Stay up to date on Portland news and politics. Looking for fun? Here are the best Things to Do in Portland today.

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Good morning, Portland! We're in for a cold, windy Thursday with an unexciting high of 50 degrees. Here's the news you need to start your day:

Pretty Pleas: Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen is pleading guilty (again) this morning to making false statements to Congress about pursuing a Trump Tower deal in Moscow during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Uncovered: Trump's healthcare mismanagement means the number of uninsured children in the US is rising for the first time in nearly a decade. Nearly 276,000 additional children lived without insurance coverage in 2017 than in 2016.


"14-and-a-half Danny DeVitos": A photo of a giant cow named Knickers has forced the Washington Post to rely on this glorious analogy: "Knickers stands a mighty 6’4”, which means he’s two inches taller than Arnold Schwarzenegger. And he weighs roughly 2,800 pounds, which is the approximate equivalent of 14-and-a-half Danny DeVitos."

Immigrant Defense: Governor Kate Brown has unveiled a $23.6 billion biennial budget plan for Oregon, which includes a small slice ($2 million) to fund legal fees for immigrants facing deportation. It's the first time Brown's flagged funds to defend undocumented Oregonians.

We Want Our 82nd: East Portlanders are fed up with 82nd Avenue's numerous potholes, crumbling sidewalks, and general neglect by the state, who oddly owns the busy thoroughfare. So they're asking Portland to lobby the state legislature to hand it over next year.

Behind Closed Doors:
Portland officials have begun meeting with the feds to discuss pulling out of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), a controversial partnership between select Portland police officers and federal law enforcement.

Southern Oregon Hospitality: Ashland police officers mistakenly arrested a 20-year-old black man for harassment Monday. Only after holding the man for 10 hours did the cops take a second look at the surveillance video of the alleged harassment, and realized they had the wrong guy. In the words of the police chief: "There’s no getting around it, the Ashland Police Department botched this investigation and got it wrong."

Flip Side: A restaurant reviewer thinks his rave write-up forced Portland hamburger joint Stanich's to close. But, as Willamette Week explains, the restaurant closure could also have something to do with the owner's domestic abuse charges and problems with alcohol abuse.