“Several of Russia’s richest people including some close to President Vladimir Putin have moved billions of dollars abroad in the past year after growing concerned about the country’s economy and the government budget,” Bloomberg reports.

“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lifted a temporary pause on vehicle stops after President Donald Trump touted the controversial tactic as an essential enforcement tool, a White House official said Wednesday,” the Washington Post reports. “ICE halted vehicle stops after officers fatally shot two people in less than a week during encounters involving vehicles. Within […]

“The Democratic National Committee asked its leadership team to sign non-disclosure agreements before a recent meeting about the party’s finances,” Axios reports. “The move — a break from past practice for such officers — underscored DNC chair Ken Martin’s sensitivity about the party’s money woes and the persistent criticism about his leadership.”

“With the November race to succeed Lindsey Graham in the Senate still wide-open, Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina suggested the late senator’s interim replacement — his sister, Darline Graham — could be one candidate,” CBS News reports. Said Scott: “Darline has so far been off to a remarkable start. Why not her?” Fox […]

“President Trump’s primetime address Thursday night is forcing TV networks to choose: Air potential 2020 election falsehoods, or risk backlash from a White House that’s shown little hesitation in confronting the media,” Axios reports. “What usually would be a straightforward decision on whether to carry a presidential address has become a high-stakes editorial judgment for […]

“George Conway, the former conservative lawyer turned Democrat, loaned his campaign $2 million to finish fifth in the crowded Democratic primary in New York’s 12th Congressional District,” NOTUS reports. “He reported the personal loan in a Federal Election Commission report published on Wednesday. Micah Lasher, a state assembly member, won the primary in June and […]

“President Donald Trump announced he will deliver a Thursday night address that he suggested will focus on ‘free and fair elections,’ teasing what he called one of the most important speeches of his presidency while offering few details about what he plans to unveil,” Fox News reports. Said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt: “As […]

“Graham Platner quit Maine’s U.S. Senate race last week after being accused of sexual assault, but his campaign committee remains flush with cash,” NOTUS reports. “Platner’s campaign had more than $1.7 million cash on hand as of June 30, according to a new financial filing with the Federal Election Commission, as he had raked in […]

“The U.S. has levied 25% tariffs on most imports from Brazil effective next week, concluding a yearlong investigation into what Washington calls unfair trade practices, and reigniting tensions with the Latin American nation after negotiation fell apart,” CNBC reports. The Guardian: Brazil condemns U.S. move to impose 25% tariffs next week.

“The U.S. struck Iran for a fifth straight day overnight and hit a sanctioned oil tanker near the country’s main export terminal, as tensions between the warring sides show little sign of abating,” Bloomberg reports. “Iran responded to the U.S.’s barrage on military targets such as command centers and missile sites by firing upon American […]

“Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is passing laws aimed at strengthening his rightist-religious political bloc before tight elections in October,” Bloomberg reports. “At the center of the drive are measures to ensure military exemption for ultra-Orthodox men, along with curbing the attorney general’s powers and tightening government oversight of media.” “The moves are proving […]

“Speaker Mike Johnson’s attempt to finally launch Republicans’ third party-line bill this week hinges on a handful of GOP holdouts today,” Politico reports. “A band of GOP fiscal hawks won’t commit to supporting the $95 billion budget framework set to be marked up in House Budget this morning. Republicans rushed to assemble and move the […]

“Vice President JD Vance told Joe Rogan he believes the Trump administration ‘absolutely screwed up’ the communications surrounding the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files,” NewsNation reports. Said Vance: “I say this with all candor we absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files, like we just did. But do I think the reason […]

“Nevada’s governor was pulled over by a Las Vegas police officer in May for allegedly failing to stop at a red light before making a right turn in his pickup truck. He wasn’t ticketed after identifying himself,” the Associated Press reports. “‘I’m Joe Lombardo,’ he said as the officer arrived at the passenger-side window, police […]

“Cindy and her son Jimmy McCain will host a fundraiser on behalf of Gov. Katie Hobbs in September, lending the state’s most storied Republican name to the re-election campaign of the Democratic incumbent,” MS NOW reports.

“The fate of Todd Blanche’s nomination as attorney general remained uncertain on Wednesday after a rocky confirmation hearing in which a Republican senator raised serious questions about his role in creating a $1.8 billion fund for purported victims of Justice Department persecution,” the New York Times reports. “The senator, John Cornyn of Texas, who was […]

“The New York Times refused to let its reporters testify in front of a federal grand jury after they were subpoenaed by the Trump administration over a story about security issues with an Air Force One plane donated by Qatar,” Bloomberg reports. Reuters: New York Times seeks to block subpoenas to reporters over Air Force […]

“The reelection campaign of Sen. Lindsey Graham, who died Saturday, has more than $2.3 million in leftover funds, according to a financial statement the campaign committee filed Wednesday with federal regulators,” NOTUS reports. “The campaign has several options on how to handle the remaining money, including not using it at all.” “It can give as […]

“President Donald Trump has passed up multiple chances to explain to Americans how his latest escalation will win the war in Iran or how he’ll alleviate their perpetually high costs for groceries, housing and fuel,” CNN reports. “Now he’s planning to anchor a national address Thursday evening on a personal fixation about the past — […]

“President Trump is leaning toward expanding U.S. military operations in Iran after days of briefings from top aides,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “Options include stepping up airstrikes, sending ground forces to seize Iranian islands near the Strait of Hormuz and bombing a fortified site that could be used for covert nuclear work.”

“Presidents have always raised money from private donors—to run for office, throw inaugural balls and build presidential libraries,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “But Donald Trump has turned his second term into an unprecedented fundraising blitz, raising well over half a billion dollars from wealthy donors and stashing it in a sprawling network of nonprofits, […]

“The House on Wednesday rejected a measure to eliminate U.S. aid to Israel, but almost half of Democrats supported the move, reflecting a rapid and dramatic shift within the party away from decades of unequivocal support for the Jewish state,” the New York Times reports. ”The measure, which sought to cut all $3.3 billion in […]

“A lead U.S. negotiator for the release of hundreds of people captured by Hamas during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in Israel will have a book out this fall,” the Associated Press reports. “The Penguin Random House imprint Crown has scheduled Brett McGurk’s Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7 Hostages for Oct. […]

“In the weeks after President Trump named Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, the two men and their allies developed a frosty relationship. Just as Mr. Trump was inaugurated last January, Mr. Ramaswamy left the initiative, aimed at downsizing the federal work force, before it began, and Mr. […]

“By most key metrics, the U.S. labor market is in fine shape: the economy has added jobs for four straight months, much improved from late last year, and the unemployment rate has drifted down to 4.2%,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “Yet nearly two million Americans have been locked out of the job market for […]

“Donald Trump has endorsed Mike Lindell’s bid for Minnesota governor, calling the MyPillow founder ‘one of America’s greatest and most hard working Patriots’ in a Truth Social post on Wednesday,” The Guardian reports.

“Chief of staff Susie Wiles, President Donald Trump’s closest aide, and FBI Director Kash Patel helped personally orchestrate a sprawling investigation last week at the White House aimed at determining who in the government leaked information about the security deficiencies of a Qatari-gifted airplane meant to be used as Air Force One – with some […]

“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday announced a new effort to annually screen service members’ testosterone levels and offer testosterone replacement therapy, framing it as a way to keep troops on the ‘leading edge of lethality.'” NewsNation reports. “The screening, added as part of war fighters’ periodic health assessment, will affect troops age 30 and […]

Pew Research: “Democrats have a narrow advantage over Republicans in partisan affiliation among U.S. adults: 47% identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, and 43% identify with or lean toward the Republican Party.” ”The Democratic Party’s modest edge is similar to where it was in 2020, the last year of President Donald Trump’s first […]

“Senators in both parties say the odds are rising of another government shutdown in September after President Trump demanded that GOP leaders abolish the filibuster or face a spending showdown and another shutdown,” The Hill reports. ”Trump blindsided GOP leaders on Monday when he warned there could be another shutdown if Senate Republicans don’t abolish […]