Vox reports: Ariana Grande, cherubic pop megastar and proclaimer that God is woman, has released her video for “thank u, next” — an ode to all the boyfriends, relationships, and one broken engagement that helped make her who she is today. In putting the hit song to video, Grande channeled some of the best scenes from beloved teen movies and …

The Miami New Times reports: Vice President Mike Pence arrived at Fort-Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport just after noon on Friday. He was greeted by a Broward Sheriff’s Office SWAT team that included one cop in a #QAnon conspiracy-theory patch. #QAnon is, of course, the batshit-insane, 4Chan-based conspiracy theory that claims Donald Trump is secretly fighting a war with Special Counsel Robert …

The Associated Press reports: The Associated Press is retracting its call of a winner for U.S. House in North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District. The AP had called the race for Republican Mark Harris on Nov. 9 after Democrat Dan McCready conceded the election and said he would not request a recount. Unofficial results show Harris with a lead of 905 …

Government Executive reports: The Secret Service has allocated more than $90,000 for golf cart rentals in South Florida this winter, ostensibly to protect president Donald Trump while he hits the links. According to federal spending data, the agency is set to pay a Delray Beach company as much as $92,740 between now and June for an unspecified number of “golf …

Each one a hacker in a different way, of course. Newsweek reports: Democratic Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey said Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman own President Donald Trump and can do whatever they want. The comment was made in a tweet attached to a video of the Russian and Saudi leaders …

“OK, enough of the nonsense. Are you people stupid? Let me count the ways. There’s a way to come to our home, you apply to come here, and we decide if you do. If you’re a single female with two babies and part of a caravan illegally rushing our border and throwing rocks at border agents, also known as lethal …

Politico reports: President Donald Trump expressed his support for Alaskans affected by an earthquake on Friday, telling them to listen to emergency response personnel and calling the earthquake a “big one.” Trump has a history of comments after natural disasters that many have characterized as tone deaf or just plain weird. After Hurricane Maria, Trump and San Juan Mayor Carmen …

The San Francisco Chronicle reports: Sarah Palin and her family are safe following two intense earthquakes in Alaska, however, as she tweeted Friday, her residence is not. The U.S. Geological Survey recorded a 7.0 magnitude quake near Anchorage, Alaska, at 9:30 a.m. Friday. Five minutes later, another, measuring at 5.8, struck again nearby. According to seismologists, both earthquakes had “epicenters …

The Southern Poverty Law Center reports: A juror clasped his hand over his mouth in court on Thursday as prosecutors played a video showing a young neo-Nazi sympathizer plowing his car into a group of anti-racist protestors after last year’s “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. As the video played, the defendant, James Alex Fields Jr., showed no sign …

Reuters reports: An Indonesian city has approved a bylaw to fine gay or transgender people up to 1 million rupiah ($70) for behaviour that could “disturb public order” or be considered immoral, the city’s deputy mayor said on Friday. The regulation is the latest example of a rise in government and public hostility toward the LGBT community in the world’s …

Politico reports: Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Friday accused the House Natural Resources Committee’s top Democrat of “drunken” behavior and paying “hush money” after the Democrat called for the secretary to resign for his series of ethics scandals. “It’s hard for him to think straight from the bottom of the bottle,” Zinke wrote on his official Interior Department Twitter account …

The Washington Post reports: In a move that some ethics advocates say could be an opening to limit dissent, the federal government has issued new guidance for the political activity of federal government workers, warning that weighing in on impeachment or talking about “the Resistance” may constitute prohibited activity. The Office of Special Counsel is charged with enforcing the Hatch …

The Associated Press reports: A 7.0 magnitude earthquake has rocked buildings in Anchorage, the U.S. Geological Survey says. A tsunami warning has been issued 30 miles south-west of Palmer, Alaska. There are numerous reports of damage coming in. A magnitude of between 7 and 7.9 is considered a major earthquake that will cause serious damage. Terrified residents took to social …

The Washington Post reports: Months after joining the advisory board of a Miami-based patent company in 2014, Matthew G. Whitaker began fielding angry complaints from customers that they were being defrauded, including from a client who showed up at his Iowa office to appeal to him personally for help, records show. Yet Whitaker, now the acting attorney general, remained an …

The Miami Herald reports: Indiana Parra was riding her moped with her girlfriend, Rimbow Gomez, when a white Dodge Ram van covered in bizarre political stickers pulled alongside.  The driver — a middle-aged man — began yelling at the younger couple. Without warning, he threw a cup of urine from the driver’s side window. It missed the moped, which was …

The Las Cruces Sun-News reports: Gavin Clarkson, a recent candidate for New Mexico secretary of state, experienced a one-of-our-50-is-missing moment earlier this month when applying for a marriage license in the nation’s capital. Clarkson, who lives in Las Cruces, and his then-fiancée visited the District of Columbia Courts Marriage Bureau on Nov. 20 to apply for a marriage license. But, …

Courthouse News reports: A new poll released Thursday shows that a majority of Americans, as well as almost two out of three Republicans, believe in the threat of climate change, a position at odds with President Donald Trump’s belief on the subject. The Monmouth University poll revealed that nearly 8 in 10 Americans more extreme weather patterns due to global …

USA Today reports: A federal judge on Friday set March 5 to sentence Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman, after the collapse his plea agreement on charges of conspiracy and obstruction of justice. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson’s hearing capped a busy week in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 election. Mueller’s …

Gosh, didn’t Sarah Sanders just call for civility? The Hill reports: Kid Rock finished a monologue about respecting others on Fox and Friends Friday morning by making one exception, saying “I’d say screw that Joy Behar bitch.” “We can disagree and still be cordial with one another and just talk about things without going for each others throats and protesting …

Vanity Fair reports: Cohen’s plea also re-ignited fears that the president’s son, Don Jr., will be next to be indicted. “Don’s been telling people he’s very worried after today,” a source said. (Don Jr.’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.) Mueller now appears to be driving the West Wing agenda, with the principals in a reactive …