NEW YORK, NY – JANUARY 11: President-elect Donald Trump speaks at a news conference at Trump Tower on January 11, 2017 in New York City. This is Trump’s first official news conference since the November elections. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)[/caption] Relations between the U.S. and Russia were once again strained this week when news broke that President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump received classified documents that included allegations Russia had compromising information about Trump. These reports, which Trump labeled “fake news,” rippled across Washington. In his penultimate week in Office, Obama gave his farewell address Tuesday night. Speaking from his hometown of Chicago, Obama defended his record and encouraged involvement in the political system. “I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change — but in yours,” he said. Elsewhere in the nation, House Republicans voted to begin the process of repealing Obamacare, Trump’s cabinet nominees testified on Capitol Hill and the Justice Department’s internal watchdog announced it was investing FBI Director James Comey’s handling of the probe into Hillary Clinton’s emails. Read more about these stories and the other biggest news of the week, as it appeared in this week’s Daily Edition. 1. Intel chiefs presented Trump with claims of Russian efforts to compromise him—CNN, Evan Perez, Jim Sciutto, Jake Tapper and Carl Bernstein Top line: “The allegations were presented in a two-page synopsis that was appended to a report on Russian interference in the 2016 election. The allegations came, in part, from memos compiled by a former British intelligence operative, whose past work US intelligence officials consider credible. The FBI is investigating the credibility and accuracy of these allegations, which are based primarily on information from Russian sources, but has not confirmed many essential details in the memos about Mr. Trump.” Topic to follow: Russia 2. Trump Dismisses Russian Connection Allegations As ‘Fake News’—NPR, Brian Nayor Top line: “In his first news conference since last summer, the president-elect additionally said he would be handing over control of his businesses to his sons Donald Jr. and Eric; refused once again to release his income tax returns; and said his administration would reveal its plan to replace the Affordable Care Act as soon as his nominee for secretary of health and human services, Tom Price, is confirmed by the Senate.” Topic to follow: Donald Trump 3. Obama, Saying Goodbye, Warns of Threats to National Unity—The New York Times, Mark Landler and Julie Bosman Top line: “Speaking to a rapturous crowd that recalled the excitement of his path-breaking campaign in 2008, Mr. Obama said he believed even the deepest ideological divides could be bridged. His words were nevertheless etched with frustration — a blunt coda to a remarkable day that laid bare many of the racial crosscurrents in the country.” Topic to follow: Barack Obama 4. U.S. House votes to begin repealing Obamacare—Reuters, Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell Top line: “The House of Representatives voted 227-198 to instruct committees to draft legislation by a target date of Jan. 27 that would repeal the 2010 Affordable Health Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare. The Senate approved the same measure early Thursday.” Topic to follow: Obamacare 5. The 7 top confirmation hearing moments—CNN, Tal Kopan Top line: “While the nominees are mostly on track to be confirmed in the Senate, where the Republicans have a 52-48 edge, there were some moments that stood out. From nominees diverging with Trump to senators seeking assurances that Trump’s Cabinet would check his impulses to Democrats pulling out all the stops in mostly futile efforts to derail them.” Topic to follow: U.S. Congress 6. Clinton Emails: DOJ Inspector General to Review FBI, Comey Actions—NBC News, Pete Williams and Halimah Abdullah Top line: “The probe by Michael E. Horowitz will include a review of FBI Director James Comey’s news conference in July and his two letters to lawmakers in late October and early November.” Topic to follow: FBI 7. Dylann Roof sentenced to death for Charleston church shooting—The Telegraph, Harriet Alexander Top line: “Dylann Roof has been sentenced to death by a jury in South Carolina for the murder of nine black people in a Charleston church. The justice department said he is the first person to get the death penalty for federal hate crimes.” Topic to follow: Charleston Church Shooting 8. Clemson fulfills its promise by beating its model, Alabama—ESPN, Ivan Maisel Top line: “This victory was not the grueling reality of fulfilling expectations, as Alabama might have felt with a win, but the unbridled joy of realizing a dream. Clemson had done it. Clemson had knocked off Alabama, the program Swinney has often described as the template for what he wanted to build in Death Valley.” Topic to follow: Clemson Tigers 9. Meryl Streep called out Donald Trump at the Golden Globes. He responded by calling her ‘over-rated.’—The Washington Post, Elahe Izadi and Amy B Wang Top line: “Streep accepted the Cecil B. DeMille Award — basically a lifetime achievement award — but didn’t say much about her career. Instead, she spent the minutes allotted to her to speak critically of the current political climate and Trump, although she did not mention the president-elect by name.” Topic to follow: Meryl Streep 10. Fiat Chrysler Faces U.S. Criminal Emissions Investigation—Bloomberg, Tom Schoenberg and Tommaso Ebhardt Top line: “Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV is under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department over its alleged failure to disclose software that violated emissions standards, according to people familiar with the matter, another legal hurdle for a company already under criminal scrutiny for its sales practices.” Topic to follow: Fiat ~JessE is reading Extreme Weather