Houston Police officer drowns in Harvey floodwaters  —  A Houston police officer drowned in his patrol car in Harvey floodwaters, according to three department officials.  —  The officer, an HPD veteran who has been with the department for more than 30 years, was in his patrol car driving …

Special counsel subpoenas Manafort's former attorney and spokesman  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  Washington (CNN)Special Counsel Robert Mueller has issued subpoenas to a former lawyer for Paul Manafort and to Manafort's current spokesman, an aggressive tactic that suggests an effort to add pressure on the former Trump campaign chairman.

Rep. Rohrabacher says ‘rendezvous’ being set up with Trump to relay info from WikiLeaks' Assange on DNC hack  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  (CNN)Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher said Monday that a “rendezvous” is being set up between him and President Donald Trump to relay information he received …

Ted Cruz's claim that two-thirds of the Hurricane Sandy bill ‘had nothing to do with Sandy’  —  “The problem with that particular bill is it became a $50 billion bill that was filled with unrelated pork.  Two-thirds of that bill had nothing to do with Sandy.”  —  Hypocrisy watch!

Trump appointee: Comment calling Obama's mother a ‘w@!re’ result of ‘Internet crimes’ against me  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  (CNN)President Donald Trump's appointee to a Department of Energy post says inflammatory comments that appeared to have been made by him online were the result of …

Harvey marks the most extreme rain event in U.S. history  —  The rain from Harvey is in a class of its own.  The storm has unloaded over 50 inches of rain east of Houston, the greatest amount ever recorded in the Lower 48 states from a single storm.  And it's still raining.

Trump Jr. agrees to transcribed interview with Senate panel  —  Trump Jr., Manafort to testify before Senate  —  STORY HIGHLIGHTS  —  (CNN)President Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., has agreed to sit down for a transcribed interview with the Senate judiciary committee …

Judge dismisses Sarah Palin's lawsuit against New York Times  —  Lawsuits against media outlets are piling up  —  A federal judge in Manhattan on Tuesday dismissed Sarah Palin's defamation lawsuit against the New York Times.  —  “Nowhere is political journalism so free, so robust …

Republicans Divided in Views of Trump's Conduct; Democrats Are Broadly Critical  —  In their own words: How people describe Trump's presidency  —  In his first seven months as president, Donald Trump has generally drawn high job approval ratings among Republicans.

How Trump Kills the G.O.P.  —  It's ironic that race was the issue that created the Republican Party and that race could very well be the issue that destroys it.  —  The G.O.P. was founded to fight slavery, and through most of its history it had a decent record on civil rights.

Yes, That's a Huge Floating Mass of Live Fire Ants in Texas  —  When there is flooding along the Gulf Coast, there are fire ants.  The invasive ants congregate into living rafts, drifting through water until they reach solid ground again.  It's a time-honed survival strategy.

Fox News pulled off the air in Britain  —  Rupert Murdoch and his sons are pulling Fox News off the air in Britain.  —  The network's parent company, 21st Century Fox, has announced that the controversial news channel will no longer be broadcast in the U.K. after failing to attract an audience.

Conservative Talker Neal Boortz Wins for Worst, Ugliest, Most Uncalled-for Hurricane Comment to Date  —  Just a short time ago, a woman suffering through the terrible flooding and loss in Texas was on camera on CNN when she unleashed what was not only surely pent-up rage and frustration at her situation …

Gorka suggests covert US cyber program targeted at N. Korea  —  Sebastian Gorka, who recently departed the White House, on Tuesday appeared to publicly confirm the existence of a covert cyber sabotage program targeted at North Korea's missile program.  —  “There's many options in the more covert side …

Trump to seize populist mantle for pitching messy tax overhaul  —  President Donald Trump will launch a major push for a sweeping tax overhaul with a speech Wednesday in Missouri aimed at convincing his base — and the rest of the nation — that he has a fresh vision for “unrigging” …

Sean Spicer finally gets to meet Pope Francis  —  Sean Spicer has finally met Pope Francis.  —  A group of legislators and politicians from around the world gathered in Italy this week for a meeting of the International Catholic Legislators Network, where they were received by Pope Francis at the Vatican.

Family of six counted among the dead as Harvey death toll rises to 14  —  A family of six trying to escape the floodwaters produced by Harvey has been counted among the 14 victims who died in the historic storm, authorities said.  —  The four children and their great-grandparents died Sunday afternoon …

ICE Plans to Start Destroying Records of Immigrant Abuse, Including Sexual Assault and Deaths in Custody  —  Immigration and Customs Enforcement recently asked the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA), which instructs federal agencies on how to maintain records …

How the Swamp Sold Its Soul to Donald Trump  —  “Your heart tells you that he's bad for the country,” one Republican strategist said.  “Your head looks at polling data.”  —  “From a personal standpoint, I think this president f**king sucks.  He's not even a Republican,” …

Helping After Harvey  —  Prudie counsels a Houston native whose girlfriend is reluctant to support flood victims who may have voted for Trump. … Mallory Ortberg: Good morning, everyone!  Let's chat.  —  Q. That's not what I had in mind: I come from the Houston area and have been heartbroken …

Finland says no fighter deal with Boeing after Trump's comments  —  HELSINKI (Reuters) - President Sauli Niinisto on Tuesday denied that Finland was buying new fighter jets from American planemaker Boeing (BA.N), following remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Scenes from a Disjunctive Presidency  —  A week after Donald Trump was elected in November 2016, I predicted—using Stephen Skowronek's model of cycles of regime politics—that Trump would turn out to be a disjunctive president.  He would preside over the end of the Reagan regime …

Scandal Erupts over the Promotion of ‘Bourgeois’ Behavior  —  Two law professors face racism, sexism, and homophobia charges for urging Americans to act responsibly.  —  Were you planning to instruct your child about the value of hard work and civility?  Not so fast!