Rudy Giuliani just obliterated the goal posts on Trump-Russia collusion  —  President Trump's defense in the Russia investigation has been a study in goal-post moving — constantly watering down previous denials and raising the standard for what would constitute actual wrongdoing.

Study: ‘Medicare for all’ projected to cost $32.6 trillion  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Bernie Sanders' “Medicare for all” plan would increase government health care spending by $32.6 trillion over 10 years, according to a study by a university-based libertarian policy center.  —  That's trillion with a “T.”

Trump says he's willing to meet Iranian President Rouhani without preconditions  —  President Trump declared Monday that he is willing to meet Iranian President Hassan Rouhani anytime and without preconditions, saying that he believes it is always better to meet with adversaries.

Why Dean Baquet Skipped The New York Times' Meeting With Trump  —  When President Trump broke an off-the-record agreement after he met with New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger, some wondered why Dean Baquet, the executive editor in charge of the journalism Trump has openly criticized …

Activist Publishes 11,000 Private DMs Between Wikileaks and Its Supporters  —  Emma Best, a freedom of information activist, has published a large cache of Twitter direct messages between Wikileaks and some of its most fervent supporters, including ones showing antisemitic sentiment from Wikileaks.

FEMA official harassed women, hired some as possible sexual partners for male employees, agency chief says  —  The personnel chief of the Federal Emergency Management Agency — who resigned just weeks ago — is under investigation after being accused of creating an atmosphere …

How to Talk to a Racist  —  White liberals, you're doing it all wrong.  —  NASHVILLE — There are still white Southerners who honestly believe that American culture worked better for everyone, white and black alike, under segregation.  There are still white Southerners who question how bad slavery really was.

99 Days to Go, and the Midterm Elections Battleground Is Not What Was Expected  —  The most competitive districts are only somewhat better educated and somewhat more suburban than the country as a whole.  —  The battleground in the fight for control of the House is starting to come into focus …

DNC Chair Tom Perez Spotted Carrying $1,840 Designer Bag At Airport After Calling Socialism ‘Future’ Of Party  —  A sharp-eyed sleuth snapped a picture Friday of Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez at DC's Reagan National airport.  The former Obama secretary of labor was standing in line …

Sessions announces ‘religious liberty task force’  —  announced Monday that the Department of Justice is creating a “religious liberty task force.”  —  Sessions said the task force, co-chaired by Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio and the assistant attorney general …

What is Bigfoot erotica?  A Virginia congressional candidate accused her opponent of being into it.  —  Our weird political era just got a little hairier.  For the first time, millions of Americans are asking, “What is Bigfoot erotica?”  —  That question has been inspired by Leslie Cockburn …

The Unserious Face of an Unserious Movement  —  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is the Great Young Hope progressives deserve.  —  When, last Thursday, she was asked an elementary question about spending, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez struck her best Cobra Kai pose.  “I sat down with a Nobel Prize economist …

MH370 Was ‘Manipulated’ Off Course to Its End, Report Says  — Difficult to attribute sudden turns to system failure: report  — Plane missing since March 2014 is aviation's biggest mystery  —  Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, missing since 2014, was probably steered off course deliberately …

The Abortions We Don't Talk About  —  When Justice Anthony Kennedy, the Supreme Court's crucial swing vote on many matters, announced his plan to retire last month, it was suddenly clear that Roe v. Wade, the decision guaranteeing a woman's right to abortion, could be substantially eroded or even overturned.

5 Amazon obscure settings you should change now  —  The items we buy say a lot about our lifestyles, our finances, and our domestic lives.  If you have an Amazon account, the amount of data that the retail giant collects is astonishing.  Many people don't know you get much more just free two-day shipping with a Prime account.

Scoop: 20 ways Democrats could crack down on Big Tech  —  In a policy paper obtained by Axios, Sen. Mark Warner's office laid out 20 different paths to address problems posed by Big Tech platforms — ranging from putting a price on individual users' data to funding media literacy programs.

‘Eye-popping’ payouts for CEOs follow Trump's tax cuts  —  The insider sales feed the narrative that corporate tax cuts enrich executives in the short term while yielding less clear long-term benefits for workers.  —  Some of the biggest winners from President Donald Trump's new tax law …

Koch network says it is withholding support for Heitkamp challenger for now  —  COLORADO SPRINGS — The Koch political network announced Monday that it does not currently plan to support Republican Kevin Cramer in his effort to unseat Sen. Heidi Heitkamp in North Dakota …

Federal Judge Rules That Albuquerque's Asset Forfeiture Created an Unconstitutional Profit Incentive  —  A federal judge has ruled that Albuquerque's civil asset forfeiture program violated residents' due process rights by forcing them to prove their innocence to retrieve their cars.

AG Ferguson sues over Trump Administration giving dangerous individuals access to 3D printed firearms  —  Downloadable guns make weapons easier for criminals to obtain  —  SEATTLE — Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced he is leading a multistate lawsuit to block a Trump Administration action …

At Law Firms, Rainmakers Accused of Harassment Can Switch Jobs With Ease  —  Opaque hiring practices in legal industry often make prior sexual-harassment complaints easy to leave behind  —  The flowers arrived at Mayer Brown days after a prized new hire started at the law firm's New York office.

Russia dumped 84% of its American debt.  What that means  —  Mnuchin: U.S. debt to China does not give them leverage  —  Russia has rapidly sold off the vast majority of its stash of American debt.  —  Between March and May, Russia's holdings of US Treasury bonds plummeted by $81 billion …

Beyoncé Given Unprecedented Control Over Vogue's September Issue Cover, Sources Say  —  And for the first time ever, a black photographer has shot the cover.  —  Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour gave Beyoncé unprecedented control over the cover of the upcoming September issue …

What's going on with Donald Trump?  Psychologist explains the president's lies, reversals  —  Trump's lies and reversals are not due to mental illness but because he reacts to people and situations in the moment, with no thought of future or past.  —  CONNECT