“A Chinese government spokesperson fired back Wednesday at the Trump administration’s allegations that Chinese researchers are stealing American trade secrets about artificial intelligence,” NBC News reports.

“Democrat Amish Shah will take on GOP nominee Jay Feely in the general election for Arizona’s 1st Congressional District, The Associated Press projects, following primaries for both parties on Tuesday,” CBS News reports. “Shah’s win against Republican-turned-Democrat Marlene Galán-Woods marks the latest high-profile defeat for the national Democratic Party.” New York Times: Amish Shah wins […]

“A Secret Service agent on Vice President JD Vance’s security detail is under internal review and has been put on administrative leave after being suspected of leaking information for a news story that included details about Vance’s travel,” CNN reports. “A second source confirmed officials had identified a person believed to have been leaking information […]

“Threats against people the U.S. Secret Service protects are up about 40% from a year ago, the agency says, as it prepares for Friday’s rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Dinner,” Axios reports.

“Former special counsel Jack Smith could face potential criminal prosecution after Republicans accused the ex-prosecutor of misleading Congress about the scope of his investigation into President Donald Trump,” Fox News reports. “House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) issued a criminal referral of Smith on Wednesday, arguing newly released records contradict Smith’s testimony to his […]

“Don’t expect a lot of public lamentations from House Democrats next month if Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI) loses to his Democratic Socialists of America-backed primary opponent,” Axios reports. “That would be a drastic deviation from recent DSA primary wins, which set off alarm bells among the Democratic establishment.” “In the telling of both progressive and […]

“The stakes of the Iran war are becoming increasingly stark, and President Donald Trump was confronted with the latest evidence today when he traveled to the Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to pay his respects to four American soldiers killed in the line of duty,” Bloomberg reports. “What was supposed to be a relatively […]

Axios: “Almost a quarter of workers in the U.S. — 23 million adults — are experiencing ‘job lock,’ staying in roles they don’t want to avoid losing health insurance benefits, according to a new Gallup analysis.” “Why it matters: Women and people who have chronic health conditions feel the burden most because health care costs […]

“Rod Blagojevich, the former Illinois governor President Donald Trump pardoned last year on federal corruption charges, is now seeking clemency on behalf of a similarly disgraced political figure: a suburban Chicago councilman who authorities say fled the country just days before his 2005 sentencing in a vote-buying scheme,” NBC News reports.

“The Trump administration is split over how to respond to the rapid rise of China’s leading AI models, according to multiple people familiar with deliberations,” Wired reports. “The debate is broadly divided between parts of the White House, which has pushed for stricter controls on Chinese AI that may soon rival the most powerful U.S. […]

“Senators on both sides of the aisle are quietly hopeful about avoiding a third government shutdown this year,” Axios reports. “Time is short, patience is wearing thin and neither party wants to head into the campaign’s final sprint under the cloud of a funding lapse.”

“President Donald Trump is comparing the death toll from the war in Iran to several past wars in what appears to be an attempt to downplay the rising number of fatalities,” ABC News reports. “Via posts on his social media platform, Trump displayed the number of fatalities in Afghanistan, Iraq, Vietnam and Korea — multi-year […]

“More than 100 child pornography files were found in the central Pennsylvania home of Jesse White, a former Democratic state representative,” CBS News reports. “According to court records, FBI agents discovered more than 100 files containing child pornography on laptops and drives belonging to the former state representative.”

“Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin is ramping up immigration arrests, ending a spring lull that followed the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens by federal agents,” Bloomberg reports. “Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made 16,213 arrests during the first 11 days of July for a daily average of more than 1,400, according to […]

“Progressive Democrats have romped through primaries this summer, dispatching incumbents and minting new stars of the left in deep-blue territory in New York and Colorado,” the New York Times reports. “In the coming weeks, they’ll take their fight to tougher turf.” “Primary elections in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota will test whether Democratic voters in swingier […]

“Nevada and South Carolina are the leading contenders to be recommended to head Democrats’ 2028 presidential primary calendar,” CNN reports.

“House Democrats are demanding a reckoning after the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spent over $500,000 backing a candidate in Arizona who is on track to lose her primary,” Axios reports. “This is the third time in 2026 the House Democratic campaign arm has tried and failed to intervene in a party primary, leading some lawmakers […]

“The U.S. is surging forces, medics and weaponry to the Middle East to give President Trump more muscular military options as he considers expanding the conflict against Iran, according to people familiar with the matter,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “In the past week, special-operations forces have deployed to the region from their U.S. bases, […]

“Oil prices rose Wednesday after President Donald Trump threatened again to bomb Iranian bridges and power plants and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tehran was not serious about reaching a deal to end the fighting,” CNBC reports.

“President Trump on Wednesday took aim at Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and what he called ‘communist’ Democrats during his speech in the Peach State, calling him ‘terrible’ and likening him to the comedic character Pee-Wee Herman,” NewsNation reports. Said Trump: “Jon Ossoff and the Democrat communists want to let the Marxists into power, bankrupt your […]

Fox News Poll: “President Donald Trump’s job approval remains near a record low, more Democrats are motivated to vote, Republicans join Democrats and independents in rating the economy negatively, and 4 in 10 voters want ‘dramatic’ or ‘revolutionary’ change.” “Plus, more view the GOP as tied to elites than the Democratic Party.”

“A good day for House Republicans — finally,” Punchbowl News reports. ”Speaker Mike Johnson’s narrowly divided House GOP Conference eked out victories Wednesday night on three major bills: the gigantic FY2027 defense authorization package, a quasi-ban on stock trading for members of Congress and a budget resolution that will allow Republicans to pursue a third […]

New York Times: “Dating back to the first Trump administration, members of the Trump family have faced criticism for mixing business with politics. But what sets apart the latest moves by Donald Trump Jr. is how he and Mr. Malik, through 1789 Capital, are cashing in on the policies of the current administration openly and […]

“New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani appointed Lina Khan, the antimonopoly former Federal Trade Commission head, to chair the city’s Economic Development Corporation, a surprise announcement that puts a crusading official in charge of managing the city’s business growth,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Another deadline to fund the government is looming this fall in Congress, with members fresh off a series of shutdown fights that have left them eager to avoid another costly impasse ahead of the midterm elections,” CBS News reports. “But as lawmakers warn about the coming funding cliff, they have yet to agree on a […]

“Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas is among the most vocal opponents of moving towards year-round Daylight Saving Time, and has vowed to block any proponents’ efforts to quickly approve the bill on the floor through a process known as unanimous consent, which requires all 100 senators to agree to an expedited vote,” CNN reports. “There […]

“President Donald Trump declared the USA has no need for the Strait of Hormuz — but he still wants to pummel Iran to prove it can never control the vital oil passage anyway,” Mediaite reports. Said Trump, referring to Venezuela: “It’s been incredible actually, it’s got serious oil. In fact, if you combine us and Venezuela, […]

“Democratic Party elder and prior presidential kingmaker Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC) jabbed at progressive U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed on Wednesday, calling out the lack of Black Democrats at his events,” Mediaite reports. Said Clyburn: “I saw a picture that concerned me from the rally. I didn’t see a single person that looks like me. […]

“The House on Wednesday narrowly passed legislation that would limit stock trading by members of Congress, moving months ahead of the midterm elections to address a practice that has stoked public outrage and bipartisan calls for change,” the New York Times reports. “But nearly all Democrats opposed the measure after Republicans added a federal voter […]

“The House narrowly passed its marquee $1.15 trillion defense policy bill largely along party lines Wednesday amid a bitter partisan divide over President Donald Trump’s conduct of the war against Iran and his push for a massive Pentagon spending boost,” Politico reports. ”Just six Democrats supported the annual National Defense Authorization Act, which House Republicans […]