Trump blog page shuts down for good  — Former President Donald Trump's blog has been permanently shut down.  — The page, “From the Desk of Donald J. Trump,” has been scrubbed from Trump's website and “will not be returning,” his senior aide Jason Miller told CNBC.

Law Student Who Made Fun of the Federalist Society Will Be Allowed to Graduate After All  —  Update, 9: 30 p.m.: Stanford has concluded that Nicholas Wallace engaged in protected speech, dropped its investigation, and lifted the hold on his diploma.  Wallace has confirmed that he will be allowed to graduate.

Trump Administration Secretly Seized Phone Records of Times Reporters  —  The admission by the Biden Justice Department followed similar recent disclosures to The Washington Post and CNN.  —  WASHINGTON — The Trump Justice Department secretly seized the phone records of four …

Biden calls out Sinema, Manchin for voting ‘more with Republicans’  —  President Biden zinged Democratic Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin during a speech Tuesday — insinuating that they align themselves more with Republicans than their own party — while calling for Congress to take action on legislation to protect voting rights.

Trump has grown increasingly consumed with ballot audits as he pushes falsehood that election was stolen  —  Former president Donald Trump remains relentlessly focused on the false claim that the November election was stolen from him and is increasingly consumed with the notion …

Ellie Kemper and Twitter's Two Minutes Hate  —  Twitter's sidebar points to people who have been declared fair game for punching and the mob gleefully piles on  —  If you've spent any time in the land of online controversies this week, you may have heard that Ellie Kemper …

Lake Highlands High Valedictorian Pulls Switcheroo on Commencement Speech  —  You know the drill.  Every valedictorian has to get her speech approved before she delivers it at commencement.  You can't let high school kids — even really smart, hardworking, responsible kids — just get up and say whatever they want to say.

Israeli opposition forms government in deal that could end Netanyahu's career  —  Israeli opposition leaders have brokered a power-sharing agreement that will allow them to form a government and drive Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from power, one of the top coalition members announced.

NFL pledges to halt ‘race-norming,’ review Black claims  —  PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The NFL on Wednesday pledged to halt the use of “race-norming” — which assumed Black players started out with lower cognitive function — in the $1 billion settlement of brain injury claims and review past scores for any potential race bias.

What Did Fauci Tell Trump About Wuhan?  —  Newly disclosed emails about the possibility of a laboratory origin for the pandemic.  —  Highly skilled in the ways of Washington, Dr. Anthony Fauci persuaded a reluctant President Donald Trump to endorse shutting down much of the U.S. economy in the spring of 2020.

Republican senators' failure to investigate Jan. 6 is worse than their impeachment performance  —  Republican senators have managed to outdo themselves in cowardice — which is quite a feat.  —  Last week's Senate vote blocking a national commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection …

Murderer Cop Derek Chauvin Begs for Light Sentence, Citing ‘Broken System’  —  SOME NERVE  —  Derek Chauvin, the white former Minneapolis police officer convicted of the murder of George Floyd, has requested a judge reduce his sentence to time served or probation.

Tucker Carlson, data wizard  —  Fox News host Tucker Carlson has a job in which he can say absolutely anything he wants, so he does: Last month, he misused federal health data to stir up fears that coronavirus vaccines kill in possibly shocking numbers.  Then, on Tuesday night …

Employees Are Quitting Instead of Giving Up Working From Home  —  A six-minute meeting drove Portia Twidt to quit her job.  —  She'd taken the position as a research compliance specialist in February, enticed by promises of remote work.  Then came the prodding to go into the office.

Stimulus Checks Substantially Reduced Hardship, Study Shows  —  Researchers found that sharp declines in food shortages, financial instability and anxiety coincided with the two most recent rounds of payments.  —  WASHINGTON — Julesa Webb resumed an old habit: serving her children three meals a day.

Iran's largest warship catches fire, sinks in Gulf of Oman  —  TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — The largest warship in the Iranian navy caught fire and later sank Wednesday in the Gulf of Oman under unclear circumstances, the latest calamity to strike one of the country's vessels in recent years amid tensions with the West.

MyPillow Guy Says He ‘Probably’ Inspired Trump's Idea of an August Restoration  —  “If Trump is saying August, that is probably because he heard me say it,” Lindell told The Daily Beast. … Donald Trump now has the notion in his head that he could return to the White House in August.

RNC threatens Republicans will boycott 2024 presidential debates unless changes are made … WASHINGTON — The next presidential election is almost three and a half years away, and Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel is already warning that her party's nominee may not participate in debates.

Tampa man pleads guilty to felony in Jan. 6 Capitol riot; his recommended prison sentence could set bar for other cases  —  A Tampa man who carried a Trump flag into the well of the Senate on Jan. 6 pleaded guilty Wednesday to one felony count of storming the Capitol to obstruct Congress's certification …

City parks are a waste of space.  Here's why they should be privatized  —  Part of the problem is that governments have blurred the line between public and private property  —  “It's becoming crystal clear: urban public parks on the North American continent are going to be one of those things …

Google Diversity Chief Offers Private Apology for Anti-Semitic Remarks As Company Remains Silent  —  Google's global diversity leader apologized privately on Tuesday night to the company's Jewish employees for a blog post in which he argued that Jews have an “insatiable appetite for war,” …

Quiz: How Well Do You Understand Today's Crime Trends?  —  Crime has emerged as a significant issue in the U.S. during the pandemic.  But context can be lost amid the headlines and partisan claims.  How well can you separate fact from fiction on this topic?  —  1 of 12

The Fast and the Furious: Electric Bikers and Cyclists Compete for Trail Space  —  Bicyclists says e-bikers zip by recklessly, motorized bike enthusiasts say pedal crowd is just as bad; “increasing rudeness.”  —  Scott Sterner and his wife, Donna Rupert, 60-year-old retirees in Dunedin …

The New Domestic War on Terror Has Already Begun — Even Without the New Laws Biden Wants  —  Homeland Security just issued its fourth danger bulletin this year.  And both the weapons and rhetorical tactics of the first War on Terror are increasingly visible.  —  6 hr ago

Judge rules against Noem in fireworks lawsuit; Noem vows to appeal for 2022  —  SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — A federal court has ruled there will be no Fourth of July fireworks at Mount Rushmore.  —  Judge Roberto A. Lange said today in the ruling that while fireworks on July 3 “at first blush” …

NASA is going back to Venus  —  NASA has chosen two new missions to unlock the mysteries of Earth's evil twin: Venus.  —  Why it matters: This marks the first time the space agency will send dedicated missions to the cloudy planet in more than 30 years.  —  What's happening …

QAnon Has a Disturbing Takeover Plot to ‘Eliminate’ Elected Officials  —  Want the best of VICE News straight to your inbox?  Sign up here.  —  A known grifter and QAnon supporter who claims she can time-travel has amassed an army of thousands of loyal followers to carry out a plot …

The Utterly Embarrassing Failure to Quickly Send Extra U.S. Vaccine Doses Overseas  —  President Biden, speaking at the White House, May 4:  —  We've already committed to work to send 60 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to other countries, starting this month and into June.

The Biden team is making terrible excuses for keeping Trump's secrets buried  —  As the Biden administration increasingly resists pressure to release various documents that would shed light on the depths of Donald Trump's corruption, you'll be hearing a key excuse a lot: We need to restore normalcy.

Nation's Mayors, Cities and Counties Send Joint Letter to House and Senate Leaders Opposing Clawback Proposals to Repurpose ARP Funds  —  Washington, DC—The U.S. Conference of Mayors, National League of Cities, and National Association of Counties sent a joint letter to Senate Majority Leader Schumer …

Parliamentarian: Democrats only get one more chance to sidestep GOP this year  —  Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has effectively ruled that only one more automatic budget reconciliation is permissible this year, dealing a blow to Democrats who previously thought …