POLITICO Playbook: Trump's huge week  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  WE ARE ENTERING what could be one of the most momentous weeks in what's left of DONALD TRUMP'S presidency, a week that could set the tone for the rest of his first term.  Not only is former special counsel Robert Mueller testifying live …

The Case of Al Franken  —  A close look at the accusations against the former senator.  —  Last month, in Minneapolis, I climbed the stairs of a row house to find Al Franken, Minnesota's disgraced former senator, wandering around in jeans and stocking feet.  It was a sunny day, but the shades were mostly drawn.

Emerging budget deal likely to include few or no actual spending cuts, while lifting debt limit for two years  —  Deal taking shape days ahead of Congress' summer recess, but still awaits Trump's approval  —  White House and congressional negotiators rushing to hammer out the final details …

Donald Trump's Idea of Selective Citizenship  —  Last week, the President wasn't just attacking four congresswomen of color; he was reanimating ideas whose prevalence wreaked havoc in the nation's past.  —  We have known since the earliest moments of Donald Trump's political life …

Illinois Republicans pull social media aimed at four Democratic congresswomen who were subjects of President Trump's ‘go back’ tweets, calling them ‘Jihad Squad’  —  Top leaders of the Illinois Republican Party launched an effort at damage control Sunday after a social media post echoed …

'It's a disaster over there': Commerce reaches new heights of dysfunction  —  Constant infighting among top officials.  Sudden departures of senior staffers without explanation.  A leader who is disengaged and prone to falling asleep in meetings.  —  The Commerce Department has reached …

Two Unofficial US Operatives Reporting To Trump's Lawyer Privately Lobbied A Foreign Government In A Bid To Help The President Win In 2020  —  Two unofficial envoys reporting directly to Donald Trump's personal lawyer have waged a remarkable back-channel campaign to discredit the president's rivals …

Louisiana Police Officer on Facebook Says Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ‘Needs a Round’  —  Officials in the city where the officer works condemned his comment but said they were not sure it constituted a threat.  —  A Facebook post by a Louisiana police officer suggesting that Representative …

A Peculiarly Dutch Summer Rite: Children Abandoned in the Night Woods  —  It may sound extreme, but it's normal in the Netherlands.  —  AUSTERLITZ, the Netherlands — Shortly after 10 p.m. on a recent night, a car came to a stop at the edge of the woods.  The door opened to release three children …

Jeffrey Epstein Pitched a New Narrative.  These Sites Published It.  —  After Jeffrey Epstein got out of the Palm Beach County jail in 2009, having served 13 months of an 18-month sentence resulting from a plea deal that has been widely criticized, he began a media campaign to remake his public image.

Puerto Rico gov will not seek re-election, leaves his party  —  SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló said Sunday evening that he will not resign in the face of public furor over an obscenity-laced leaked online chat, but he will not seek re-election or continue …

Robert Morgenthau, Longtime Manhattan District Attorney, Dies at 99  —  Robert M. Morgenthau, a courtly Knickerbocker patrician who waged war on crime for more than four decades as the chief federal prosecutor for Southern New York State and as Manhattan's longest-serving district attorney, died on Sunday in Manhattan.

Conservative Nationalism Is Trumpism for Intellectuals  —  On the final night of this past week's National Conservatism Conference, Senator Josh Hawley—a graduate of Stanford and Yale and a former instructor at an English private school—warned the attendees gathered in the ballroom …

Leaked documents reveal Huawei's secret operations to build North Korea's wireless network  —  Huawei Technologies Co., the Chinese tech giant embroiled in President Trump's trade war with China and blacklisted as a national security threat, secretly helped the North Korean government build …

Top Democrat on tax committee faces left-wing primary challenge  —  WASHINGTON — Alex Morse, the mayor of Holyoke, Massachusetts, announced Monday that he will mount a primary challenge against Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., the chairman of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee who has been criticized …

Trump says he wants to meet with Schumer ‘ASAP’ on conditions at the border  —  President Trump said late Sunday night that he wants to set up a meeting with Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer about conditions at the U.S.-Mexico border following the New York Democrat's tour of migrant detention centers that he called “inhumane.”

Cumulus Media Blocks Country Radio Stations From Airing Pete Buttigieg Interview  —  Nash FM's Blair Garner recorded an interview with the Democratic presidential candidate last week, but the broadcasting company spiked it.  —  Cumulus Media, one of the largest broadcasting companies in the country …

The Note: Democrats struggle for policy traction amid noise from Trump  —  Is there room, amid the noise and the outrage, for a policy debate?  —  That's the question confronting the still-crowded field of Democratic presidential contenders, as the calendar flips closer to the next debate.