White House in chaos — what's new?  —  The president decided the entire staff was working against him, running their own agenda, not his or the nation's.  Poll ratings had plummeted, with job approval in the 30s.  Leaks were commonplace as staffers hyped their own policy positions, even brazenly floated them in trial balloons.

Newly Released Emails Show Brett Kavanaugh May Have Perjured Himself at Least Four Times  —  Formerly confidential emails have been released that show the Supreme Court nominee contradicting statements he made under oath to the Senate.  —  You can forgive Democratic senators for saying “I told you so.”

White House officials flagged Trump's behavior to psychiatrist last year  —  White House officials reached out to a noted Yale University psychiatrist last fall out of concern over President Trump's increasingly erratic behavior.  —  Dr. Bandy Lee, who edited the best-selling book …

'I Don't Talk' That Way, Trump Says.  Except When He Does.  —  President Trump said he has never used terms like “mentally retarded” or “dumb Southerner,” as he is quoted in Bob Woodward's new book.  But the record shows he has.  —  Numerous Trump officials denied writing the anonymous Op-Ed published by The New York Times.

Economy adds more jobs than expected in August, and wage growth hits post-recession high  — Nonfarm payrolls grew by 201,000 in August.  Economists surveyed by Reuters expected a 191,000 increase.

Giuliani to AP: Trump will not answer obstruction questions  —  NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump will not answer federal investigators' questions, in writing or in person, about whether he tried to block the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Trump to Preside Over U.N. Security Council, Prompting Anxiety All Around  —  WASHINGTON — Three weeks from now, in New York, President Trump will find himself in the setting he most relishes: seated at the head of a polished table, calling on those seated around him, rewarding those he likes and cutting off those who displease him.

Tesla shares crash after Elon Musk smokes joint on live web show  —  Two senior executives quit electric carmaker as market value falls 8%  —  Play Video  —  Tesla shares crashed 8% on Friday as two of its senior executives quit, just hours after the electric carmaker's chief executive …

“I'm Tired of America Wasting Our Blood and Treasure”: The Strange Ascent of Betsy DeVos and Erik Prince  —  Since the 1970s, the DeVos family has been quietly advancing a plan to make government act more like a private business.  Now, they appear ready to take the next step.

Opioid billionaire granted patent for addiction treatment  —  A billionaire pharmaceuticals executive who has been blamed for spurring the US opioid crisis stands to profit from the epidemic after he patented a new treatment for drug addicts.  —  Richard Sackler, whose family owns Purdue Pharma …

For A Lot Of Muslim Republicans, Their Party's Over  —  Anwar Khalifa is about as Texan as you can get.  He speaks in a sharp twang and cruises around in a Chevy truck with real longhorns mounted on the front.  He never skips “worship day,” he taught his three daughters to shoot, and …

The Trade Slowdown Has Already Begun  —  As tariffs pile up, the world economy is starting to look holed below the waterline.  —  One of the paradoxes of this year's trade tensions is that in many parts of the world, it doesn't yet feel like a crisis.  —  For all the turmoil …

Democrats bring in their closer against Kavanaugh: Felon and ‘master manipulator’ of Watergate, John Dean  —  In their final effort to derail the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh (because he doesn't pledge allegiance to Roe v. Wade) Democrats will drag out one of their favorite old props …

A Security Expert Tied to WikiLeaks Vanishes, and the Internet Is Abuzz  —  OSLO — In a remote Norwegian town north of the Arctic Circle, a cybersecurity expert with ties to WikiLeaks checked out of a hotel, dressed in khaki hiking gear and carrying heavy baggage.  —  That was on Aug. 20.

Fearful mother in ad attacking Sharice Davids is a Kansas GOP official  —  A fearful mother stares into a camera and warns that Democratic candidate Sharice Davids will put her four children at risk.  —  In a new ad from a super PAC linked to House Speaker Paul Ryan, Alana Roethle of Leawood …

Russia-Linked Money-Laundering Probe Looks at $150 Billion in Transactions  —  Transactions uncovered at Danske's Estonian branch highlight the growing concern about illicit money flows from the former Soviet Union  —  Investigators at Denmark's largest bank are studying around $150 billion …

Flashback: Obama prosecuted staff leakers, gave lie-detector tests, ‘paranoid’  —  Should President Trump need a model to use to track down leakers inside his administration like the “anonymous” insider who challenged his authority in a New York Times op-ed, he need go no further …

Eagles Bring Out “Philly Special” To Win But NFL Kickoff Ratings Down From 2017  —  The Heavens did not seem well disposed to the official beginning of the NFL season last night as rain and possible lightening in the City of Brotherly Love pushed back the start of the Philadelphia Eagles gridiron battle against the Atlanta Falcons.

Florence is predicted to restrengthen and is a hurricane threat to the East Coast  —  The once powerful Florence took a hit Thursday, but its life as a major hurricane is likely not over just yet, and it has East Coast residents on the edge of their seats.  —  The tropical storm is predicted …

POLITICO Playbook: Inside Washington's money machine  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  PLAYBOOK EXCLUSIVE: INSIDE WASHINGTON'S MONEY MACHINE 60 DAYS BEFORE ELECTION DAY ... In the next few grafs, we're going to take you inside the money machines powering the Republican and Democratic parties …

Papadopoulos to be sentenced in Russia investigation  —  George Papadopoulos, the novice, unpaid foreign policy adviser to Donald Trump who rose to prominence when he became the first former campaign adviser arrested as part of special counsel Robert Mueller's Russian-influence probe, is scheduled to be sentenced Friday in Washington.

Frustration and Finger-Pointing as G.O.P. Pulls Out of Deal Talks on Hacked Materials  —  WASHINGTON — House Republicans withdrew on Thursday from negotiations with Democrats over a pact that would have effectively barred both parties from using hacked or stolen material on the campaign trail this fall.

Polling the 2018 Midterm Elections in Real Time  —  The Upshot has partnered with Siena College to poll dozens of the most competitive House and Senate races across the country.  Our poll results are updated in real time, after every phone call.  We hope to help you understand how polling works, and why it sometimes doesn't.