Rudy Giuliani: Jeff Sessions ‘made the right decision’ to recuse from Russia probe  —  (CNN)Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani on Monday swatted away a report that he is a contender to replace Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and said Sessions made the right decision to recuse himself from the Russia investigation.

The Latest: McConnell calls for GOP dissenters to back bill  —  https://www.apnews.com/aa59b766a4294989 a62c922112580af7  —  Link copied!  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the ongoing effort by congressional Republicans to pass a health care bill (all times local):

Speaker Ryan: Mueller is ‘anything but’ a Dem partisan  —  (R-Wis.) on Monday defended special counsel Robert Mueller, who is leading the Justice Department's investigation into the Russia election interference, saying he's “anything but” a Democratic partisan.

READ: Jared Kushner's statement on Russia to congressional committees  —  Bolding below included as submitted in statement  —  STATEMENT OF JARED C. KUSHNER TO CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES  —  I am voluntarily providing this statement, submitting documents, and sitting for interviews in order …

Trump Has Averaged 50% or Higher Job Approval in 17 States  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump, who has averaged 40% job approval since his inauguration, received approval ratings of 50% or higher in 17 states in the first half of 2017.  Residents in an equal number of states gave him approval ratings below 40%.

Trump Needs To Be Smart About How He Fires Mueller  —  Trump must eventually fire Robert Mueller, a partisan tool carrying water for his Establishment pals as he oversees an utterly corrupt “investigation” where the only person we actually know committed any wrongdoing is his bestest buddy Jim Comey.

Does the opening predict a wave?  —  Congressional candidates filed their six-month financial reports with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on July 15.  But the one number that leapt off the page had little to do with finance.  It immediately made me think about wave elections.

Jared Kushner sealed real estate deal with oligarch's firm cited in money-laundering case  —  Donald Trump's son-in-law bought part of old New York Times building from Soviet-born tycoon, Guardian investigation into Russian money in NYC property market finds

White House: Schiff Has Done 14 Hours of TV Interviews Since Trump Took Office  —  Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff (Calif.) has done 123 national television interviews totaling more than 14 hours of air time since January, according to a tracking report provided to the White House.

Alt-right activists say Trump and Bannon are giving them “space to destroy” by keeping FBI away  —  Top alt-right podcasters say the Trump administration is deliberately backing off investigating domestic extremists  —  While the neo-fascist alt-right is not entirely happy with President Donald Trump's …

A Veteran ICE Agent, Disillusioned with the Trump Era, Speaks Out  —  In March, two months after President Trump took office, I received a text message from a veteran agent at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ice).  I had been trying to find field agents willing to describe what life was like at the agency in the Trump era.

Dems finally focus on message  —  According to a Gallup survey earlier this year, 44 percent of Democrats describe themselves as liberal.  —  But 41 percent of America's Democrats self-identify as moderates.  Another 15 percent say they are conservatives.  —  A Bernie Sanders  —  or Elizabeth Warren

‘Sweet dreams, baby’: Charlie Gard's parents end months-long legal fight to keep him alive … LONDON — For much of their son's short life, Charlie Gard's parents toggled between two worlds.  —  One was the hospital bedside, where their gravely ill baby was kept alive by machines.

Brooks defends campaign ad on Scalise shooting  —  Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks on Monday defended a new ad from his Senate campaign that uses footage of the aftermath of the shooting rampage last month in which House Majority Whip Steve Scalise was wounded and four others were hurt.

Microsoft Paint to be killed off after 32 years  —  Long-standing basic graphics editing program, used throughout childhoods since the 1980s, has been marked for death  —  Microsoft's next Windows 10 update, called the Autumn (or Fall in the US) Creators Update, will bring a variety of new features.

Cornyn floats conference of House, Senate healthcare bills  —  The Senate's No. 2 Republican said the two chambers might conference their ObamaCare repeal-and-replace bills.  —  “Initially there was some thought that maybe the House would take up the bill that we passed, but that may not be the case,” Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn

A Better Deal for American Workers  —  Americans are clamoring for bold changes to our politics and our economy.  They feel, rightfully, that both systems are rigged against them, and they made that clear in last year's election.  American families deserve a better deal so that this country works …