Israel showed US ‘smoking gun’ on Hamas in AP office tower, officials say  —  “We showed them the smoking gun proving Hamas worked out of that building,” a source close to Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi said.  “I understand they found the explanation satisfactory.”

Republican Arizona election official says Trump ‘unhinged’  —  PHOENIX — The Republican who now leads the Arizona county elections department targeted by a GOP audit of the 2020 election results is slamming former President Donald Trump and others in his party for their continued falsehoods about how the election was run.

A surge of newcomers pack Georgia GOP meetings across state  —  The grassroots effort to punish Gov. Brian Kemp largely fizzled at key Republican meetings across the state this weekend even as record crowds of activists continued a relentless focus on former President Donald Trump's lies …

Manchester's political contributions, ambassador nod are subject of criminal probe  —  Records obtained by the Union-Tribune show subpoena being issued, witness summoned to testify in secret proceeding  —  A federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., has begun issuing subpoenas in a criminal investigation …

Maya Wiley Lands Major Endorsement From Rep. Hakeem Jeffries  —  Mr. Jeffries, New York's top House Democrat, said he intended to engage in significant efforts on Ms. Wiley's behalf, including making campaign appearances with her.  —  Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York …

Increasingly active younger voters liberalize US electorate  —  President Biden, the oldest man ever elected to the White House, won on the strength of an emerging cohort of younger voters who are increasingly finding their political voice — and growing their influence in an electorate in which older voters are losing sway.

‘The right decision wrongly handled’: Inside the Biden administration's abrupt reversal on masks  —  During her opening statement before a Senate health committee Tuesday, Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was adamant that the Biden administration's masking …

Strap in, Virginia — the 2021 governor's race is suddenly at full speed  —  RICHMOND — The reboot began once Glenn Youngkin snagged the Republican nomination for Virginia governor.  —  A video of former president Donald Trump praising the former Carlyle Group executive by name for helping …

Jimmy Carter 2.0: Biden's bundle of crises look increasingly like 1970s  —  During the Carter years, American consumers were forced to pay more for the price of basic goods  —  Biden's America faces growing inflation  —  “Joe Biden is the new Jimmy Carter.”

University of California Will No Longer Consider SAT and ACT Scores  —  The university system has reached a settlement with students to scrap even optional testing from admissions and scholarship decisions.  —  The University of California will not take SAT and ACT scores into account …

More than 40,000 ‘Got-Aways’ at the Border in April  —  And we can't stop most of the drugs entering illegally, but Mayorkas offers no suggestions for policy change  —  DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee on Thursday to discuss unaccompanied migrant children.

G.O.P. Pursues Harsher Penalties for Poll Workers in Voting Crackdown  —  Heavy fines, felony charges and jail sentences: Republicans seeking to restrict voting are proposing strict punishments for election officials and workers who make errors or violate the rules.

Brexit Minister LORD FROST: The EU must stop point scoring and work with us to protect the peace  —  Just two weeks ago the European Parliament finally ratified our agreement with the EU.  Now we can start to make it work.  —  This agreement gives us full control over our own laws, courts, borders and money.

Where have all the intellectuals gone?  —  Who among today's literary figures has any chance of being recognised as a thinker on par with a Dostoevsky or a Marx?  —  “Ibram X. Kendi, Robin DiAngelo, Jordan Peterson, Peter Thiel, Yuval Noah Harari, Steven Pinker, Tyler Cowen, Ta-Nehisi Coates …

Secret Sharers: The Hidden Ties Between Private Spies and Journalists  —  A booming, renegade private intelligence industry is increasingly shaping (and misshaping) the news.  —  Some journalists are happy to knock on the doors of strangers.  I was never one of them, but Christopher Steele …