WHERE’S THE BACK UP PLAN?-The Donald Trump legal team has been notably unable to escape from the shadow of its client. At every step of the way, otherwise professional lawyers start to act like the bombastic, reckless President that they are trying to keep out of prison or historical infamy.

GUEST WORDS--“History,” as Mark Twain reputedly remarked, “doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” As we flip the calendar to a new year, Donald Trump would be well-advised to take careful heed of Twain’s maxim.

CHANNELING THE NEW YEAR--2019 will be one of the most volatile years in recent history, in more ways than one. So, what will happen? (Photos at top: From top left: Donald Trump, Nancy Pelosi, Robert Mueller, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin (AP) 

OTHER WORDS--Americans of all political stripes distrust the federal government.

WORLD WATCH--Trump’s decision to withdraw US forces from Syria is extremely reckless and is bound to backfire in more than one way.

SPOILS OF EXPLOITATION-There are three great lessons from the 20th century which we are only just beginning to learn, in the difficult and tumultuous adolescence of the 21st.