$30,000 rumor?  Tabloid paid for, spiked, salacious Trump tip  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Eight months before the company that owns the National Enquirer paid $150,000 to a former Playboy Playmate who claimed she'd had an affair with Donald Trump, the tabloid's parent made a $30,000 payment …

Ryan may be forced to leave speakership by summer  —  Paul Ryan said he plans to remain as speaker and not call an early leadership election, but well-wired Republicans tell Jonathan Swan and me that Ryan may be forced out sooner.  —  What we're hearing: One source close to leadership told us …

James Comey: John Kelly Called Trump ‘Dishonorable’ for Firing Me … Within minutes of his firing in May, former FBI Director James Comey received a call from John Kelly, then the head of the Department of Homeland Security and now the White House chief of staff.

Lawmakers' Letter Claims Further Spending Abuses by the E.P.A. Head, Scott Pruitt  —  WASHINGTON — Scott Pruitt, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, insisted on staying in luxury hotels that were costlier than allowed by government standards, while also pushing to fly on an airline …

Scoop: Ricky Waddell is leaving the White House  —  Trump's deputy National Security Adviser Ricky Waddell will leave the White House, according to two sources briefed on the decision.  New National Security Adviser John Bolton wants to bring his own person in, and Waddell was H.R. McMaster's hand-picked deputy.

Key moments: Pompeo blames tensions with Moscow on 'Russia's bad behavior'  —  CIA Director Mike Pompeo talked tough about countering Russia Thursday, telling lawmakers that, contrary to President Donald Trump's recent statements, he believes tension between Washington and Moscow is due to “Russia's bad behavior.”

Holocaust Is Fading From Memory, Survey Finds  —  For seven decades, “never forget” has been a rallying cry of the Holocaust remembrance movement.  —  But a survey released Thursday, on Holocaust Remembrance Day, found that many adults lack basic knowledge of what happened …

Trump Court Pick Thinks Planned Parenthood ‘Kills Over 150,000 Females A Year’  —  Wendy Vitter refused to tell senators if she still agrees with a speech she gave at a 2013 anti-abortion rally.  —  WASHINGTON One of President Donald Trump's judicial nominees, Wendy Vitter …

This Parkland teacher left his gun in a public bathroom.  It was loaded, BSO says.  —  Not the most normal sight: a gun left in the bathroom stall.  —  But that's exactly what went down on Sunday in a men's room at the Deerfield Beach Pier.  —  The circumstances of how the Glock 9mm got there are unusual.

America's Most and Least Popular Senators  —  There's good news and bad news for Senate Democrats up for re-election  — Sanders (I-Vt.) and McConnell (R-Ky.) remains the most popular and unpopular senators, respectively.  —  2018's first quarter was a volatile one for several senators …

Syria strategy not to engage in civil war, but some things ‘simply inexcusable’: Mattis  —  Defense Secretary James Mattis said Thursday that although the U.S. strategy in Syria is to defeat ISIS and “not engage in the civil war itself,” some things, like the use of chemical weapons, are …

The Story Behind TIME's ‘Stormy’ Donald Trump Cover  —  Nothing to See Here, Feb. 27, 2017 Stormy, April, 23, 2018 Illustrations by Tim O'Brien for TIME  —  The April 23 TIME cover, depicting the growing chaos within the Trump White House, may look familiar to some readers …

I Downloaded the Information That Facebook Has on Me.  Yikes.  —  Ask our reporter, Cecilia Kang, questions about the Facebook hearings now on The New York Times Politics Facebook page.  —  When I downloaded a copy of my Facebook data last week, I didn't expect to see much.

Donald Trump Relied on Michael Cohen to Weather the Storm.  Now The President Is On His Own  —  As the sun was setting on the evening of April 9, President Donald Trump gathered the Vice President, senior military leaders and his newly minted National Security Adviser around the long wooden table …