Matt Lauer's Pathetic Interview of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump Is the Scariest Thing I've Seen in This Campaign  —  I had not taken seriously the possibility that Donald Trump could win the presidency until I saw Matt Lauer host an hour-long interview with the two major party candidates.

Here's What You Missed in the Presidential Forum  —  Hillary Clinton and Donald J. Trump squared off from the same stage Wednesday evening — if not exactly face to face — in a televised forum on national security and veterans issues.  The candidates appeared and took questions separately …

Pence breaks with Trump, says Obama born in Hawaii  —  SAN DIEGO — Mike Pence on Wednesday declined to say whether Donald Trump should apologize for suggesting Barack Obama was born outside the U.S., but he did say Trump's stance wouldn't hurt him with minority voters.

First on CNN: FBI director defends Clinton email probe, document releases  —  Washington (CNN)FBI Director James Comey is defending the bureau's Friday afternoon release of documents from the Hillary Clinton email investigation, saying “we don't play games” and that the documents were put out when ready.

Dems sound alarm on Senate majority  —  The campaign chairman for Senate Democrats on Wednesday warned his colleagues that if the elections were held today, the party would gain only three Senate seats, according to lawmakers who were in the room.  —  That outcome would leave Democrats …

Trump turns defense hawk  —  For months, Donald Trump has blasted Congress for excessive defense spending, calling for buying fewer of the newest fighter jets and scaling back weapons purchases pushed by “special interests.”  —  But on Wednesday, he was singing from the traditional GOP …

Colin Powell Gave Hillary Clinton Tips on How to Avoid Email Scrutiny  —  Former secretary of state warned of danger in BlackBerry use  —  WASHINGTON—Former Secretary of State Colin Powell told Hillary Clinton at the start of her tenure at the State Department that he used a personal computer …

Obama DID meet with foul-mouthed Filipino leader after he apologized for calling U.S. president a ‘son of a bitch’  — Duterte had earlier warned Obama not to ask about extrajudicial killings during a planned meeting in Laos or ‘I will swear at you’  — But Philippines officials confirmed …

Five or Six Things I Didn't Know About Brad Pitt, by Marlon James  —  The worst kind, too.  The kind who lets a plant starve to death.  The evidence, at two opposing corners of his office in Beverly Hills; skeletal remnants that long gave up hope of ever being watered.  He's been away for 10 months, he says.

Freedom Caucus eyes biggest power grab since Boehner  —  The House Freedom Caucus is eyeing its biggest power play since it pushed out John Boehner as speaker last year.  —  Members of the group of far-right agitators are considering a plan to run one of their own as a candidate …

Cal Poly student Kristin Smart vanished 20 years ago.  Now, authorities are digging the campus for her body  —  The cold case took a new twist Tuesday when the FBI and the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department announced they were excavating at three sites

Tiger to start 2016-17 season with three events  —  Woods hopes to make return to competitive golf at Safeway Open in October  —  Tiger plans on playing the Hero World Challenge, which is hosted by the Tiger Woods Foundation, Dec. 1-4 in the Bahamas.  (Getty Images)

The Shaming of the Never Trumpers  —  RUSH: He's using the name of a famous Roman, Publius Decius Mus, seeking to be anonymous here.  This piece is a shaming of the conservative intellectuals that comprise the Never Trump movement.  It is shot between the eyes of conservative intellectuals who say that Trump is beneath them.

Trump insists he can win New York  —  Donald Trump renewed his vow Wednesday evening to compete and ultimately win in New York, a state that has not voted Republican in a presidential election since 1984.  —  “Just so you understand, we are going to play New York.  You know, we're not just doing this for fun.

Ammon Bundy's lawyer argues for his client's right to wear cowboy boots at trial  —  “We would prefer our clients not look like disheveled slackers in front of the jury.”  -Attorney J. Morgan Philpot  —  Before prospective jurors file into Courtroom 9A in the federal courthouse …

Trump's Alias “John Baron” Threatened An Author Writing A Book On Him In The 1980s  —  One of the stranger stories about Donald Trump to emerge this election cycle is that, on occasions in the past, he posed as his own publicist using the alias “John Baron” when speaking with the press.

Giuliani: Black parents should ‘teach children to be respectful of the police’  —  In order to solve the issue of racial bias in policing, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani said Sunday, the United States needs to “look differently at race if we're going to change it.”