Takeaways from Donald Trump and Joe Biden's first U.S. presidential debate  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger, former Vice President Joe Biden, meet in Cleveland on Tuesday for the first of three debates ahead of the Nov. 3 election, when Trump is seeking a second term in office.

Intel chief releases Russian disinfo on Hillary Clinton that was rejected by bipartisan Senate panel  —  Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe on Tuesday declassified a Russian intelligence assessment that was previously rejected by Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Intelligence Committee …

Coordinated push of conspiracy theories target Biden hours before debate  —  A conspiracy theory that Joe Biden would wear an electronic device in his ear during the first presidential debate went wildly viral Tuesday in the hours before the debate, and the theory was later amplified …

U.S. Chamber of Commerce abruptly ousts top political consultant Scott Reed, alleging leaks  —  Reed played a central role in political decisions at the business lobby  —  Scott Reed, the veteran GOP political consultant, was fired Tuesday by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce …

Hospitalized Brad Parscale 'is under investigation for stealing up to $40million from Trump's campaign and $10million from the RNC', as he spirals out of control over White House ‘gravy train’ ending and mounting debt  — Brad Parscale is under investigation for ‘stealing’ between $25-$40 million …

Trump Paid $750 in Federal Income Taxes in 2017.  Here's the Math.  —  Figures drawn from President Trump's tax-return data show how that number was calculated.  —  The small amount of federal income taxes President Trump paid in both 2016 and 2017 — just $750 each year …

Judge Barrett represented Iranian exile group in fight to end terrorist designation  —  Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump's nominee to join the Supreme Court, once represented an affiliate of an Iranian exile group as it challenged its State Department designation as a foreign terrorist organization.

ICE preparing targeted arrests in sanctuary cities, amplifying president's campaign theme  —  The Trump administration is preparing an immigration enforcement blitz next month that would target arrests in U.S. cities and jurisdictions that have adopted “sanctuary” policies …

Ohio State Professor Apologizes for ‘Hurt, Sadness, Frustration, Fatigue, Exhaustion and Pain’ Caused By Pro-Football Article  —  Matthew Mayhew is sorry.  Very, very sorry.  —  “I am sorry for the hurt, sadness, frustration, fatigue, exhaustion and pain this article has caused anyone …

Early surge of Democratic mail voting sparks worry inside GOP  —  Democratic voters who have requested mail ballots — and returned them — greatly outnumber Republicans so far in key battleground states, causing alarm among GOP party leaders and strategists that President Trump's attacks …

HHS ad blitz sputters as celebrities back away  —  They made a list of more than 30 celebrities including Justin Timberlake, Taylor Swift and Billy Joel to appear in their ad campaign to “inspire hope” about coronavirus, but they ended up with only Dennis Quaid, CeCe Winans and Hasidic singer Shulem Lemmer.

Fact-Checking the First 2020 Presidential Debate  — President Trump and former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. squared off for the first of three scheduled debates.  They faced over 90 minutes of questions in Cleveland from the moderator, Chris Wallace of Fox News.

Obamacare Support Hits Record High as Supreme Court Faces Ideological Shift  —  About 4 in 5 voters support protections for people with pre-existing conditions as court hearing approaches  — A record-high 62% of voters support the Affordable Care Act, including 85% of Democrats and 36% of Republicans.

Navy Chief Fell Ill, Underwent Heart Surgery, Officials Say  —  Adm. Gilday was stricken in August while running  —  WASHINGTON—The Pentagon's chief of naval operations fell ill recently while on a run near his home and underwent heart surgery soon after, according to Navy officials.

Mueller pushes back on insider book faulting special counsel for not doing more to hold Trump accountable  —  Former special counsel Robert S. Mueller III pushed back Tuesday against a prosecutor in his office whose tell-all book alleges investigators should have done more to hold President Trump accountable …

CBS News Eye on Trends: The latest from the Election & Survey Unit  —  Watch this space for a recap of the latest polls and data-driven studies curated by the CBS News Election & Survey Unit!  —  CBS NEWS BATTLEGROUND TRACKER POLL  —  The First Debate: Voters who plan to watch are rooting …

Nearly 100,000 Defective Absentee Ballots Sent to N.Y.C. Voters  —  Nearly 100,000 New York City voters received defective absentee ballots, election officials acknowledged on Tuesday, a massive glitch that raised doubts about the city's ability to handle a pandemic-era presidential election with millions of mail-in ballots expected.

Electoral College Rating Changes: Ohio and Iowa Move to Toss Up  —  In mid-June, we moved both Iowa and Ohio from Likely Republican to Lean Republican.  At the time, we noted that while the polls were looking shaky for Pres. Trump, they were also catching him at what could be his lowest point of the cycle.

Fascism expert: Trump has used all ‘four threats’ that can topple a democracy  —  On Tuesday, speaking with Molly Jong-Fast and Rick Wilson on the podcast The New Abnormal, Johns Hopkins political science professor Robert Lieberman warned that President Donald Trump poses all of the fundamental …

Biden Refuses to Say Whether He Backs Packing Court, Ending Filibuster  —  Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden refused to say during Tuesday night's presidential debate whether he would support adding justices to the Supreme Court or ending the filibuster should he become president.