New emails show how Trump and his allies pressured Justice Department to try to challenge 2020 election results  —  (CNN)New emails show how former President Donald Trump's White House assistant, chief of staff and other allies pressured the Justice Department to investigate claims of voter fraud …

Trump Executive Could Face Charges as Soon as This Summer  —  An investigation into Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization's finance chief, appears to be heading into its final stages as prosecutors increase pressure on him.  —  The Manhattan district attorney's office appears to have entered …

Alabama lawmaker wants to ban critical race theory, so I asked him what it is  —  This is an opinion column.  —  There's been a lot of talk about critical race theory lately, and I've felt at a loss.  I've heard so many conflicting things about critical race theory, I've gotten more and more confused.

The Wuhan lab-leak explanation is “not a conspiracy theory, ” says ... Jon Stewart?  —  That strange popping sound you've been hearing overnight?  Media-elite heads exploding, perhaps, or maybe just eardrums adjusting to the new narrative pressure provided by Jon Stewart.

Senate Unanimously Approves A Bill To Make Juneteenth A Public Holiday  —  The Senate unanimously approved a bill Tuesday that would make Juneteenth, the date commemorating the end of chattel slavery in the United States, a legal public holiday.  —  The holiday is celebrated on June 19 …

Sen. John Barrasso: GOP aiming to make Biden a ‘half-term president’  —  A member of Senate Republican leadership is vowing to make President Joe Biden a “one-half-term president” by toppling Democrats' congressional majorities in the 2022 midterms.  —  Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming …

REVEALED: The Federalist Foundation's Tax Records  —  The Center for Democracy (CMD) has obtained the first 990 tax filing of a new nonprofit linked to the right-wing digital publication The Federalist, as well as the most recent filing from the Real Clear Foundation, another media nonprofit that has ties to The Federalist.

Wait, This Is Why a Local Fox Reporter Sabotaged Her Career?  —  Ivory Hecker told The Daily Beast on Tuesday that she's been terminated after claiming on-air that the station has “muzzled” her. … Fox 26 Houston general assignment reporter Ivory Hecker said Tuesday that she has been fired …

A Composer Condemned Arson.  Now No One Will Hire Him.  —  Until last year, Daniel Elder—a 34-year-old musician who lives in Nashville, Tennessee—had a promising career ahead of him.  The theme of the prize-winning composer's work, truth through emotion, is evident across his catalogue of choral music …

Israel strikes in Gaza after arson balloons launched  —  Israel says it has launched air strikes against Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, after incendiary balloons were launched from the territory.  —  Explosions were heard in Gaza City in the early hours of Wednesday.

‘Shocking failure’: Pentagon and FBI come under fire for Jan. 6 response  —  Days before the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, social media company Parler flagged dozens of worrying messages to the FBI — warnings that appeared to go unanswered.  —  “Don't be surprised if we take the Capitol building …

Biden names first political ambassadors, including for Israel and Mexico  —  President Biden announced his first slate of political ambassadors Tuesday, naming five political allies and donors, as well as four career foreign service officers.  —  Why it matters: Biden's announcement …

21 House Republicans vote against awarding Congressional Gold Medal to all police officers who responded on Jan. 6  —  Twenty-one House Republicans on Tuesday voted against awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to all police officers who responded to the Jan. 6 violent attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob.

Some Americans were infected with COVID in December 2019  —  The National Institutes of Health said Tuesday morning that testing of samples from an ongoing study of Americans show a very limited number of cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection in five U.S. states as early as Jan. 7, 2020.

DeSantis signs bill to require daily school moment of silence  —  TALLAHASSEE - Touting the measure as a way of allowing students to “reflect and be able to pray as they see fit,” Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday signed a bill that will require public schools to hold moments of silence at the beginning of each day.

Critical race theory invades school boards — with help from conservative groups  —  A booby-trapped billboard.  A list of demands.  A conservative media frenzy.  —  Jeff Porter, superintendent of a wealthy suburban school district in Maine, had no idea that his community was about to become part …

Hillary Clinton endorses Tali Farhadian Weinstein for Manhattan DA  —  Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced Tuesday she's backing Tali Farhadian Weinstein's run for Manhattan district attorney — a big coup in a crowded field that has focused much of their attention on criminal justice reform.

The Amazon That Customers Don't See  —  Each year, hundreds of thousands of workers churn through a vast mechanism that hires and monitors, disciplines and fires.  Amid the pandemic, the already strained system lurched.

Battle for Black Voters in N.Y.C. Mayor's Race Centers on Policing  —  As New York's Democratic primary nears, Black voters appear torn between Eric Adams and Maya Wiley and their divergent views on balancing public safety and civil rights.  —  With concerns rising over violent crime in New York City …

The backlash against In the Heights, explained  —  The new film adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway show relegated its Black Latinx community to the background and sparked a debate about colorism.  —  Despite an early onslaught of critical praise, the highly anticipated film adaptation …

Saudi Arabia executes Mustafa al-Darwish for teenage protests  —  In a statement this morning, Saudi Arabia's Ministry of the Interior announced that Mustafa Hashem al-Darwish has been executed.  His family received no advance notice, and found out Mustafa had been executed by reading the news online.

Amid internal disputes over Russia policy, Biden has chosen a mix of confrontation and cooperation  —  BRUSSELS — Before embarking on his first meeting with Vladimir Putin as commander in chief, President Biden touted the steps he took to punish the Russian president for a range …

Saudi embassy has helped its citizens facing criminal charges flee the United States  —  On the night of Oct. 13, 2018, Raekwon Moore was stabbed during a street fight with two strangers in the popular Uptown district of Greenville, N.C. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he died.

Seeding by Ceding  —  Sitting down to write this post, I felt stuck.  I want to de-emphasize privileged voices and cede focus to others, yet I know some media stories will focus on wealth.  The headline I would wish for this post is “286 Teams Empowering Voices the World Needs to Hear.”

Medical-Debt Charity to Buy, Wipe Out $278 Million of Patients' Hospital Bills  —  Deal between Ballad Health and RIP Medical Debt shows the gaps in the financial-aid programs of nonprofit hospitals  —  A national charity will for the first time buy medical debt, totaling $278 million …

Proud Boys descended into dysfunction and finger-pointing as members were arrested in US Capitol riot, new messages show  —  Washington (CNN)A private Proud Boys audio chat that was made public Tuesday shows how the right-wing group fell into dysfunction and finger-pointing as its members got arrested after the US Capitol riot.

'He's screwed over so many publishers': Trump confronts a skeptical book industry  —  Almost five months after leaving office, major publishing houses still are wary of publishing a book by former President Donald Trump, even though a post-White House memoir would almost assuredly be a best-seller.

Check Out The Anti-Drone Weapons Carried By Security At Biden's Meeting In Brussels … Images shared to social media show Belgian security forces wielding a combination of handheld anti-drone weapons to protect a meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and King Philippe of Belgium held on Monday, June 14.

Schumer to trigger reconciliation process on Wednesday  —  Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) says he will convene a meeting with all 11 Democratic members of the Budget Committee Wednesday to begin the process for passing a budget resolution, paving the way for Democrats to pass …