Exclusive: Mueller refers foreign agent inquiries to New York prosecutors  —  Trump assails Mueller ‘conflicts’ though evidence scant  —  (CNN)Special counsel Robert Mueller has referred a collection of cases to New York federal prosecutors concerning whether several high-profile American lobbyists …

Accused Russian Spy Maria Butina Told American CEO: Send Cash to Moscow … Maria Butina, the accused Russian operative, didn't just allegedly cultivate the NRA on behalf of the Kremlin.  The 29-year-old Russian national also braced one of America's best-known businessmen …

Alex Jones, Pursued Over Infowars Falsehoods, Faces a Legal Crossroads  —  AUSTIN, Tex. — In the five years since Noah Pozner was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., death threats and online harassment have forced his parents, Veronique De La Rosa and Leonard Pozner, to relocate seven times.

Trump says Americans need ID to buy groceries while making case for voter ID  —  President Trump, telling his supporters why he wanted Americans to be required to show identification before casting their votes, claimed that they needed their I.Ds “to buy groceries.”  —  He did not elaborate.

Google Plans to Launch Censored Search Engine in China, Leaked Documents Reveal  —  Google is planning to launch a censored version of its search engine in China that will blacklist websites and search terms about human rights, democracy, religion, and peaceful protest, The Intercept can reveal.

Mich. Supreme Court: Redistricting plan goes on Nov. ballot  —  Lansing — A proposal to create an independent redistricting commission will appear on the November ballot, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled late Tuesday in a closely watched case.  —  The 4-3 decision is rife with political implications …

Facebook's new foreign influence report excluded most divisive rhetoric  —  Facebook released only some of the pages and content publicly, declining to release the depth some pages went to stoke racial tension.  —  On Tuesday morning, the political and tech worlds were startled to learn …

‘We are Q’: A deranged conspiracy cult leaps from the Internet to the crowd at Trump's ‘MAGA’ tour  —  On Tuesday evening, the dark recesses of the Internet lit up with talk of politics.  —  “Tampa rally, live coverage,” wrote “Dan,” posting a link to President Trump's Tampa speech in a thread on 8chan …

North Korea is still producing ballistic missiles after summit  —  Satellite photos and U.S. intelligence show North Korea continues to work on its missile program, even after Trump and Kim Jong Un's meeting in Singapore.  —  WASHINGTON — Arms control experts confirm to NBC News …

White House Weighs Another Reduction in Refugees Admitted to U.S.  —  The White House is considering a second sharp reduction in the number of refugees who can be resettled in the United States, picking up where President Trump left off in 2017 in scaling back a program intended to offer protection …

The Justice Department Finds ‘No Responsive Records’ to Support a Trump Speech  —  President Donald Trump delivering an address to a joint session of the U.S. Congress on February 28, 2017 (Source: Wikimedia/Office of the Speaker)  —  “According to data provided by the Department of Justice …

‘Everyone talked with Woodward’: Trump White House braces for new book  —  Unlike previous administrations, this White House had no process for making officials available to the legendary reporter.  —  Bob Woodward, the legendary Washington Post journalist, was sitting on the couch …

US says driving would be riskier if fuel standards tougher  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration says people would drive more and be exposed to increased risk if their cars get better gas mileage, an argument intended to justify freezing Obama-era toughening of fuel standards.

President Trump has made 4,229 false or misleading claims in 558 days  —  Because of summer vacation schedules, we had fallen a month behind in updating The Fact Checker's database that analyzes, categorizes and tracks every suspect statement uttered by the president.

“Don McGahn Hates Rudy with Intensity of 1,000 Burning Suns”: Is Trump Ready to Cook Giuliani?  —  Inside the West Wing, Giuliani's recent wacko media appearances have attracted the wrong kind of notice.  “Trump thinks he's saying too much,” one Republican close to the White House told me.

President Trump intends to nominate an extreme-weather expert as his first science and tech director  —  President Trump intends to nominate Kelvin Droegemeier, an expert in extreme weather from the University of Oklahoma, as his top science and technology adviser at the White House, according to an administration official.

What ‘Interracial’ Cuckold Porn Reveals About White Male Insecurity  —  The genre, in which a Black man has sex with a white man's wife, represents the ultimate threat to white manhood and racial purity.  And it's loaded with racist undertones that have real-world implications.

Berkeley zoning board says latest 2701 Shattuck proposal is ‘still excessive’  —  A proposal for a five-story, 57-unit building in South Berkeley has come back in its latest iteration after a failed attempt in 2013 to get city approval.  —  The project, at 2701 Shattuck Ave., at Derby Street …

The stark contrast of the Maryland governor's race: Centrist or liberal?  —  MARYLAND GOV. Larry Hogan owes something of his popularity to his penchant for centrism, caution and political small ball — a shrewd strategy for a Republican chief executive in a heavily Democratic state.

A Federal Judge Launches a Futile, Unconstitutional Effort to Block Blueprints for 3D-Printed Guns  —  If there's a hall of fame for futile, symbolic, and ultimately unconstitutional federal court orders, the temporary restraining order just issued in Seattle blocking Defense Distributed …

BBC, Fox News, PBS ranked as TV's most trusted news brands  —  The BBC, Fox News and PBS are the most-trusted TV news brands in the U.S., according to an analysis released Tuesday.  —  Research Intelligencer by Brand Keys surveyed 4,012 viewers who rated broadcast and cable brands that they watch …

Chinese Surveillance Expands to Muslims Making Mecca Pilgrimage  —  Some pilgrims from China are wearing ‘smart cards’ to ensure their safety, but rights activists say the tracking devices are government overreach  —  BEIJING—China's close watch over its Islamic minority is being extended abroad …

San Juan: The Venezuelan city where nothing works anymore  —  Venezuela's economic crisis has left residents in San Juan with a chronic water shortage  —  San Juan de los Morros (Venezuela) (AFP) - Power blackouts are daily fare, running water comes only once a month, cash machines are empty and waiting for a bus can take hours.

U.S. Workers Get Biggest Pay Increase in Nearly a Decade  —  Employment cost index, which measures wages and benefits, grew 2.8% in the 12 months to last month  —  WASHINGTON—U.S. workers received their biggest pay increases in nearly a decade over the 12 months through June …

Illinois lawmaker accused of releasing nude photos of ex-girlfriend  —  CHICAGO — A former girlfriend of Illinois state Rep. Nick Sauer has filed an official complaint accusing the first-term Republican of creating a fake Instagram account and populating it with nude photos of her to lure men into “graphic” discussions.

Republicans abuzz over Schmidt's divorce from GOP  —  The onetime McCain strategist won't comment on his talks with potential 2020 Democrat Howard Schultz.  —  Steve Schmidt's public break from the GOP and quiet departure from his corporate PR gig earlier this summer are fueling speculation …