NBC News reports: President Donald Trump on Thursday cancelled his planned meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin at the upcoming G-20 summit in Argentina. Trump blamed the cancellation on the failure of Russia to return ship and sailors recently seized from Ukraine. But the announcement of the scuttled meeting came an hour after he told reporters that he would probably …

Fox News reports: Fox News senior judicial analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano on Thursday reacted to an “extraordinary” series of developments in Robert Mueller’s investigation, saying the special counsel’s “road map” for attempting to prove collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia is coming into focus. Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former personal attorney, pleaded guilty Thursday to making false statements to …

The Huffington Post reports: President Donald Trump on Thursday bashed his former personal attorney Michael Cohen for pleading guilty to lying in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. Cohen is a “weak person,” Trump told reporters on the White House lawn. “There would have been nothing wrong if I did do it,” Trump said Thursday of the Trump Tower Moscow project. …

ABC News reports: President Donald Trump, in a tweet early Thursday morning, downplayed General Motors’ announcement it was shuttering several U.S. factories and laying off thousands of American workers, claiming it was an anomaly among the broader “booming” U.S. economy. In doing so, though, the president repeated his frequent false claim that steel plants are opening all over the country. …

Vox reports: Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen has cut a deal with special counsel Robert Mueller’s team, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos reports. The deal was announced in a New York federal court Thursday. As part of the deal, Cohen will admit making false statements to Congress committees investigating the Russia scandal. The Associated Press reports that the false statements relate to …

The New York Times reports: Michael D. Cohen, President Trump’s former lawyer, who pleaded guilty in August to breaking campaign finance laws, made a surprise appearance in a Manhattan courtroom on Thursday morning to plead guilty to a new criminal charge, the latest turn in the special counsel’s investigation of Mr. Trump and his inner circle. The development comes at …

Mediaite reports: Either Robert Mueller managed to spend $10 million in less than 48 hours, or Donald Trump is unable to keep track of himself as he continues to slam the special counsel. The president got on his phone on Thursday to rip Mueller for the kabillionth time over the ongoing investigation into Russia. As he compared the probe to …

The Taiwan News reports: Taiwan’s Judicial Yuan Secretary-General publicly announced today that the passage of anti-equality referendums cannot override the Constitutional Court’s 2017 ruling on same-sex marriage. Secretary-General Lu Tai-lang clarified what has already been stressed by many keen legal observers: interpretations made by the Constitutional Court hold the highest rule of law and cannot be defeated by referendums. The …

Roll Call reports: Conservative author and conspiracy theorist Jerome Corsi agreed in a new interview that he “absolutely” intended to help President Trump’s campaign by trying to get stolen Hillary Clinton emails from Wikileaks. “Everybody in the world who was in news or political operations after July 22nd 2016 when Assange dumped all these emails on Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and said …

The BBC reports: The Frankfurt headquarters of Deutsche Bank have been raided by prosecutors in a money laundering investigation. Germany’s public prosecutor alleged that two staff members have helped clients launder money from criminal activities. Police cars were seen outside the tower blocks that house the headquarters of Germany’s biggest bank. Other Deutsche offices in the city were searched in …

Business Insider reports: FBI and congressional investigators are looking into a new and uncorroborated claim that the former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos said he was pursuing a business deal with Russians “which would result in large financial gains for himself” and President Donald Trump. A Democratic source on the House Intelligence Committee confirmed to INSIDER that the letter was …

Playbill reports: Rita Moreno isn’t done mamboing. The stage and screen legend will appear in Steven Spielberg’s new film version of West Side Story, a representative has confirmed. Moreno, who earned an Oscar in 1962 for her performance as Anita in the original movie adaptation of the classic musical, will play Valentina, an expanded version of the musical’s Doc (the …

The Hill reports: Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor claimed at a Tuesday concert in Texas that he told Republican Sen. Ted Cruz to “f— off” after he asked to be put on the guest list for the show. In video captured from the group’s concert in Dallas, Reznor can first be seen asking the crowd: “Who voted for Ted …

The Los Angeles Times reports: TJ Cox defeated three-term Republican Rep. David Valadao on Wednesday, giving Democrats a gain of seven House seats in California and 40 nationwide — the party’s strongest midterm showing since the Watergate era in the mid-1970s. Cox clinched his victory more than three weeks after election day, when updated results from Fresno and Kings counties …

Law & Crime reports: Right-wing conspiracy theorist and author Jerome Corsi has hired a new attorney in an attempt to fight back against special counsel Robert Mueller. Corsi announced on Twitter Wednesday afternoon that he would be hiring attorney Larry Klayman. Let’s just say this news about Klayman, who happens to be the founder of Judicial Watch, wasn’t received very …

The Daily Beast reports: Michael Avenatti sued Donald Trump for defaming Stormy Daniels against her wishes, Daniels told The Daily Beast in a statement on Wednesday. Avenatti also started a new fundraising site to raise money for her legal defense fund without telling her, Daniels said. She said she is not sure whether or not she will keep Avenatti on …

“Being a hero isn’t chosen for you very often. You didn’t wake up that day, just like Col. [Oliver] North says, and think, ‘I’m going to be a hero today.’ You’ve gotta be trained and prepared to be a hero every day. And one of the things I trained my sons is that wherever you go, people should be safer …

The New York Post reports: He’s never discussed a pardon for Paul Manafort, President Trump said Wednesday — but it’s “not off the table.” “It was never discussed, but I wouldn’t take it off the table. Why would I take it off the table?” the president said during an Oval Office interview. He ripped special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe and …

NBC News reports: Nancy Pelosi has been chosen by House Democrats to lead them in the new Congress, but she still faces a showdown vote for House speaker when lawmakers convene in January. Pelosi ran unopposed as the nominee for speaker in a closed-door Democratic caucus election Wednesday despite unrest from those clamoring for new leadership. The California Democrat faces …

Forbes reports: For the first year ever, Judy Sheindlin—more commonly known as Judge Judy—reigns supreme not only in her own courtroom, but also across all of television. Pocketing $147 million pretax last year, Sheindlin is the world’s highest-paid television host, out-earning all others. The sharp-talking daytime judge takes the top spot thanks to her even sharper deal-making skills: Last year …