The special counsel's office pushed back Friday at the suggestion that the FBI acted improperly in its interview of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, saying he agreed on his own to meet with federal agents and did not need a warning that it was against the law to lie to them. The filing from special counsel Robert Mueller comes four days before Flynn gets sentenced on a charge of lying to the FBI about his conversations with the then-Russian ambassador to the United States. Get More

President Donald Trump directed former lawyer Michael Cohen to make hush-money payments to two women during the presidential campaign despite knowing it was wrong, Cohen said in his first interview to air after being sentenced to prison for crimes that included his part in the scheme. Cohen made the allegation in an interview with ABC that aired Friday, saying that he was angry at himself but that, "I will not be the villain of his story." "First of all, nothing at the Trump organization was ever done unless it was run through Mr. Trump," Cohen said, adding that Trump directed him to make the payments, including one with Playboy model Karen McDougal. Get More

President Donald Trump on Friday picked budget director Mick Mulvaney to be his acting chief of staff, ending a chaotic search in which several top contenders took themselves out of contention for the job. "Mick has done an outstanding job while in the Administration," Trump tweeted. Get More

A 7-year-old Guatemalan girl who died in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection waited an hour and a half before receiving emergency medical care after showing symptoms, officials said Friday. Jakelin Amei Rosmery Caal Maquin, whose name was confirmed by CBP and the Guatemalan Embassy Friday afternoon, was apprehended with her father after crossing the border illegally into New Mexico with her family and more than 160 other migrants, NBC News reported. Medical personnel are not staffed in the remote area where they were held, known as Antelope Wells, the officials said. Get More at NBC News

Stocks fell sharply on Friday after weaker-than-expected data in China and Europe exacerbated concerns of a global economic slowdown. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 496.87 points to 24,100.51, its lowest level since early May, led lower by declines in Apple and Johnson & Johnson. For the year, the Dow is now down 2.5 percent. The S&P 500 dropped 1.9 percent to 2,599.95 — its lowest closing level since April — as the tech and health care sectors lagged. The broad index also closed down 2.75 percent for 2018. Get More

President Donald Trump is facing escalating criminal investigations in Washington and New York that are examining not only whether his campaign coordinated with the Kremlin but also whether he illegally bought the silence of two women who say they had sex with him. A look at the nearly three dozen people charged by special counsel Robert Mueller and unanswered questions about what may lie ahead for the president — labeled "Individual-1" in court papers — and his administration. Get More

An official leading the search for a missing Colorado woman urged her fiance to speak with investigators, saying Friday that police believe he is the last person to see the 29-year-old "face to face" since Thanksgiving. Police also began searching the property of Kelsey Berreth's fiance, Patrick Frazee. Officials said completing the search could take days and did not immediately disclose any information about why they were combing the property in the tiny community of Florissant, south of Denver. Get More

Salt Lake City got the green light to bid for the Winter Olympics — most likely for 2030 — in an attempt to bring the Games back to the city that hosted in 2002 and provided the backdrop for the U.S. winter team's ascendance into an international powerhouse. The U.S. Olympic Committee said Friday it was selecting Utah's capital, which stood out as a predictable, slam-dunk pick in a process that also included Denver and Reno, Nevada. With venues still in place — some of them upgraded — from the 2002 Games, Salt Lake claims it can host again at a lower cost than other candidates, which aligns with the International Olympic Committee's new blueprint for the Games. Get More

The iconic Equality sneakers that LeBron James wore in a game against the Washington Wizards are headed for display at a Smithsonian museum. During a game in the nation's capital last December, the then-Cavaliers star sported the mismatched shoes. One was black and one was white. Both had a golden Nike swoosh and "EQUALITY" emblazoned across the heel. Get More

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., took a thinly veiled swipe at President Donald Trump in a speech to new graduates of Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, on Friday, telling students that even in the midst of trying times, she remains optimistic about young people's ability to effect change, NBC News reported. "So as politicians try to turn us against each other, as they sell out to Wall Street, to big drug companies, to big oil companies, to big student loan companies, as the President of the United States kisses up to autocrats, and undermines voting and basic democratic institutions — even in the midst of all of that, I look out at you, and I am optimistic. You have power," she said in a commencement address at the historically black college and university. In her address, Warren said that the government has "systematically discriminated against black people in this country," and the "rigged system" needs to be changed. Get More at NBC News

French President Emanuel Macron called Friday for calm as authorities prepared to deploy armored vehicles and thousands of security forces for a possible fifth-straight weekend of violent protests on the streets of Paris. The "yellow vest" movement, which began its demonstrations Nov. 17 initially to protest an increase in fuel taxes, soon morphed into an expression of rage about the high cost of living in France and a sense that Macron's government is detached from the everyday struggles of workers. "Our country needs calm. It needs order. It needs to function normally again," Macron said in Brussels, where he attended a European Union summit. Get More

Professionals are warning parents that they should talk to their kids as a new viral challenge spreads across social media and puts children in potential danger. Get More

A top secret U.S. military assessment found that North Korea is still evading U.N. sanctions by transferring oil at sea, and that a coalition of U.S.-led forces deployed to disrupt the movements has failed to dent the overall number of illegal transfers, three U.S. officials familiar with the intelligence told NBC News. The finding underscores the Trump administration's struggle to maintain economic pressure on North Korea amid a diplomatic bid to persuade Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear and missile arsenal. The smuggled fuel provides a crucial lifeline for the regime's economy and armed forces. The U.S. Pacific Command assessment, labeled "Top Secret," found that the presence of warships and surveillance aircraft deployed by an eight-nation coalition since September has forced North Korea to adjust its tactics at sea, including transferring oil farther away from the Korean Peninsula and often in other countries' territorial waters. The White House and the State Department declined requests for comment. Get More at NBC News