The Trumpster Fire: Today is the day unfortunately named by retailers as “Black Friday,” a day of shopping madness. But Donald Trump is still President and that’s always the most important item in the news. President Trump has dismissed the CIA …

Political Hack: President Obama said the US will retaliate for Russian computer hacking to influence the US election. Obama told NPR’s Steve Inskeep, “I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of …

Suspects: Russia’s security police have detained two men from the Caucasus as suspects in the murder of dissident politician Boris Nemtsov. Further details were not given. According to some accounts Nemtsov was shot in the back by a man hiding …

The Torture Debate: CIA Director John Brennan gave a rare press conference admitting his agency did “abhorrent” things interrogating terror suspects but that the so-called “enhanced” methods produced information that stopped attacks and saved lives. While saying CIA interrogators “went …

Bladerunner: Amputee runner Oscar Pistorius has been found guilty of culpable homicide, the equivalent of manslaughter, by a South African judge. Pistorius shot and killed his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp Feb. 14, 2013, saying he believed an intruder was in the …

Trucefire: A 72-hour ceasefire that started at 8am local time in Gaza collapsed hours after it began. An Israeli infantry officer appears to have been captured by Hamas gunmen who emerged from a tunnel and a suicide bomber killed two …

Ukraine: Pro-Russians appear ready to go ahead with an independence referendum tomorrow, despite discouragement from Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Ukraine government. Ukraine’s acting President Oleksander Turchinov said the vote “would be a step into the abyss for these …

School Shoot: A Colorado high school student who took a shotgun to school yesterday to hunt a teacher, ended up wounding two students before killing himself. It happened at Arapahoe High School in suburban Denver, just a few miles from …

Shooting: At least 10 people were shot this morning, including police officers, at the Washington Navy Yard. Three victims are reported dead. Police have described a gunman dressed all in black. National: A woman is now the next most likely …

Syria: President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry said yesterday there is clear evidence that Syria used chemical weapons against its own people. “It’s important for us to recognize that when over a thousand people are killed, including hundreds …