Why Michael Cohen Agreed to Plead Guilty—And Implicate the President  —  Prosecutors had reams of evidence and a long list of counts, which also could have included the lawyer's wife  —  Michael Cohen had many reasons to play ball last weekend when his legal team sat down to talk to federal prosecutors.

Manafort juror reveals lone holdout prevented Mueller team from convicting on all counts  —  NORTHERN VIRGINIA - Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team was one holdout juror away from convicting Paul Manafort on all 18 counts of bank and tax fraud, juror Paula Duncan told Fox News in an exclusive interview Wednesday.

Betsy DeVos Is Said to Weigh Letting School Districts Use Federal Funds to Buy Guns  —  WASHINGTON — Betsy DeVos, the education secretary, is considering whether to allow states to use federal funding intended to increase academic and enrichment opportunities in the country's poorest schools …

Despite Comey Assurances, Vast Bulk of Weiner Laptop Emails Were Never Examined  —  When then-FBI Director James Comey announced he was closing the Hillary Clinton email investigation for a second time just days before the 2016 election, he certified to Congress that his agency had …

As Bad News Piles Up, Republicans Hardly Flinch  —  WASHINGTON — For those wondering if the latest disclosures from the Trump legal file are finally weighty enough to cause top congressional Republicans to break from the president, the answer is no.  —  Twenty-four hours after President Trump …

Trump called this White House defender ‘wonderful.’ He was fired from his previous job for alleged sexual harassment.  —  A conservative commentator who was lauded by President Trump this week as “wonderful” and who has argued that past sexual indiscretions should have no bearing on Trump's presidency …

Impeachment debate moves to center of midterm fight  —  Impeachment has moved to the center of the midterm debate following the remarkable assertion from Michael Cohen that President Trump  —  orchestrated illegal hush-money payments through his former personal attorney to silence two women ahead of the 2016 elections.

Lawyer: Suspect in Mollie Tibbetts' slaying worked in Iowa legally.  Not true, says employer  —  Defense lawyer accuses ‘sad and sorry Trump’ of poisoning potential jurors  —  A court document filed Wednesday morning states that the man accused of killing Mollie Tibbetts was working legally in Iowa …

China slaps back at latest United States tariffs in trade war escalation  —  This story is being published for Pros as part of a content partnership with the South China Morning Post.  It originally appeared on scmp.com on Aug. 23, 2018.  —  China slapped 25 percent tariffs …

The Cybersecurity 202: DNC says hack attempt on its voter database was a false alarm  —  THE KEY  —  The Democratic National Committee says the attempted hack on its voter database was actually a “simulated phishing test” — and not actually the work of bad actors trying to crack into its networks.

A new poll shows 5 big challenges facing the Republicans in November  —  With the midterm election less than a month away, there is considerable agreement among forecasters on the Democrats' chances of regaining a House majority: 73 percent (538), 70 percent (The Economist), 67 percent …

Poll: Democrat O'Rourke trails Ted Cruz by just 4 percentage points in Texas  —  O'Rourke has 45 percent support among registered voters compared with Cruz's 49 percent; Abbott leads governor's contest by 19.  —  WASHINGTON — As Texas Democrats attempt to win a major statewide contest …

It's Too Late to Protect the 2018 Elections.  But Here's How the U.S. Can Prepare for 2020.  —  In the swirl of news this week, it would be easy to miss recent announcements from two of America's largest and most influential technology companies that have implications for our democracy as a whole.

Trump tweets the word ‘Africa’ for first time as president — in defense of whites in South Africa  —  President Trump on Wednesday night said he was directing Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to “closely study the South Africa land and farm seizures,” as well as the “killing of farmers.”