On Senate Health Bill, Trump Falters in the Closer's Role  —  WASHINGTON — President Trump began his all-hands meeting with Republican senators at the White House on Tuesday by saying they were “very close” to passing a health care bill, just as efforts to fast-track a vote this week collapsed.

Sarah Palin Sues New York Times, Claiming Editorial Defamed Her  —  Sarah Palin, former vice-presidential candidate, filed a defamation lawsuit against The New York Times Company on Tuesday, saying the newspaper had published a statement about her in a recent editorial that it “knew to be false.”

Trump Campaign Chief's Firm Got $17 Million From Pro-Russia Party  —  Paul Manafort, who was forced out as President Trump's campaign chairman last summer after five months of infighting and criticism about his business dealings with pro-Russian interests, disclosed on Tuesday that his consulting firm …

A Time Magazine with Trump on the cover hangs in his golf clubs.  It's fake.  —  The framed copy of Time Magazine was hung up in at least four of President Trump's golf clubs, from South Florida to Scotland.  Filling the entire cover was a photo of Donald Trump.

L.A.'s newest congressman still hasn't taken his oath.  Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy wants to know why  —  House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) wants to know why Rep.-elect Jimmy Gomez hasn't been sworn in, saying the seat's “elongated vacancy” is “an abdication” of his responsibilities.

CNN faced $100M lawsuit over botched Russia story  —  The specter of a $100 million libel suit scared CNN into retracting a poorly reported story that slimed an ally of President Trump's — and forcing out the staffers responsible for it, The Post has learned.  —  SEE ALSO

Brooks's prior attacks on Trump could hurt in Alabama Senate race  —  (R-Ala.) is locked in the race toward a contentious August primary to fill the Senate seat once held by Attorney General Jeff Sessions  —  . But Brooks's previous attacks on President Trump could pose a problem …

TICK-TOCK on the GOP's health-care ‘flop’ — HOW TRUMP can turn it around — PRO-TRUMP group pulls ads — FAHRENTHOLD strikes again — SPOTTED last night in ASPEN — B'DAY: Ashley Hickey Marquis  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  BULLETIN — WJLA: “Officials: Amtrak train hits, kills 2 CSX employees on tracks in D.C. …

How news organizations, including this one, unintentionally misinformed the public on guns  —  Steve Doud, a subscriber from Plano, emailed me to say he'd read something in the June 21 Dallas Morning News that couldn't possibly be true.  —  An eight-paragraph Washington Post article …

WATCH |  Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe is being investigated by the Office of U.S. Special Counsel for violating The Hatch Act that prohibits FBI agents from campaigning in partisan races.  —  The Office of U.S. Special Counsel, the government's main whistleblower agency …

In US, Confidence in Newspapers Still Low but Rising  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Despite an ongoing controversy over “fake news,” more Americans this year (27%) say they have a “great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in newspapers than did so last year (20%).

The White House is now using James O'Keefe videos to attack the press  —  This particular attack on the press garnered a response.  —  At Tuesday's White House press briefing, Deputy White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders used a question from Breitbart News to attack the entire press corps.

The media will do anything to bash Trump — and now they're hurting  —  MORE FROM: … It was many years ago, but the memory lingers of the first time I was embarrassed to be a journalist.  It was a steamy summer afternoon and reporters and photographers were shoehorned into a small Manhattan apartment …

Merkel to Trump: We provide you jobs  —  There is 10 times more German direct investment in the US than the other way around, German chancellor said.  —  BERLIN — Germany creates American jobs, Angela Merkel said Tuesday, in response to criticism from the White House over Germany exporting significantly more than it imports.

Helicopter attacks Venezuela court, Maduro denounces coup bid  —  A Venezuelan police helicopter strafed the Supreme Court and a government ministry on Tuesday, escalating the OPEC nation's political crisis in what President Nicolas Maduro called an attack by “terrorists” seeking a coup.

Trump praises female reporter's ‘nice smile’ on call to Irish PM … President Trump singled out a female journalist during a phone call with the new Irish prime minister, Leo Varadkar, on Tuesday, telling Varadkar, “She has a nice smile on her face.  So I bet she treats you well.”