Trump's Electoral College Edge Could Grow in 2020, Rewarding Polarizing Campaign  —  Re-election looks plausible, with an even bigger loss in the national popular vote.  —  President Trump's approval ratings are under water in national polls.  His position for re-election, on the other hand, might not be quite so bleak.

How the Ilhan Omar Marriage Smear Went From Fever Swamp to Trump  —  The curious journey of the unproven rumor that Omar married her brother to get him citizenship—from an obscure Somali diaspora forum to the president.  —  When Donald Trump suggested on Wednesday that Rep. Ilhan Omar …

George Nader, Witness in Mueller Probe, Hit With New Charges of Sex Trafficking  —  The key cooperator faces additional child-porn charges in a new indictment to be unsealed Friday.  —  George Nader, who was a key witness in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation …

Trump took heat from Melania and Ivanka over racist chants at rally  —  Washington — CBS News has learned President Trump took a lot of heat from his family over the racist chants at a campaign rally in North Carolina on Wednesday.  He heard from first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka and Vice President Mike Pence.

Trump officials pressing to slash refugee admissions to zero next year  —  The Trump administration is considering a virtual shutdown of refugee admissions next year — cutting the number to nearly zero — according to three people familiar with the plan.  —  During a key meeting …

Scoop: John Delaney's staffers have asked him to drop out  —  On July 9, John Delaney's senior team sat him down and told him to drop out of the presidential race by mid-August, according to three sources close to the campaign.  —  Why it matters: He's been running for president for 721 days.

LAPD informant infiltrated left-wing activists during Trump protests, records show  —  The Los Angeles Police Department ordered a confidential informant to monitor and record meetings held by a political group that staged protests against President Trump in 2017, a move that has drawn concern …

Republican State Lawmaker: 'Owning Slaves Doesn't Make You Racist'  —  If you were writing a list of things that are and are not racist, slavery should probably be pretty close to the top of the “are” section.  But not for a Republican state lawmaker from New Hampshire …

Trump Can't Just Walk Away From ‘Send Her Back’  —  There's a reason the president can't bring himself to condemn a bigoted chant.  —  Last Sunday, President Donald Trump suggested that four Democratic congresswomen of color, three of whom were born in the U.S., “go back” to their ancestors' countries.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema pushes program to streamline removal of migrant families without valid asylum claims  —  TUCSON — Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is pushing for the implementation of a pilot program along the U.S.-Mexico border that aims to more quickly screen and remove migrant families without valid legal claims …

Defenders of a Racist President Use Jews as Human Shields  —  Trump's bigoted attack on four congresswomen of color has nothing to do with fighting anti-Semitism.  —  Sebastian Gorka, a onetime adviser to Donald Trump, wore a medal from the Vitezi Rend, a Hungarian group historically aligned with Nazism …

Labor fight roils Bernie Sanders campaign, as workers demand the $15 hourly pay the candidate has proposed for employees nationwide  —  Unionized campaign organizers working for Sen. Bernie Sanders's presidential effort are battling with its management, arguing that the compensation and treatment …

Anxious Democratic Governors Urge 2020 Field Not to Veer Too Far Left  —  WASHINGTON — After claiming governorships from Republicans in seven states last year, including in crucial presidential battlegrounds like Wisconsin and Michigan, Democratic governors should have good reason to celebrate.

“I'm Winning”: Donald Trump's Calculated Racism  —  On Tuesday, President Trump convened his Cabinet in the White House.  First to speak after a long, rambling, and inaccuracy-filled monologue by Trump himself was Ben Carson, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

Jerry Nadler asks Hope Hicks to clarify her “inconsistent” testimony about hush payments  —  Hicks's testimony looks more dubious than ever.  The House Judiciary chair has receipts.  —  Former Trump campaign and White House aide Hope Hicks may be out of the woods when it comes …

Store clerk fired after telling customers to ‘go back to their country’ in viral video  —  In the midst of a national controversy about President Donald Trump's inflammatory tweets towards minority congresswomen, a store clerk at an Illinois convenience store has been fired after he was caught …

Congressional Republicans shame themselves with their silence on Trump's racism.  —  Days after President Donald Trump's racist declaration that four congresswomen of color — three of them American-born — should “go back” where they came from, the response from most members of the party of Lincoln continues to be ... nothing.

Pete Buttigieg hires former Goldman Sachs executive as national policy director  —  KEY POINTS  — Democratic presidential contender Pete Buttigieg has hired a former Goldman Sachs vice president and Google executive to run his policy shop, his campaign announced Thursday.

EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans Are Pressuring Amazon to Sell Books on Gay Conversion Therapy  —  WASHINGTON — A group of House Republicans is urging their members to pressure Amazon to resume selling a set of controversial gay conversion therapy books, after the platform announced this month …

Graydon Carter on Vanity Fair, Jeffrey Epstein and an Editor's Power  —  “I didn't invent the system.  I just lived by the system.”  —  Graydon Carter on Vanity Fair, Jeffrey Epstein and an editor's power.  —  During his 25-year run as editor in chief of Vanity Fair …

Trump's Base Isn't Enough  —  Buried beneath the blustery bravado of Donald Trump's openly racist attacks on four Democratic congresswomen of color were clear signs of electoral anxiety.  —  Trump insists he is producing great results for the country, especially on the economy.

Trudeau: ‘Send Her Back’ Chants At Trump Rally ‘Completely Unacceptable’  —  European Council President Donald Tusk also said the remarks must be called out.  —  MONTREAL — European Council President Donald Tusk says he's happy that while he's been in Montreal, no one shouted “send him back.”

Trump Is Betting That Indecency Can Win in America  —  In the deeply disturbing moments after Donald Trump invoked a three-minutes-of-hate session toward Congresswoman Ilhan Omar Wednesday night, and the crowd erupted with chants of “Send Her Back!  Send Her Back!”, a protester yelled something inaudible, and caused a commotion.

Palm Beach sheriff opens internal affairs investigation into handling of Jeffrey Epstein  —  The Palm Beach Sheriff's Office has opened an internal affairs investigation into whether it properly handled the case of multimillionaire Jeffrey Epstein, the part-time Palm Beach resident accused of sexually abusing dozens of underage girls.

Tulsi Gabbard Raised Negative $20 for Her House Campaign  —  The number raises questions about whether Gabbard will return to Congress should her presidential campaign come to an end.  —  As she runs for the Democratic nominee for president, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) also faces a primary challenge for her seat in the House.

The Movement to Impeach Donald Trump Is Far from Over  —  On Wednesday afternoon, Representative Al Green, who since 2005 has represented Texas's Ninth Congressional District, stood on the floor of the House of Representatives and read from a resolution to impeach Donald Trump.

Safe Deposit Boxes Aren't Safe  —  When Philip Poniz opened Box 105 at his local Wells Fargo, he discovered it was empty — and that he was totally unprotected by federal law.  —  In the early 1980s, when Philip Poniz moved to New Jersey from Colorado, he needed a well-protected place to stash his collection of rare watches.

Family Leader president endorses Steve King challenger in 4th District Republican primary  —  The president of The Family Leader, a prominent conservative Iowa organization, endorsed Rep. Steve King's primary opponent Thursday.  —  Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO for the evangelical group …

American Citizen who became an ISIS Sniper and Trained Other ISIS Members in the Use of Weapons Charged with Providing Material Support to ISIS  —  Defendant Was Transferred to the United States from Custody of Syrian Democratic Forces  —  A criminal complaint was unsealed today in federal court …

What economists have gotten wrong for decades  —  McDonald's restaurant employees rallied to demand a $15-per-hour wage in Los Angeles, California.  For a long time, economists believed that the minimum wage would only hurt workers — a view that has since been debunked.  David McNew/Getty Images