In Another About-Face, Trump Refuses to Condemn ‘Send Her Back’ Chant  —  WASHINGTON — President Trump on Friday demonstrated the limited influence of allies or advisers who try to steer him away from pre-election racial and cultural fights.  He walked back his disavowal of a racially loaded chant …

For ‘client’ Jeffrey Epstein, an unlocked cell in a Florida jail  —  PALM BEACH, Fla. — In 2008, a supervisor at the county jail here alerted staff members to the needs of an inmate serving an 18-month sentence for sex crimes involving a minor.  Jeffrey Epstein, he wrote in a memo …

U.K. Warns Iran of ‘Serious Consequences’ for Seizing Oil Tanker  —  LONDON — Britain on Saturday warned Iran that “there will be serious consequences” for seizing a British-owned oil tanker and warned ships to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route for the world's oil supplies.

House Democrats Prepare for Civil War as Challengers Plot Primary Battles  —  Several entrenched New York representatives will face progressive hopefuls seeking to replicate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's success.  —  Representative Jerrold Nadler has served in Congress for 27 years …

Trump offers to guarantee A$AP Rocky's bail in Sweden  —  BERLIN (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said he spoke with Sweden's prime minister Saturday about jailed rapper A$AP Rocky and “offered to personally vouch for his bail.”  —  Trump tweeted that during a “a very good call” …

No One Really Wants to ‘Send Her Back’  —  Don't exaggerate the significance of raucous chants.  —  The president can be very entertaining, but I don't pay much attention to political rallies, including his famously raucous ones.  —  For the faithful, the rallies are fun spectacles, like rock concerts or ball games.

EXCLUSIVE: Buzz Aldrin wants to go back to the moon — as a first step to putting settlers on Mars  —  Dr. Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin is on an urgent mission: Get man back to the moon, and fast.  —  And Aldrin isn't afraid to ruffle feathers to advocate for what he sees as America's next big leap.

Mueller Hearings on Wednesday Present Make-or-Break Moment for Democrats  —  WASHINGTON — For more than two years, Democrats have hoped that Robert S. Mueller III would show the nation that President Trump is unfit for office — or at the very least, severely damage his re-election prospects.

Trump criticized the U.S. for years.  Now he wants people who do that to leave.  —  On Friday, President Trump was asked again about his racist remarks aimed at four minority congresswomen.  He again doubled down.  —  “I'm unhappy with the fact that a congresswoman, in this case a different congresswoman …

Arizona Dem Kyrsten Sinema joins GOP in push for program that would quickly deport migrants without valid asylum claims  —  Illegal immigration begins to fall as DHS reveals lower border apprehensions following US-Mexico partnership  —  Freshman Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz. …

Twitter Suspends Angel Mom for Posting About Illegal Immigration  —  Angel Mom Mary Ann Mendoza, who heads the Angel Families organization, has been suspended from Twitter after posting about illegal immigration and raising awareness about the harms of sanctuary city policies.

‘Ready to explode’: How a black boy's drifting raft triggered a deadly week of riots 100 years ago in Chicago  —  One hundred years ago, 7-year-old Juanita Mitchell should have been playing with other children in the streets during that summer's heat wave and getting to know her new home on Chicago's South Side.

Campaigning from behind: Lower-tier 2020ers seek comeback  —  FLINT, Mich. (AP) — As her campaign bus trundled along Interstate 80 toward the Michigan-Ohio border, Kirsten Gillibrand was offering wedding planning advice to one of her presidential campaign staffers who recently got engaged.

Trump tells aides to look for big spending cuts in second term, sowing confusion about budget priorities  —  President Trump has instructed aides to prepare for sweeping budget cuts if he wins a second term in the White House, five people briefed on the discussions said …

Polishing the Nationalist Brand in the Trump Era  —  Conservative thinkers are trying to bring intellectual coherence to the Trumpian moment under the banner of nationalism.  But can it be cleansed of its darker currents?  —  WASHINGTON — Ever since Donald J. Trump laid waste …

The Surprising Phone Call Ted Kennedy Made to His Mistress After a Woman Died in His Car in Chappaquiddick  —  In the early morning hours after Sen. Ted Kennedy crashed his car off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island, killing his passenger, 28-year-old Mary Jo Kopechne, he turned first not to his wife — but to his mistress for help

Internal drug company emails show indifference to opioid epidemic  —  In May 2008, as the opioid epidemic was raging in America, a representative of the nation's largest manufacturer of opioid pain pills sent an email to a client at a wholesale drug distributor in Ohio.

Michigan College Republican loses beauty crown over ‘insensitive’ tweets  —  A College Republican leader at the University of Michigan is blasting Miss World America beauty pageant officials for stripping her state title and barring her from a national competition because of provocative social media posts …

U.S. spy chief creates a new head of election security for intelligence agencies  —  Dan Coats announced Friday he has appointed a career official, Shelby Pierson, to serve as the first intelligence community election threats executive.  —  ASPEN, Colo. — The nation's top spy has created …

The Army's Failure to Train and Equip Troops in Afghanistan  —  You're reading this week's At War newsletter.  Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox every Friday.  Email us at atwar@nytimes.com.  —  It was a strange thing, listening to Army Secretary Mark Esper's confirmation hearing on Tuesday.

DNC raises $8.5 million in June  —  The Democratic National Committee raised $8.5 million in June, the month of the Democratic debates in Miami, $1.7 million more than during the previous month, new disclosures show.  —  The DNC spent almost as much money as it raised — $7.5 million …

Judge halts Democrats' subpoenas of Trump Org docs in emoluments case  —  Washington (CNN)A federal judge Friday paused congressional Democrats' subpoenas of Trump Organization financial records, 10 days before the records were due in a lawsuit over whether President Donald Trump is violating the Constitution.

Democrats Call Out Racism, New Debate Lineups: This Week in the 2020 Race  —  Candidates condemn President Trump's “go back” comment, a Harris-Biden rematch, and a new California poll.  —  Every Saturday morning, we're publishing “This Week in the 2020 Race”: a quick way to catch …

Obama's Pro-Iran Echo Chamber Finds New Ally in Rand Paul  —  Paul strategizing with Iranian FM Zarif to pressure Trump into lifting sanctions  —  The Obama administration's pro-Iran “echo chamber” has found an unlikely ally in Republican senator Rand Paul, who recently engaged in shadow diplomacy …