the days leading up to the October 1 massacre that claimed 58 lives. During Paddock's stay at the hotel, room service and housekeeping "had contact with Paddock or entered his suite more than 10 times," according to a statement sent to CNN from MGM Resorts International, which owns the Nevada hotel.

Trump wishes for better libel laws after book slams him

Plainly agitated by a new book portraying him as dysfunctional, President Donald Trump is bemoaning his country's "very weak" liberal laws and making the case that he's "like, really smart" and, indeed, a "very stable genius." Trump defense of his mental fitness in a series of tweets was a singular episode in a presidency rife with moments unlike any that have come before in that office.

Trump washes his hands of insurgency against GOP incumbents

Trump told reporters after meeting GOP House and Senate leaders at Camp David on Saturday that he's planning a robust schedule of campaigning for the 2018 midterm elections and that includes involvement in the Republican primaries. He'll campaign for incumbents, he said, and "anybody else that has my kind of thinking."

Hellzapoppin: FBI, DOJ, and Clinton Sharethe Hot Seat

The new year began with a bang as the long stalled congressional investigations of the top FBI and Department of Justice officials and Fusion GPS begin to see daylight and the Clinton Foundation slush fund investigation resumed, this time with greater probity than the former top officials at the FBI and DOJ permitted. Congressman Devin Nunes, chairman of the House Select Committee on Intelligence, and Judiciary chairman Senator Chuck Grassley fired the first salvos of the year.

Another Republican has jumped into California’s race for governor,…

Former U.S. Rep. Doug Ose has announced he will run for California governor this year. A new year and a new Republican candidate have cracked open California's sleepy race for governor, unleashing predictions of a splintered GOP vote that could sink Republicans and lead to a November election between two Democrats.

The Latest: GOP lawmaker says no decisions yet on DACA

Lynn Tran and Richard Hazen built a beachfront treehouse that would be the envy of any child, but they've been in a legal fight for years to keep it _ and now they're at their last stop, the Supreme Court. Lynn Tran and Richard Hazen built a beachfront treehouse that would be the envy of any child, but they've been in a legal fight for years to keep it _ and now they're at their last stop, the Supreme Court.

Trump, Republican lawmakers pore over agenda at Camp David

THURMONT, Md. - Emerging from closed-door meetings with Republican leaders, President Donald Trump on Saturday held out the prospect of a deal with Democrats on the fate of young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children but appeared to put a welfare system overhaul - once a top White House priority - on the back burner.

Trump defends fitness for office by saying he’s ‘stable genius,’ in book fallout

President Donald Trump lashed out at critics Saturday in defense of his mental fitness for office, calling himself a "very stable genius" in a tweetstorm of boasts. First on Twitter and then at a news conference with Republican leaders at Camp David, Trump defended himself against a new book that cites purported fears from former and current aides that he was unprepared for the presidency, incapable of processing information and uninterested in making difficult decisions.

President, GOP lawmakers huddle at Camp David

President Donald Trump, fifth from right, accompanied by from left, House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis., Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., Vice President Mike Pence, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calif., House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, and Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, speaks during a news conference after after participating in a Congressional Republican Leadership Retreat at Camp David, Md., Saturday, Jan. 6, 2018. THURMONT, Md.

Two More Republicans Boost GOP Retirements from House to High 34

The surprise retirement announcements last week from Republican Reps. Gregg Harper of Mississippi and Bill Shuster of Pennsylvania have brought the number of GOP lawmakers leaving the House either retiring, resigning or seeking another office to a whopping 34. Coupled with the 21 Democrats leaving the House for different reasons, the 55 who won't be coming back are an unusually high number, Congress-watchers agree.