Sen. Dianne Feinstein will lead Democrats as they take on Trump’s Supreme Court nominees; Brian Benczkowski, once dubbed ‘GOP’s go-to guy for hearings,’ helping manage Justice Department transition; Senate will extend existing Iran sanctions, delaying stiffer measures until next year; Republican lawmakers move to restrain President-elect Trump on Russia; If Trump wants to close lobbying loopholes, ethics lawyers have written a proposal to do just that; White House removes petition for climate skeptic’s ouster from Trump transition; Republican governors jubilant about Trump presidency; Trump is back on Twitter with a vengeance; Obama in Athens: ‘The current path of globalization needs a course correction’; Schumer is next top Senate Democrat, adds Sanders to leadership ranks; Warren endorses Ellison for DNC chairman; O’Malley bows out of race;   Politics happens fast. Catch up.   Kevin Hagen / Getty Images Jeff Sessions starts to emerge with bigger role in Trump transition Senator is said to be on short list for defense secretary. His former staff director is helping to manage the Justice Department transition. By Jerry Markon, Karen DeYoung and Greg Miller  •  Read more » Sen. Dianne Feinstein will lead Democrats as they take on Trump’s Supreme Court nominees Feinstein has taken on the gun industry, the CIA and civil-liberties advocates in her own party during her long tenure in the Senate. By Mike DeBonis  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   Brian Benczkowski, once dubbed ‘GOP’s go-to guy for hearings,’ helping manage Justice Department transition Brian Benczkowski is a well-regarded lawyer, especially in conservative circles. By Matt Zapotosky  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   Senate will extend existing Iran sanctions, delaying stiffer measures until next year The Senate is expected to pass an extension of existing Iran sanctions in the lame-duck session, leaving the fight over expanding punitive measures for next year. By Karoun Demirjian  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Republican lawmakers move to restrain President-elect Trump on Russia Congress, eyeing Trump warming up to Russia, plans early steps to hold the incoming administration in check By Karoun Demirjian  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   If Trump wants to close lobbying loopholes, ethics lawyers have written a proposal to do just that Trump campaigned on a promise to crack down on the influence of special interests in Washington and proposed toughening restrictions on lobbyists. By Catherine Ho  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   White House removes petition for climate skeptic’s ouster from Trump transition Note to Trump opponents: you can't use the "We the People" platform to protest the president-elect. By Elise Viebeck and Brady Dennis  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   Republican governors jubilant about Trump presidency With the fate of state-level GOP control linked to Trump, governors also are urging discipline. By Karen Tumulty  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   Trump is back on Twitter with a vengeance This is an overture to a presidency in which the commander in chief will — at his own behest — telegraph his many moods and grievances to the entire world online. By Elise Viebeck  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   Obama in Athens: ‘The current path of globalization needs a course correction’ The speech represented the third time in as many days that Obama has sought to grapple with the wave of political discontent that swept Donald Trump into the White House. By Juliet Eilperin  •  Post Politics  •  Read more »   Schumer is next top Senate Democrat, adds Sanders to leadership ranks Schumer becomes the first New Yorker and first Jewish man to serve as a Senate leader. By Ed O'Keefe and Mike DeBonis  •  PowerPost  •  Read more »   Warren endorses Ellison for DNC chairman; O’Malley bows out of race The liberal lawmaker's support adds to a growing list of backers of the Minnesota congressman. By John Wagner  •  Post Politics  •  Read more »   Recommended for you   Wonkbook Your daily cheat sheet on economic and domestic policy from Wonkblog. Sign Up »         Share Politics P.M.:       Twitter      Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you are signed up for Politics. 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. ©2016 The Washington Post, 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071