Poll: Amid Kavanaugh Confirmation Battle, Democratic Enthusiasm Edge Evaporates  —  Just over a month away from critical elections across the country, the wide Democratic enthusiasm advantage that has defined the 2018 campaign up to this point has disappeared, according to a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll.

Signed, 650+ Law Professors (and Counting).  —  The following letter will be presented to the United States Senate on Oct. 4.  It will be updated as more signatures are received.  —  Judicial temperament is one of the most important qualities of a judge.  As the Congressional Research Service explains …

I Was Brett Kavanaugh's College Roommate  — There's Nothing Like Seeing a Headline About the President Inheriting a Fortune via Fraud and Knowing He'll Definitely Get Away With It  —  In 1983, I was one of Brett Kavanaugh's freshman roommates at Yale University.

How Times Journalists Uncovered the Original Source of the President's Wealth  —  Three reporters spent over a year digging through more than 100,000 pages of documents and chasing down key sources familiar with President Trump's father and his empire.  —  Times Insider delivers behind …

QAnoners Cheer Trump's Text Alert Test, See It as a Step Toward Martial Law  —  ‘That is how we will receive orders if all else fails.’  —  Phones across the country buzzed Wednesday afternoon for the first national test of FEMA's presidential-level emergency alert system.

My husband, Rand Paul, and our family have suffered intimidation and threats  —  Sen. Paul's injuries worse than first reported  —  Kelley Paul is the wife of Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.  The opinions expressed in this commentary are hers.  —  (CNN)An open letter to Senator Cory Booker:

Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump administration from ending TPS  —  TPS: What is Temporary Protected Status?  —  (CNN)Hundreds of thousands of immigrants who feared they could soon be facing deportation got a reprieve Wednesday, when a federal judge in California temporarily blocked …

Brett Kavanaugh and the Limits of Social-Class Privilege for Conservatives  —  Why are Ivy League elites trashing the judge for college habits they shared?  Take a guess.  —  While the political class waits with bated breath for the conclusion of the seventh FBI investigation of Brett Kavanaugh …

Erik Prince's Russian Connection Trawled Trumpland for ‘Boss’ Putin  —  In the days after the 2016 election, a well-connected Moscow executive started pitching Trump associates on a bold plan for renewed U.S.-Russian cooperation.  —  That now-infamous meeting in the Seychelles …

It's Time for Democrats to Play Hardball With the FBI  —  Absent any pressure from Democrats, the FBI is likely to simply follow its orders from the White House.  So what should Democrats do?  Treat the FBI like the GOP does.  —  As the FBI prepares to conclude its review …

Special counsel's office has radio interviews between Roger Stone and alleged WikiLeaks ‘back channel’  —  Stone associate testifies before grand jury  —  (CNN)Audio of radio interviews between longtime Trump ally Roger Stone and the radio host he claimed was his back channel …

The Cruelty Is the Point  —  The Museum of African-American History and Culture is in part a catalogue of cruelty.  Amid all the stories of perseverance, tragedy, and unlikely triumph, there are the artifacts of inhumanity and barbarism: the child-size slave shackles, the bright red robes …

House Rating Changes: Eight More GOP Seats Move Towards Democrats  —  Five weeks out, several personally popular Republicans who appeared to be defying the “blue wave” in Clinton-won districts are beginning to see their leads erode.  GOP Reps. Carlos Curbelo (FL-26), John Katko (NY-24) …

I stepped down as U.S. ambassador to Estonia.  Here's why.  —  James D. Melville Jr. is a former member of the U.S. Foreign Service who served as ambassador to Estonia from 2015 until his resignation in July.  —  When you serve as U.S. ambassador to a foreign capital, you represent your country, of course.

Top FBI lawyer Baker offers ‘explosive’ testimony on ‘abnormal’ handling of Russia probe into Trump campaign: lawmakers  —  Former top FBI lawyer James Baker gave “explosive” closed-door testimony on Wednesday detailing for congressional investigators how the Russia probe was handled in an …