First night of RNC 2020 was very effective, to media's dismay  —  The first night of the Republican National Convention was, all in all, sensationally effective — and effective in ways that the mainstream media and its Twitter chatterers clearly found it impossible to understand.

The rabbi who is neighbor to Mark and Patricia McCloskey speaks out: ‘They are bullies’  —  When Rabbi Susan Talve heard that Patricia and Mark McCloskey would be among the speakers addressing the Republican National Convention, she decided she could no longer stay quiet.

Jerry Falwell Jr. resigns from Liberty University.  Again.  —  (RNS) — Jerry Falwell Jr., the embattled president of Liberty University and one of President Donald Trump's most vocal supporters, formally resigned from the evangelical Christian university founded by his father Monday evening …

Jacob Blake's father says son's paralyzed from waist down after police shooting in Kenosha  —  The police shooting of Jacob Blake, 29, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, is drawing national attention, including this protest Monday in Minneapolis, where George Floyd was killed by police earlier this year.

F.D.A. ‘Grossly Misrepresented’ Blood Plasma Data, Scientists Say  —  Many experts — including a scientist who worked on the Mayo Clinic study — were bewildered about where a key statistic came from.  —  At a news conference on Sunday announcing the emergency approval of blood plasma …

A GOP convention surprise: Trump goes all-in on race  —  Tim Scott waxed about his family arc — “from cotton to Congress in one lifetime” — and invoked George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.  Nikki Haley spoke of her Indian roots and alluded to her decision to take down the Confederate flag.

'He's going to be unleashed': Republican DOJ appointees urge against Trump second term  —  A group of onetime Republican presidential appointees who served as senior ethics or Justice Department aides are endorsing Joe Biden for president, warning that Donald Trump has “weaponized” …

California is a failed state.  How do we know?  They're moving to Arizona in droves  —  Driving across Arizona, it's hard not to notice a surge in California license plates.  The reason for this is becoming more apparent every day.  California is a failed state.

Diplomats aghast as Pompeo set to address GOP convention from Jerusalem  —  WASHINGTON — Diplomats who are barred by law from mixing work and politics say they're appalled by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's decision to address the Republican National Convention on Tuesday …

Melania Trump is about to give her biggest speech in four years.  The Trump campaign hopes she can be its secret weapon.  —  On the eve of her big speech headlining the second night of the Republican National Convention, first lady Melania Trump appeared in front of the White House to talk up her husband's record on women.

President Erdogan's Meeting with Hamas Leadership  —  The United States strongly objects to Turkish President Erdogan hosting two Hamas leaders in Istanbul on August 22.  Hamas is designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S and EU and both officials hosted by President Erdogan are Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

Wildfire haze, record heat and pollution combine to make Denver air quality dangerous for all  —  Colorado health officials recommend constructing “safe rooms” for protection against penetrating particulates pollution  —  Beyond wildfire smoke, the air quality in Denver has deteriorated …

Redwoods survive wildfire at California's oldest state park  —  BOULDER CREEK, Calif. (AP) — When a massive wildfire swept through California's oldest state park last week it was feared many trees in a grove of old-growth redwoods, some of them 2,000 years old and among the tallest living things on Earth, may finally have succumbed.

Trump's Scare Tactics Aren't Working on Women in the Suburbs  —  CORNELIUS, N.C. — A few years back, in the middle of the day in the middle of a week in the spring, in the parking garage of an upscale mall in Charlotte half an hour south from her house here in the suburbs, Susan Sandler was attacked.