Countdown to shutdown begins  —  <p>Congress returns from its long summer vacation Tuesday to an all-out, three-week sprint to avert a government shutdown - and no apparent plan yet to quell the conservative rebellion over Planned Parenthood that has dramatically increased the odds …

Ted Cruz to Star in Government Shutdown, the Sequel  —  The sequel to Government Shutdown—the 2013 battle that caused the closing of national parks and museums, cost the U.S. economy $20 billion, and tanked the Republican Party's popularity—is slated for this fall and will feature the same star: Ted Cruz.

Judge Orders Kim Davis Freed from Kentucky Jail  —  A federal judge ruled Tuesday that a Kentucky clerk who has refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples may leave prison — as long as she doesn't interfere with the licenses that her deputies have been granting since her incarceration last week.

Hillary Clinton to Show More Humor and Heart, Aides Say  —  There will be no more flip jokes about her private email server.  There will be no rope lines to wall off crowds, which added to an impression of aloofness.  And there will be new efforts to bring spontaneity to a candidacy that sometimes seems wooden and overly cautious.