Elon Musk Flexes His Political Strength as Government Shutdown Looms

The world’s richest man led the charge to kill a bipartisan spending deal, in part by promoting false and misleading claims about it.

Government Lurches Toward Shutdown After House Tanks Trump’s Spending Plan

Dozens of right-wing Republicans joined Democrats in opposing a bill ordered up by President-elect Donald J. Trump to tie a government funding extension to a two-year deferral of the debt limit.

The Once Booming Drug Town Going Bust Under Taliban Rule

Funding its war against the United States, the Taliban reaped millions from boom towns trading opium, heroin and meth. Victorious, the group crushed the trade, leaving ghost towns in its wake.

With Guilty Verdicts, Rape Victim’s Ordeal in France Becomes a Message of Hope

Dozens of men who abused Gisèle Pelicot were convicted, including the man who invited them to do so: her husband of 50 years. She wanted the public trial to show rape victims they were not alone.