The Note: Swing State Sneak Peek  —  NOTABLES  —  BY THE NUMBERS: A fresh Quinnipiac poll out this morning focuses on three swing states in the general election and has several interesting takeaways.  No candidate has won the presidential race without taking at least two of these three states.

Two South Boston brothers allegedly beat homeless man  —  The homeless man was lying on the ground, shaking, when police arrived early Wednesday.  His face was soaked, apparently with urine, his nose broken, his chest and arms battered.  —  Police said two brothers from South Boston ambushed …

Donald Trump Explains All  —  In an interview with TIME, the leading Republican candidate talks about what's wrong with the Clintons, his opponents' weaknesses and what it takes to be great  —  Donald Trump was interviewed by TIME Editor Nancy Gibbs, Washington Bureau Chief Michael Scherer …

Family Values Activist Josh Duggar Had a Paid Ashley Madison Account  —  In 2013, conservative reality TV star Josh Duggar—of TLC's 19 Kids and Counting fame—was named the executive director of the Family Research Council, a conservative lobbying group in D.C. which seeks …

Black or white?  Is Black Lives Matter activist Shaun King lying about his race?  —  Questions about Black Lives Matter activist  —  (CNN)He's either the male version of Rachel Dolezal, or the victim of a conservative conspiracy.  —  Those are the two views the world has of Shaun King …

Yarmuth: E-mail issue could ‘upend’ Hillary Clinton campaign  —  LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS 11) — Kentucky's only Democratic representative in Congress is expressing concern about Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's e-mail controversy, calling it “very confusing,” and potentially a disqualifying scandal for her candidacy.

Presidential Sensation Deez Nuts Does Not Exist  —  The candidate polling at 9 percent in North Carolina against Trump and Clinton isn't a real person.  But 15-year-old Brady Olson, who lives on a farm in Iowa and gamed the FEC filing system, certainly is.  —  Deez Nuts, the Independent candidate …

Ex-NFL QB Erik Kramer Wounded in Apparent Suicide Attempt: Sources  —  Ex-NFL quarterback Erik Kramer shot himself Tuesday in an apparent suicide attempt at a Los Angeles area motel, but survived, law enforcement sources said.  —  Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies were called to a motel …

The Unlikely Reanimation of H.P. Lovecraft  —  American history is filled with writers whose genius was underappreciated—or altogether ignored—in their lifetime.  Most of Emily Dickinson's poems weren't discovered and published until after her death.  F. Scott Fitzgerald “died believing himself a failure.”

Fires set off, police confront crowds hours after St. Louis police fatally shoot teen  —  PROTESTERS BURN AMERICAN FLAG: 10:50 p.m.  —  A group of about 80 demonstrators burned an American flag in the middle of Page Avenue and chanted a vulgar anti-police slogan.

Ex-LAPD detective who alleged conspiracy in Biggie Smalls' murder dies  —  A retired Los Angeles police detective who handled the murder case of rapper Biggie Smalls died Wednesday from a suspected heart attack.  —  Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies at the Homicide Bureau reported …

CNN criteria threaten Fiorina's chance at main debate stage  —  CNN's criteria for its September GOP presidential debate may keep Carly Fiorina off the stage reserved for the top 10 candidates despite her recent surge in the polls.  —  The CNN debate methodology, released earlier this year, weighs polls from July 16 to Sept. 10.

Bloomberg to lay off about 100 editorial employees  —  Bloomberg is planning to slim its ranks, sources said on Wednesday.  —  The financial media giant, which employs about 2,400 journalists across the globe, is planning to lay off about 100 employees, or about 4.2 percent …

Another outbreak from tainted scopes suspected at an L.A.-area hospital  —  A Pasadena hospital is investigating a suspected outbreak related to the same type of medical scope tied to superbug infections across the country.  —  Huntington Memorial Hospital said Wednesday it had alerted health authorities …

IAEA says access to Iran's Parchin military site meets demands  —  The U.N. nuclear watchdog said it is satisfied with access Iran will grant it to the Parchin military site, suspected by some states of having in the past hosted Iranian experiments related to atomic bombs.