Exclusive: CNN obtains secret Trump-Cohen tape  —  (CNN)Presidential candidate Donald Trump is heard on tape discussing with his attorney Michael Cohen how they would buy the rights to a Playboy model's story about an alleged affair Trump had with her years earlier, according to the audio recording …

Spotting CNN on a TV Aboard Air Force One, Trump Rages Against Reality  —  WASHINGTON — On the first couple's recent trip overseas, Melania Trump's television aboard Air Force One was tuned to CNN.  President Trump was not pleased.  —  He raged at his staff for violating a rule …

Exclusive: White House stops announcing calls with foreign leaders  —  Washington (CNN)The White House has suspended the practice of publishing public summaries of President Donald Trump's phone calls with world leaders, two sources with knowledge of the situation tell CNN …

Burr breaks with Nunes: ‘Sound reasons’ for judges to approve FISA warrant  —  (CNN)Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr told CNN Tuesday he believed there were “sound reasons” for judges to approve the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrant on former Trump campaign …

Ivanka Trump, President Donald Trump's daughter, is closing her namesake fashion brand, more than a year after she formally separated herself from the company and entered the White House as a senior adviser.  —  Apparel sales at the brand, which Ms. Trump launched in its current form in 2014 …

The Spy Who Drove Me  —  Last week, as America's top national security experts convened in Aspen, a strangely inquisitive Uber driver showed up, too.  And caused a minor freak-out.  Was the mystery woman some kind of covert agent—or simply a figment of these hyper-paranoid times?

Two Trump Allies, Seeing Unlimited Opportunity, Instead Drew Scrutiny  —  WASHINGTON — Early one morning in October, Rick Gates, a Washington lobbyist who had been a top official in the Trump campaign, emailed family and friends warning them that he was about to be indicted …

White House readies plan to extend about $12 billion in emergency aid to farmers caught in Trump's escalating trade war  —  An announcement could come as soon as Tuesday, according to two people briefed on the matter.  This is the latest sign that growing tensions between the United States and other countries will not end soon.

Democrat Senators Won't Meet With Kavanaugh  —  Press Secretary Sarah Sanders conducted a briefing yesterday.  It featured the usual anti-Trump hysteria by members of the White House press corps, but I thought the most interesting point to emerge was the one that Sanders began with:

A million Facebook users watched a video that blurs the line between bad satire and ‘fake news’  —  A conservative news outlet spliced together a “satirical” interview with Democratic congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, published it on Facebook without noting it was satire …

Without the Russians, Trump wouldn't have won  —  President Trump is willing, under duress, to briefly and begrudgingly admit that Russian “meddling” took place in 2016 before reverting to calling it a “big hoax.”  But he always maintains that the plot against America had no impact …

Farewell For Now  —  In which I bid farewell to Tesla analysis at Seeking Alpha.  —  And explain why I am departing.  —  A victory for Elon Musk?  Perhaps.  Of a dubious sort.  —  Yesterday, July 23, I decided to cease writing about Tesla (TSLA) here at the Seeking Alpha web site.

‘Like a Soviet-type economy’: GOP free traders unload on Trump  —  The president's $12 billion farm bailout gets an ugly reception among many Republicans in Congress.  —  President Donald Trump's bailout for the ag industry is driving his many Republican trade critics to exasperation.

Growing Partisan Differences in Views of the FBI; Stark Divide over ICE  —  Favorable views of FBI have fallen sharply among Republicans  —  A new survey of public attitudes toward federal agencies finds that partisan differences in views of the FBI have increased markedly over the past year.

Montana Governor Sues I.R.S., Warning of ‘Foreign Money’ in Elections  —  Gov. Steve Bullock of Montana, a Democrat who has crusaded against the loosening of campaign finance rules, is suing the Trump administration to block it from eliminating a mandate that politically active nonprofit groups disclose …

Femen co-founder Oksana Shachko found dead in Paris flat  —  Suicide note found next to body of 31-year-old feminist activist, say Femen members  —  Oksana Shachko, one of the founders of the Femen feminist protest movement, has been found dead in her Paris apartment, the group has said.

Facebook Says Alex Jones' Threatening Rant Against Robert Mueller Doesn't Violate Its Rules  —  Jones accused the special counsel of participating in child rape and pantomimed shooting Mueller.  Facebook said the rant did not violate its community guidelines.

I reported alongside soldiers in foxholes.  The president can't take that away.  —  Martha Raddatz is chief global affairs correspondent for ABC News, co-anchor of ABC's “This Week” and author of “The Long Road Home: A Story of War and Family.”  —  Like so many of my colleagues …

Pro-Confederate Birther Introduced Maria Butina's Handler to NRA Chief … The first American to introduce two of the major players at the heart of a shocking Russian spy scandal has such deep ties to Moscow that he has doubted Barack Obama's American citizenship in the course of demonstrating his affinity for Vladimir Putin.

How the Fleece Vest Became the New Corporate Uniform  —  A focus of a snarky Instagram account, the uninspired grey fleece vest is an inescapable presence in cubicles around the country.  So how did this ho-hum uniform overtake the suit as the corporate outfit of choice?

Spicer book tour stop canceled at Massachusetts store due to ‘political climate’  —  A promotional event for former White House press secretary Sean's Spicer's book at a BJ's Wholesale Club in Massachusetts has reportedly been canceled “due to the political climate.”

Real Mass Hysteria, American Style  —  My friend Dennis Prager writes, “You and I are living through the greatest mass hysteria in American history.  For many Americans, the McCarthy era held that dubious distinction, but what is happening now is incomparably worse.”

Tronc Exec Tells Daily News Staff to Their Faces: We Have No Strategy … When frugal newspaper giant Tronc was asked Tuesday about the specific strategy behind draconian cuts on the New York Daily News on Monday, the company's top executive in New York didn't have an answer.

Finally: House Unanimously Passes Response To Kelo  —  It took the House of Representatives sixteen months to pass HR 1689, the Private Property Rights Protection Act, which finally happened yesterday by acclamation.  It took Congress thirteen years to act on this issue after the execrable Kelo v City …

As Gillibrand Pushes Left, Her Economic Agenda Tilts to Populism  —  WASHINGTON — Standing before a crowd of a thousand union members and progressive activists last month at a conference here that served as a 2020 audition for aspiring Democrats, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand was asked …

She warned America that Russia hacked our voting rolls.  Why is she in jail?  |  Will Bunch  —  Last week's news that special counsel Robert Mueller had the goods on 12 high-level Russian spies whose job was to hack computers and muck up America's 2016 presidential election was a political bombshell …

U.S. appeals court: Constitution gives right to carry gun in public  —  (Reuters) - A federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday that the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment protects a right to openly carry a gun in public for self-defense, rejecting a claim by Hawaii officials that the right only applies to guns kept at home.

Russia slams US general, says he ‘discredited’ Trump  —  Washington (CNN)The Russian Ministry of Defense slammed US Gen. Joseph Votel Tuesday, accusing America's top military commander in the Middle East of discrediting President Donald Trump's position after Votel expressed hesitancy about working with Russia in Syria.

Student with banned Trump shirt to get apology, $25,000 from school district  —  The principal of Liberty High School in Hillsboro has agreed to apologize to a student who was told to go home or cover up his “Donald J. Trump Border Wall Construction Co.” shirt in January.

Whirlpool shares plunge 14.5%, post worst day since 1987 as tariffs wreak havoc with costs and suppliers  — The U.S. based washing machine giant who was once in favor of stricter trade controls for its own industry.  — Whirpool shares plummeted Tuesday after executives blamed rising steel …

Jeff Sessions Laughs and Echoes ‘Lock Her Up’ Chant With Conservative High Schoolers  —  Attorney General Jeff Sessions repeated the phrase “lock her up” during a speech to conservative high school students on Tuesday, chuckling as the crowd began a chant that Trump supporters used during …

As Greek Wildfire Closed In, a Desperate Dash Ended in Death  —  MATI, Greece — They nearly reached the water.  —  As wind-fueled wildfires that killed at least 76 people in vacation areas outside Athens bore down on their seaside resort, 26 men, women and children gathered in the hope …

AG Ferguson investigation leads to Facebook making nationwide changes to prohibit discriminatory advertisements on its platform  —  Advertisers of housing, credit, employment, insurance and public accommodations can no longer discriminate by excluding protected groups