A Liberal's Case for Brett Kavanaugh  —  The nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to be the next Supreme Court justice is President Trump's finest hour, his classiest move.  Last week the president promised to select “someone with impeccable credentials, great intellect, unbiased judgment …

Mike Flynn Joins Global Consulting Firm  —  Former Trump adviser is awaiting sentencing for lying to federal investigators  —  Former national security adviser Mike Flynn has a new job: He has joined a global lobbying and investment advisory firm.  —  As he awaits sentencing for lying …

Brutal poll: Democrats' Senate dream slips away  —  To win the Senate, Democrats need to keep all 10 seats they're defending in states that President Trump won in 2016 — plus pick up two more seats.  —  Why it matters: That's not happening.  A new Axios/SurveyMonkey poll of key states shows Dems …

“Trump Is Too Chickenshit to Fire Kelly Himself”: With Bill Shine Producing His West Wing Reality Show, Trump Prepares to Dump His Chief of Staff  —  Now that Shine is in the saddle, it's Mooch 2.0: Kelly is being humiliated, Sarah Sanders has been deemed low energy, and the biggest winner of all is, naturally, Sean Hannity.

In honor of Trump visit, Brits launch campaign to lift ‘American Idiot’ to top of the charts  —  President Trump loved seeing “American Idiot,” the Green Day Broadway musical, on its opening night in 2010, calling it “an amazing theatrical experience!” on Twitter.

Trump pardons Oregon ranchers at center of 40-day standoff  —  on Tuesday pardoned a pair of Oregon ranchers whose arson conviction became a focus for opponents of federal government land ownership.  —  Dwight Hammond, 76, and his son Steven Hammond, 49, were convicted in 2012 and sent to prison on arson charges.

GOP Senators Tell Contradictory Stories About Moscow Trip … A top Republican senator shocked his colleagues when he suggested, after returning from a trip to Moscow with fellow GOP lawmakers, that U.S. sanctions targeting Russia were not working and the Kremlin's election interference was really no big deal.

Timeline: Trump's Acts of Accommodation/Engagement with Russia, Nov. 2016-July 2018  —  President Donald Trump's comments and actions in relation to Russia - and especially toward President Vladimir Putin — are strikingly conciliatory considering Moscow's documented attacks on America's democracy …

Business Insider Pulls Conservative Column About Scarlett Johansson Playing Trans Man … Business Insider removed a post about portrayals of trans individuals in Hollywood after staff complained internally about the column, saying the article did not meet the publication's standards.

Shopping struggles: These 11 retailers may not survive 2018  —  The retail apocalypse isn't over yet.  —  The retail apocalypse is entering its ninth year.  —  Many North American retailers were wiped out in the “retail apocalypse” which started in 2010.

All 12 boys, coach rescued from flooded Thai cave  —  MAE SAI, Thailand (AP) — All 12 boys and their soccer coach have been rescued from a flooded cave in northern Thailand, the Thai navy SEALs said Tuesday, ending an 18-day ordeal that riveted people around the world.

What we buy can be used to predict our politics, race or education — sometimes with more than 90 percent accuracy  —  The cultural divide is real, and it's huge.  Americans live such different lives that what we buy, do or watch can be used to predict our politics, race, income …

The Fast and Furious Michael Avenatti  —  In representing the porn star Stormy Daniels, the lawyer thinks he can bring down a president — one cable-news hit at a time.  —  The attorney Michael Avenatti stands just under six feet tall, with blatant blue eyes and thinning hair he shaves down to stubble …

Giuliani works for foreign clients while serving as Trump's attorney  —  Rudolph W. Giuliani continues to work on behalf of foreign clients both personally and through his namesake security firm while serving as President Trump's personal attorney — an arrangement experts say raises conflict …

Anatomy of a Trump rally: 76 percent of claims are false, misleading or lacking evidence  —  We're doing something new: analyzing every factual claim from President Trump's campaign rally in Montana on Thursday.  —  According to The Fact Checker's database, the president had made 3,251 false …

EU official criticizes Trump over attitude toward allies  —  BRUSSELS (AP) — A senior European Union official lashed out Tuesday at President Donald Trump, lambasting the U.S. leader for his constant criticism of European allies and urging him to remember who is friends are when he meets Russian President Vladimir Putin next week.

Trump's Office of Refugee Resettlement Is Budgeting for a Surge in Child Separations  —  The Office of Refugee Resettlement is preparing for the possibility of another surge in family separations.  Internal documents obtained by Slate show that ORR has modeled a scenario …

ICE Officers to Asylum Seekers: 'Don't You Know That We Hate You People?'  —  New court documents reveal the cruelty of Trump's family separations  —  The Trump child-separation horror is far from over.  According to the government's own numbers, released late last week …

A Distinction Without A Difference  —  Driver told cops he only drank bourbon at stop signs, signals  —  An inebriated motorist assured Florida police that he was not drinking while driving, but only swigging from a bottle of Jim Beam bourbon when his vehicle paused at stop signs and traffic signals, according to a police report.

Another former OSU wrestler says Jim Jordan knew about alleged abuse  —  (CNN)A fifth former OSU wrestler has told CNN that Jim Jordan knew about the actions of Dr. Richard Strauss, the former Ohio State University medical doctor who treated athletes, and called Jordan, who is now a US Congressman …

China pledges US$23 billion in loans and aid to Arab states as it boosts ties in Middle East  —  Free-trade deals are also on the cards, as President Xi Jinping tells forum Beijing wants to ‘become the keeper of peace and stability’ in the region  —  Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday promised …

Secret tape recordings rock Georgia governor race  —  Georgia GOP gubernatorial candidate Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle can be heard saying the Republican primary had devolved into “who could be the craziest.”  —  ATLANTA — Another secret recording is shaking up Georgia's Republican primary runoff in the governor's race.

California university works to reduce number of white people on campus  —  Cal Poly San Luis Obispo works on massive diversity and inclusion effort  —  In keeping with the diversity and inclusion movement sweeping campuses across the country, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo recently released …

The reinvention of Ted Cruz  —  SAN ANTONIO — It was just after 10 a.m., and as the temperature outside crept toward 95 degrees along a muggy and tourist-filled River Walk, Ted Cruz strolled on stage at the climate-controlled Republican Party of Texas convention to a sea of 10-gallon hats …