OPENED UP TWITTER TO SEE THIS:  —  Can't imagine why they'd do that, except that it seems to be happening to a lot of people for no obvious reason.  It's as if, despite assurances to the contrary, Twitter is out to silence voices it disagrees with or something.  —  UPDATE: Ah, it was about this tweet.

Ohio Trump campaign chair Kathy Miller says there was ‘no racism’ before Obama  —  Kathy Miller called the Black Lives Matter movement ‘a stupid waste of time’ and said low African American voter turnout could be due to 'the way they're raised' … Donald Trump's campaign chair …

Brad Pitt — Under Investigation for Child Abuse  —  EXCLUSIVE  —  Brad Pitt is under investigation by the LAPD and L.A. County Dept. of Children and Family Services for allegedly getting verbally abusive and physical with his children, and that's what triggered the divorce ... TMZ has learned.

Clinton and Trump Tied in North Carolina Poll, With Sharp Educational Divides  —  Greensboro  —  Raleigh  —  Asheville  —  Charlotte  —  Greensboro  —  Raleigh  —  Asheville  —  Charlotte  —  Greensboro  —  Durham  —  Raleigh  —  Asheville  —  Charlotte  —  Durham  —  Asheville

Yahoo is expected to confirm massive data breach, impacting hundreds of millions of users  —  A hacker named “Peace” is bringing chaos to the Internet giant just as its sale to Verizon is pending.  —  Kimberly White/Getty Images for Fortune  —  Yahoo is poised to confirm a massive data breach …

Charlotte, a defining moment in a nation-defining election  —  “There is always something happening that seems like the defining issue of the campaign and there are very few real defining issues.”  — David Axelrod, CNN Senior Political Commentator and chief strategist for President Obama's 2008 …

Trump's campaign paid his businesses $8.2 million  —  Donald Trump's presidential campaign has paid his family's businesses more than $8.2 million, according to a POLITICO analysis of campaign finance filings, which reveals an integrated business and political operation without precedent in national politics.

Dalai Lama does Trump impression  —  Add the Dalai Lama to the list of Donald Trump  —  impressionists.  —  The Buddhist spiritual leader laughed at the mention of Trump during an interview broadcast Thursday on ITV's “Good Morning Britain,” saying he hasn't met him.

A conservative intellectual explains why the GOP has fallen to Donald Trump  —  Samuel Goldman is one of America's most thoughtful conservatives.  A professor of political theory at George Washington University and the executive director of its Loeb Institute for Religious Freedom …

Meet the black Charlotte police officer who shot Keith Lamont Scott  —  We wrote here about Keith Lamont Scott and his long criminal record which includes assault convictions and gun offenses.  But what about Brentley Vinson, the black police officer who fatally shot Scott?

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson Hit in Face with Pie at Event, Assaults Protester in ‘Bloody’ Scene  —  Multiple sources have confirmed that Sacramento Mayor, former NBA star, and UC Berkeley standout Kevin Johnson was hit in the face with a pie tonight at a farm-to-table dinner event …

Spiritual Healing with Marla Maples, Trump's Ex-Wife  —  Marla Maples was taking Angelina Jolie's side.  —  Sitting outside Boulud Sud across from Lincoln Center on Wednesday afternoon, amid news of Brangelina's divorce, the woman who famously broke up Donald Trump's first marriage and went …

Hillary Clinton Proposes 65% Top Rate for Estate Tax  —  Tax plan changed to increase top rate for wealthiest households  —  Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton would impose a 65% tax on the largest estates and make it harder for wealthy households to pass appreciated assets …

THE FUTURE OF AMERICA IS BEING WRITTEN IN THIS TINY OFFICE  —  Back in the comparatively innocent days of 2015, before Donald Trump completed his hostile takeover of the Republican Party, before the Bernie Sanders juggernaut really got going, Hillary Clinton's campaign thought it could get ahead through well-crafted policy proposals.

House panel recommends holding former Clinton IT aide in contempt  —  The House oversight committee voted Thursday to recommend holding the former State Department IT specialist who set up Hillary Clinton's private server in contempt of Congress, after he again ignored a subpoena to appear before the panel.

Tulsa Police Officer Shares Her Side of the Story in Terence Crutcher's Shooting  —  Tulsa Police Officer Betty Shelby, identified as the officer who shot 40-year-old Terence Crutcher on Friday night, has offered her side of the story in the fatal encounter.

White House Watch: Trump 44%, Clinton 39%, Johnson 8%, Stein 2%  —  With the first presidential debate coming on Monday, Donald Trump has moved to a five-point lead over Hillary Clinton, his biggest advantage since mid-July.  —  The latest Rasmussen Reports weekly White House Watch telephone …

Hillary should debate Trump's manhood and cowardice  —  goes into Monday's first presidential debate with high expectations.  This is not a good thing for Clinton.  High expectations in presidential debates are never a good thing.  —  In this debate, ironically, Clinton's greatest strength, experience, is her greatest weakness.

Mexican President Confirms Trump Visit Led To Treasury Secretary's Resignation  —  Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto says he accepted the resignation of his Treasury secretary because the official had suffered a big blow to his reputation due to Donald Trump's visit to the country.