Thursday's Headlines: Supreme Court nominee Gorsuch calls Trump’s attacks on judges ‘demoralizing’

Officials warn White House on terrorist designation for Iran's Revolutionary Guards; Amid deep partisan rancor, Senate confirms Jeff Sessions for attorney general; Branding in the East Wing is nothing new. Eleanor Roosevelt pitched hot dog buns.; Pentagon chief Jim Mattis assumes new role: Turning down the temperature on Trump; Call me, maybe? Trump changes his tone and reaches out to China's president.;   The morning's most important stories, selected by Post editors   Top Stories Supreme Court nominee Gorsuch calls Trump's attacks on judges 'demoralizing' Neil Gorsuch's comments to a Democratic senator came as the president continued his days-long crusade against the judicial branch after a Seattle judge halted his controversial executive order barring immigration from seven predominantly Muslim countries. By Abby Phillip, Robert Barnes and Ed O'Keefe  •  Read more » Officials warn White House on terrorist designation for Iran's Revolutionary Guards The Pentagon has raised concerns that such a move could upset a tenuous arrangement in Iraq that has Shiite fighters avoiding clashes with U.S. forces. By Karen DeYoung  •  Read more »   Amid deep partisan rancor, Senate confirms Jeff Sessions for attorney general The victory for Trump and Sessions came after a bruising confirmation process for the longtime senator and other Cabinet nominees, which Democrats have used to amplify their concerns about the president's agenda. By Sean Sullivan and Kelsey Snell  •  Read more »   Branding in the East Wing is nothing new. Eleanor Roosevelt pitched hot dog buns. An argument by Melania Trump's lawyers that a British tabloid's accusations had damaged her chances to capitalize on "multi-million dollar business relationships" caused a round of pearl-clutching. But her libel lawsuit revealed an unspoken truth: Modern first ladies know that the power to sell is inherent to the role. By Krissah Thompson and Emily Heil  •  Read more »   Pentagon chief Jim Mattis assumes new role: Turning down the temperature on Trump A few weeks into his tenure, the retired general's most visible job has been soothing Americans and U.S. allies unnerved by the president and some of his top advisers. By Missy Ryan  •  Read more »   Call me, maybe? Trump changes his tone and reaches out to China's president. Trump once described China as an "enemy" of the United States. But this week, he sent a letter to Xi Jinping, saying he wanted to "develop a constructive relationship," according to the White House. Trump also wished China a happy lunar new year — 11 days late. By Simon Denyer  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Opinions   Steve Bannon vs. Pope Francis? By E.J. Dionne Jr.  •  Read more »   Sean Spicer’s chilling words By Erik Wemple  •  Read more »   What are Republicans doing about Obamacare? Absolutely nothing. By Dana Milbank  •  Read more »   Trump is trying to compare himself to Andrew Jackson. Wrong Andrew. By Charles Lane  •  Read more »   Trump tweets a red line for North Korea By George F. Will  •  Read more »   Do your homework, Ms. DeVos By Editorial Board  •  Read more » ADVERTISEMENT   More News   Judge blocks $54 billion Anthem-Cigna health insurance merger U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson concluded that the deal would raise prices and decrease competition. The ruling followed a similar decision by a different judge last month to block a proposed merger of Aetna and Humana. By Carolyn Y. Johnson  •  Read more » Rural Americans felt abandoned by Democrats in 2016. Can the party win them back? Since their shocking loss to President Trump, Democrats have watched protest movements grow in the cities that had rejected his campaign. Protests and organizing are also on the rise in rural states. By David Weigel  •  Read more » Thundersnow, whiteout conditions to slam Northeast The storm will rapidly intensify as it roars up the Mid-Atlantic coast today. Travel may come to a standstill due to snow falling at a clip of over an inch per hour and wind gusts topping 35 mph. By Jason Samenow  •  Read more » A full moon, a lunar eclipse and a comet in one night? Here's how to watch it all Friday. The eclipse will begin right after moonrise, and a greenish comet makes its closest approach to Earth around 10:30 p.m. Eastern. By Blaine Friedlander  •  Read more » Golfer Jordan Spieth lashes out at professional autograph seekers When the world's sixth-ranked golfer bypassed the men and gave his signature to others, he caught an earful and then offered some choice words about them. By Des Bieler  •  Read more »         Share Today's Headlines:       Twitter      Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you are signed up for Headlines. For additional free newsletters or to manage your newsletters, click here. We respect your privacy. If you believe that this email has been sent to you in error or you no longer wish to receive email from The Washington Post, click here. Contact us for help. ©2017 The Washington Post, 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071