'I think I'd take it': In exclusive interview, Trump says he would listen if foreigners offered dirt on opponents  —  President Donald Trump to if foreign governments offered damaging information against his 2020 rivals during the upcoming presidential race, he said, despite the deluge …

California Democratic 2020 presidential primary is a wide-open race, poll finds … With the Democratic presidential field now largely set, the race in the nation's largest state is wide open, with at least five candidates in serious contention and no clear favorite.

Mulvaney pushed judicial nominee over objections of White House lawyers  —  The nomination on Tuesday of Halil Suleyman “Sul” Ozerden to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals offers the latest glimpse of how acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney is exercising his power inside the White House …

Social Security Is Staring at Its First Real Shortfall in Decades.  Big Cuts Could Follow.  —  A slow-moving crisis is approaching for Social Security, threatening to undermine a central pillar in the retirement of tens of millions of Americans.  —  Next year, for the first time since 1982 …

Oil tankers attacked in Gulf of Oman, U.S. Navy says  —  ISTANBUL — Two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman came under suspected attack early Thursday amid soaring tensions between the United States and Iran in the region.  —  One ship was adrift and on fire in the strategic waterway …

Trump just invited Congress to begin impeachment proceedings  —  The idea that only the president can investigate the president is an argument for autocrats, not Americans.  — George T. Conway III, Neal Katyal -  ·  —  Her story isn't about euthanasia.  It's about failing mental-health systems.

Jessica Biel Comes Out as Anti-Vaxx Activist, Joins Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to Lobby Against CA Vaccination Bill  —  “I would say that she was for safe vaccines and for medical freedom,” Kennedy told The Daily Beast.  “My body, my choice.”  —  Tuesday, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. …

Experts: Spy used AI-generated face to connect with targets  —  LONDON (AP) — Katie Jones sure seemed plugged into the Washington's political scene.  The 30-something redhead boasted a job at a top think tank and a who's-who network of pundits and experts, from the centrist Brookings Institution to the right-wing Heritage Foundation.

House Intelligence Committee subpoenas Flynn, Gates  —  The House Intelligence Committee has issued subpoenas for former national security adviser Michael Flynn and former deputy Trump campaign chairman Rick Gates, two of former special counsel Robert Mueller's most important cooperators.

Justice Dept. Seeks to Question C.I.A. Officers in Russia Inquiry Review  —  WASHINGTON — Justice Department officials intend to interview senior C.I.A. officers as they review the Russia investigation, according to people briefed on the matter, indicating they are focused partly …

POLITICO Playbook: Trump gives the impeachment crowd a gift  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  President DONALD TRUMP'S admission that he would accept a foreign government's assistance in an election — and might not report it to the FBI — is an absolutely stunning statement that would seem out of bounds to any and every reader of Playbook.

Rick Santorum: Trump Was Just Using ‘Filler Words’ When He Said He'd Accept Foreign Help  —  “He has, sort of—as we all do, filler words that don't mean what they say, like, ‘I think,’” Santorum attempted to explain.  —  Rick Santorum, one of CNN's resident Trump defenders …

Why the Trump campaign won't pay police bills  —  Ten city governments from Arizona to Pennsylvania say the president's political committee has stiffed them out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.  —  “Do we love law enforcement or what?”  President Donald Trump asked a cheering crowd during his …

Donald Trump's Beverly Hills home quietly sells for $13.5 million  —  President Trump has visited California three times since entering the White House, but he'll have one less place to stay for the next trip.  The Trump Organization has quietly unloaded one of its last two properties in Los Angeles County …

Howard Schultz Announces Campaign Staff Cuts, Summer Hiatus  —  The Starbucks billionaire won't make a decision on running for president until after Labor Day — and he's still eyeing Joe Biden as his biggest competition.  —  Starbucks billionaire Howard Schultz told campaign staff …

‘Sex-starved males’ comment sets off House floor kerfuffle  —  A routine House debate nearly exploded Wednesday when California Democrat Norma J. Torres implied her Republican colleagues were “sex-starved males” for opposing abortion.  —  “Mr. Speaker, it is tiring to hear from so many sex-starved males …

Media Claims Notwithstanding, Trump Is Favored To Be Re-Elected  —  Nothing has turned out the way the Resistance had hoped.  Far from their fever dreams of global chaos and economic catastrophe, the Trump agenda is turning out to be surprisingly successful.

Tory leadership contest: Boris Johnson tops first ballot  —  Boris Johnson has secured the highest number of votes in the first ballot to select the Conservative party leader and next prime minister.  —  Three contenders - Mark Harper, Andrea Leadsom and Esther McVey - have been knocked out …

Margaret Hunter to plead out in case against congressman husband  —  Details of deal not clear, Rep. Duncan Hunter's attorney declined to discuss whether she might be cooperating with the prosecution  —  Margaret Hunter, the wife of longtime East County Congressman Duncan Hunter who was co-indicted …

Scoop: Trump selects Eric Ueland to lead legislative affairs  —  President Trump has picked Eric Ueland, currently deputy assistant to the president for domestic policy, to replace Shahira Knight as director of legislative affairs, according two sources with direct knowledge of the decision.

Manchin eyes Senate exit  —  Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is eyeing a possible exit from the Senate, and his decision could be a significant factor in which party controls the majority in 2021.  —  In moments of frustration, the centrist senator has gone so far as to tell colleagues he may leave …

A law professor resigns as Netflix drama about Central Park Five continues to dredge up anger  —  The lawyer who led the prosecution on the notorious Central Park jogger rape case is resigning her position at Columbia Law School as backlash mounts from the portrayal of the case in a Netflix miniseries.