Judge sentences Bradley Manning to 35 years  —  A military judge on Wednesday morning sentenced Army Pfc. Bradley Manning to 35 years in prison for leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks.  —  Manning, 25, was convicted last month of multiple charges …

Syria conflict: ‘Chemical attacks’ kill hundreds  —  Chemical weapons attacks have killed hundreds on the outskirts of Damascus, Syrian opposition activists say.  —  Rockets with toxic agents were launched at the suburbs of the Ghouta region early on Wednesday as part of a major bombardment on rebel forces, they say.

UPS to drop 15,000 spouses from insurance, cites Obamacare  —  United Parcel Service Inc. plans to remove thousands of spouses from its medical plan because they are eligible for coverage elsewhere.  The Atlanta-based logistics company points to the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare …

Sydney Leathers Does Porn (For Real This Time) [NSFW]  —  Talk about a tease: Just two weeks after releasing the sex tape equivalent of a dry hump, Sydney Leathers of Anthony Weiner fame has unleashed a full-(hard)on porno to satisfy the demands of her handful of fans.

Maggie Gallagher: Chris Christie ‘Banned Chastity’ By Signing Ex-Gay Therapy Ban  —  Maggie Gallagher claimed that her first response to Gov. Chris Christie (R) signing New Jersey's ban on ex-gay therapy for minors was issued in error, but her actual response is not so different.

The price Gina Gray paid for whistleblowing  —  President Obama, in his news conference this month, said that Edward Snowden was wrong to go public with revelations about secret surveillance programs because “there were other avenues available for somebody whose conscience was stirred and thought …

The GOP Plan to Crush Silicon Valley  —  What will become of Steve Jobs's angel?  —  When Congress returns from its summer recess in early September, it will have exactly nine legislative days to agree on a budget or the government will shut down.  House Republicans are seeking far greater cuts …

How The NRA Built A Massive Secret Database Of Gun Owners  —  While the National Rifle Association publicly fights against a national gun registry, the organization has gone to incredible lengths to compile information on “tens of millions” of gun owners — without their consent.

Slavery in the City: Death of 21-year-old intern Moritz Erhardt at Merrill Lynch sparks furore over long hours and macho culture at banks  —  Young German worked until 6am for three consecutive days before collapse at home in east London  —  Serious concerns have been raised tonight …

Top Roger Ailes Adviser Fired and Escorted From Fox News Building (Exclusive)  —  UPDATED: Brian Lewis, executive vp corporate communications, was ousted after an investigation found breach of contract and “issues relating to financial irregularities,” the network says in a statement.

'I'm Not Paranoid': Matthews Says GOP'ers Calling Obama ‘Obama’ Attempt to ‘Delegitimize’ Him  —  MSNBC host Chris Matthews went off on Tuesday about what he characterized as a variety of efforts by Republicans and conservatives to “delegitimize” President Barack Obama.

How Democrats May Lose Their Media Edge  —  Yesterday saw a spate of stories arguing that Republicans are — quietly, off the record — a bit worried about their ability to hold the House of Representatives come 2014.  Not panicking, by any means; the electoral map still looks challenging for Democrats.

Poll: Louisiana GOPers Unsure If Katrina Response Was Obama's Fault  —  A significant chunk of Louisiana Republicans evidently believe that President Barack Obama is to blame for the poor response to the hurricane that ravaged their state more than three years before he took office.

Al Jazeera Makes Limited American Debut  —  There was ample attention in journalistic circles as Al Jazeera America had its premiere on Tuesday — particularly among those who could not watch.  —  The news channel — which replaced Current TV at 3 p.m. Eastern time — was expected to be carried …

Hecklers confront Ted Cruz at town hall meeting  —  A Dallas town hall meeting designed to rally support for defunding President Obama's health-care law grew testy Tuesday night when Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) was interrupted three separate times by hecklers.  —  The conservative senator handled …

US doesn't know what Snowden took, sources say  —  HONG KONG - 2013: In this handout photo provided by The Guardian, Edward Snowden speaks during an interview in Hong Kong.  Snowden, a 29-year-old former technical assistant for the CIA, revealed details of top-secret surveillance conducted …

Police: Australian baseball player killed by Oklahoma teens — just because  —  (CNN) — A random act of violence has left a promising 23-year-old college baseball player dead, a family devastated and two countries half a world apart rattled.  —  Christopher Lane, who was from Australia …

Trump to Christie: Hiring Romney team for 2016 would be ‘disaster’  —  Donald Trump slammed Stuart Stevens, the top strategist for Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign, warning Gov. Chris Christie against working with him if the New Jersey Republican launches a 2016 White House bid.

Bill's Turn at Bat  —  So it turns out that Michael Bloomberg and Bill de Blasio, who's campaigning for mayor on a promise to de-Bloomberg Gotham, do have something in common.  —  Both men, who grew up in the Boston area, threw caution to the wind and admitted while running for mayor of New York that they were Red Sox fans.

Obamacare critic Rick Perry seeks cash from law  —  Gov. Rick Perry wants to kill Obamacare dead, but Texas health officials are in talks with the Obama administration about accepting an estimated $100 million available through the health law to care for the elderly and disabled, POLITICO has learned.