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.

Far-Right Proud Boys Rally After Trump's Debate Defense: ‘Fuck Them Up’  —  Given the chance to finally explicitly condemn right-wing extremism, Trump insisted, “This is a left-wing problem” and gave a shout-out to the Proud Boys.  —  President Donald Trump refused to condemn right-wing extremist groups …

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 …

Fact-checking Trump and Biden during 1st 2020 presidential debate  —  The candidates met live in Cleveland.  —  Trump, Biden aiming to win over undecided voters in 1st debate  —  A Pennsylvania pastor who voted for Donald Trump in 2016 but says he is still uncommitted this election cycle.

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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.

No, Joe Biden did not say he attended Delaware State University  —  | Delaware News Journal Show Caption Hide Caption … No, Joe Biden did not say he attended Delaware State University.  —  But DSU is now pushing back against conservative media outlets reporting that Biden falsely …

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 …

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.

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.

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.

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 …

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 …

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 …

How Trump Voters Feel About His Refusal to Commit to Transferring Power  —  Many Trump supporters do not believe that he can or will lose, and say he would be justified in questioning whether Democrats manipulated the outcome.  But some believe a loss is a loss.

“Trump Is So Saturated”: Anti-Trump Attack Ads Might Actually Be Helping Him, Democratic Group Finds  —  While doom-and-gloom ads thrive on Twitter and cable news, they can turn off voters whom Biden needs, according to the tech-minded operatives at Fellow Americans.