Mike Pompeo, the Secretary of Trump  —  How he became a heartland evangelical—and the President's most loyal soldier.  —  In the winter of 2016, Donald Trump was roaring through the primaries, and Mike Pompeo was determined to stop him.  Pompeo, a little-known congressman from Wichita …

In Economic Warning Signals, Trump Sees Signs of a Conspiracy  —  President Trump, confronting perhaps the most ominous economic signs of his time in office, has unleashed what is by now a familiar response: lashing out at what he believes is a conspiracy of forces arrayed against him.

Trump cuts off one of his closest friends  —  Tom Barrack and Donald Trump have been friends and confidants for more than three decades — the two men are so close, for instance, that Barrack comforted Trump during the funeral of his father, Fred.  —  But the intimate relationship between …

'I'm not happy with it': Trump hits Fox News over poll results  —  President Donald Trump on Sunday slammed his preferred news network over recent unfavorable poll results, saying: “There's something going on at Fox [News], I'll tell you right now.  And I'm not happy with it.”

Group of US corporate leaders ditches shareholder-first mantra  —  One of America's largest business groups has dropped the “shareholder primacy” creed that has driven US capitalism for decades, urging companies to consider the environment and workers' wellbeing alongside their pursuit of profits.

Amid failure to topple Maduro, Trump privately proposes a naval blockade of Venezuela  —  President Trump has suggested to national security officials that the U.S. should station Navy ships along the Venezuelan coastline to prevent goods from coming in and out of the country …

For Trump, appeals to white fears about race may be a tougher sell in 2020: Reuters/Ipsos poll  —  NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric and focus on the grievances of white voters helped him win the 2016 election.  But a Reuters analysis of public opinion …

POLITICO Playbook: Trump: ‘We already have a lot of background checks’  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  IF YOU ARE SOMEONE who is looking forward to Congress coming back into session and passing gun control, take a look at what President DONALD TRUMP said Sunday before leaving New Jersey.

Biden to skip DNC meeting in San Francisco where 13 candidates are expected  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Hundreds of Democratic National Committee delegates will be here next weekend for a three-day gathering that gives them a chance to meet and hear from 13 presidential contenders …

Danish prime minister calls Trump's interest in buying Greenland ‘absurd’  —  What you should know about Trump's interest in Greenland  —  Washington (CNN)The Danish Prime Minister called Donald Trump's interest in buying Greenland “absurd” the same day the President confirmed he had discussed …

There could have been three more mass shootings if these men weren't stopped, authorities say  —  (CNN)Authorities this weekend announced they had foiled three potential mass shootings after arresting three men in different states who expressed interest in or threatened to carry them out.

Russian Nuclear Monitoring Stations Went Silent After Missile Blast  —  Outages spur concerns by experts that Russia is trying to restrict evidence of the explosion  —  Two Russian monitoring stations designed to detect nuclear radiation went silent soon after the explosion at a missile test site …

Howard University to add golf teams after receiving sponsorship from NBA star Stephen Curry  —  Following a January screening of “Emanuel,” a documentary about the deadly 2015 shooting of nine black worshipers at a church in Charleston, S.C., a throng of Howard University students jockeyed …

The low-key, Harley-riding senator Democrats are leaning on to win the majority  —  GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Democrat Gary Peters, a bearded, buttoned-down genial Midwesterner who could easily pass for the investment adviser he once was, is known in the Senate mostly for steering as far clear from the spotlight as he possibly can.

Did Bill Clinton See This Coming?  —  In the summer of 1996, as he prepared to turn 50—and win a second term in the White House—Bill Clinton took to musing aloud that he now had “more yesterdays than tomorrows.”  If that sentiment seemed maudlin for a man still in the prime of life …

There Will Be No Justice For Trump's Enablers  —  The moral and professional accounting some Republicans feared will never take place.  —  After Donald Trump became his party's nominee for president in 2016, a great many Republicans in Washington said publicly and privately that they would never work …

Elizabeth Warren's heritage flap re-emerges ahead of native American forum  —  SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Time may really heal all wounds — even those that are self-inflicted and political in nature.  —  Sen. Elizabeth Warren's, D-Mass., controversial rollout of a DNA test regarding …

Trump Isn't the One Dividing Us by Race  —  He hardly mentions it, while his adversaries are obsessed with ‘whiteness’ and ‘white privilege.’  —  Long before the El Paso massacre, President Trump's political opponents accused him of sowing “division” with his “racist language.”

Op-Ed Columnist  —  Good morning, readers.  I'm taking a break from writing the newsletter until Labor Day.  This week, Jonathan Bernstein of Bloomberg Opinion — a political scientist whom I regularly quote — is taking over.  I hope you enjoy his thoughts.  As always, you can find links to the full Times Opinion report below.

Two mass murders a world apart share a common theme: ‘ecofascism’  —  Before the slaughter of dozens of people in Christchurch, New Zealand and El Paso, Texas this year, the accused gunmen took pains to explain their fury, including their hatred of immigrants.

The quantum revolution is coming, and Chinese scientists are at the forefront  —  China's drive to dominate a field with big economic and military applications outpaces some U.S. strides  —  SHANGHAI — More than a decade ago, Chinese physicist Pan Jian-Wei returned home from Europe …

Commerce Department will extend Huawei reprieve, Ross says  —  Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Monday that his department will grant another temporary reprieve to Huawei Technologies, delaying the implementation of a penalty on the Chinese tech giant for another 90 days.

Scaramucci says he's putting together coalition to stop Trump in 2020  —  Washington (CNN)Anthony Scaramucci, a former White House communications director who has recently withdrawn his support for President Donald Trump, said Monday that he is putting together a coalition of former Trump Cabinet officials …

Disgraced Pundit Mark Halperin's Accusers Call New Book Deal a ‘Slap in the Face’  —  News of the “Game Change” author's deal with Regan Arts came as a shock to his accusers, and prominent Democrats interviewed in the book have been scrambling to explain themselves.