Trump threatens to pull out of next GOP debate  —  A Republican National Committee conference call to discuss plans for the Oct. 28 GOP debate with top advisers to the presidential campaigns spiraled into chaos on Thursday afternoon as Donald Trump threatened to pull out of the debate if his demands for the format are not met.

Why Talk of “Tyranny” Is Dangerous  —  So here was Ted Cruz' calm and reflective observations about the first Democratic presidential debate, as conveyed to an Iowa audience (per the Dallas Morning News' Todd Gillman): … I'm guessing a lot of observers hear this sort of thing and just shrug …

Ben Carson Puts Public Campaign Events on Hold for 2 Weeks  —  Republican presidential contender Dr. Ben Carson has put his public campaign events on hold for two more weeks to go on book tour for his new tome “A More Perfect Union” and catch up on fundraising events.

“Arabian Street Artists” Bomb Homeland: Why We Hacked an Award-Winning Series  —  What's wrong with Homeland's political message?  The very first season of “Homeland” explained to the American public that Al Qaida is actually an Iranian venture.  According to the storyline …

Obama Announces Halt of U.S. Troop Withdrawal in Afghanistan  —  WASHINGTON — The United States will halt its military withdrawal from Afghanistan and instead keep thousands of troops in the country through the end of President Obama's term in 2017, Mr. Obama announced on Thursday …

THE DRONE PAPERS … DRONES ARE A TOOL, not a policy.  The policy is assassination.  While every president since Gerald Ford has upheld an executive order banning assassinations by U.S. personnel, Congress has avoided legislating the issue or even defining the word “assassination.”

Lindsey Graham: Democratic Debate “Made Me Sick”  —  “Everybody had an isolationist, disengagement policy regarding radical islam.”  —  Andrew Burton / Getty Images  —  South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham says Tuesday's first Democratic debate disgusted him.

Lawyers for Dennis Hastert could reveal Thursday if plea deal reached … Lawyers for former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert could tell a federal judge Thursday if they have reached a plea deal with prosecutors that would keep bombshell allegations of hush-money payments from ever being aired in a public trial.

Jeb cuts back  —  Eager to show cost consciousness, the Bush campaign's “high life has ended.” … On the first day of a two-day Iowa swing back in August, Jeb Bush flew from Davenport to Ankeny in a private plane.  The next day, after he spent more than four hours bounding around …

Huckabee Suggests Poor People Should Be Sold Into Slavery For Stealing  —  The United States criminal justice system could be improved if we sell poor people convicted of crimes into slavery, according to Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee.  —  The former Arkansas governor weighed …

Ivanka Trump on Donald: ‘Look, my father is very blunt’  —  Washington (CNN)Ivanka Trump, the daughter of Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump, dismissed the criticism that her father has faced over controversial comments he's made about women and their looks on Wednesday.

Moon Colony Idea No Lunacy, Says a Starry-Eyed Jeb Bush  —  CONCORD, N.H. - It was among the most memorable campaign pledges of the 2012 presidential race: In a Newt Gingrich administration, the onetime House speaker vowed, the United States would colonize the moon.  —  Debate audiences laughed.

People are criticizing my dad, Jim Webb, for killing a man.  Here's what they're missing.  —  If you watched the Democratic presidential debate on Tuesday night, you probably heard the closing comment by my father, Jim Webb.  Without hesitation he answered that the enemy he was 'most proud …

The Pluto system: Initial results from its exploration by New Horizons  —  1Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA.  —  2Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA.  —  3National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) …

Wayne Simmons, recurring Fox News guest, charged with lying about CIA ties  —  Wayne Simmons, a recurring guest on Fox News who claimed to have 27 years of experience with the CIA, was arrested Thursday after being indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that he lied about his service.

Treasury Sends Debt Limit Letter to Congress  —  Dear Mr. Speaker:  —  I am writing to follow up on my previous letters regarding the debt limit and to provide additional information regarding the Department of the Treasury's ability to continue to finance the government.

The Anti-Free-Speech Movement at UCLA  —  A half-century ago, student activists at the University of California clashed with administrators during the Berkeley Free Speech Movement, a series of events that would greatly expand free-speech rights of people at public colleges and universities.

‘She loves us’: Nephew speaks out on aunt's lawsuit brought against him … BRIDGEPORT -The aunt and the nephew she who sued for damages said they loved each other and the firestorm around the case was very upsetting during an appearance on the Today Show Thursday morning.

Why You Actually Should Care About Hillary Clinton's Damn Emails  —  More on Hillary Clinton's emails from VICE News:  —  On Tuesday night, at the first Democratic debate of the 2016 election, Bernie Sanders was asked about the secrecy surrounding Hillary Clinton's emails.