Health care ruling saves Republicans from themselves  —  The Supreme Court saved the health care system from imploding Thursday by dismissing a Republican challenge to the Affordable Care Act.  But it also saved the GOP itself from another round of intraparty chaos.

Where was the FBI before the attack on the Capitol?  —  Ryan Goodman, a former special counsel at the Defense Department, is a law professor at New York University and co-editor-in-chief at Just Security.  Andrew Weissmann, a law professor at New York University, previously served as general counsel of the FBI.

Joe Manchin reaches out to Republicans, and they slap him in the face  —  On Thursday morning, leading voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams dropped a big piece of news: She told CNN she supports Sen. Joe Manchin III's (D-W.Va.) compromise bill to protect democracy.  —  Republicans were thrilled.

The Company Eric Adams Keeps He's the candidate of old political-machine guys like Democratic fixer Frank Carone.  What would that mean in City Hall?  —  Heading into Memorial Day weekend, a poll had just shown Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams with his largest lead of the contest …

Republicans want to hide behind Juneteenth while they enable modern-day racism  —  Making Juneteenth, the anniversary of the day news of emancipation finally reached enslaved people in Galveston, Tex., a national holiday is a victory.  But it is a hollow one at a moment when the political party …

As Gaetz investigation ramps up, feds mount sweeping probe into Central Florida political scene: Sources  —  The sprawling probe has revved up its focus on alleged corruption and fraud.  —  Since federal prosecutors obtained the cooperation of GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz's once close-ally in May …

‘I remember it very well’: Dr. Fauci describes a secret 2020 meeting to talk about COVID origins  —  A 2020 call appears to have played a key role in shaping views of scientists who contributed to shutting down talk of whether a lab leak caused COVID.  —  In the early days of the growing …

A family affair: Children and other relatives of Biden aides get administration jobs  —  Barely a week into office, President Biden made a promise that signaled a sharp break from his predecessor: No member of his family would be involved in government.  —  But that vow did not extend to his senior staff and their relatives.

A Plan to Get Divisive & Radical Theories Out of Our Schools  —  COMMENTARY  —  As a candidate, Joe Biden's number one promise was to “unite” America.  Yet in his first months as president, his number one priority has been to divide our country by race and gender at every turn.

POLITICO Playbook: ‘I want to be the next John McCain’  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  ‘THEY ALL F—  HATE ME’ — Check out the excerpt in POLITICO Mag today of WSJ reporter MIKE BENDER'S forthcoming book, “Frankly, We Did Win This Election: The Inside Story of How Trump Lost.”

How ‘Biden Republicans’ Took Over the Suburbs  —  In the aftermath of the 2020 election, the Republican National Committee opted not to order an autopsy into what exactly led to the party's decline in suburban communities that were, until recently, considered deep red.

Rumors of U.S. Secretly Harboring Top China Official Swirl  —  Reports that a top Chinese official defected to the U.S. have swept Chinese-language media this week.  The alleged reason?  Sharing sensitive information about COVID-19 origins.  —  Chinese-language anti-communist media …

Putin polls higher than Biden among Trump voters  —  In new Economist/YouGov polling, Russian President Vladimir Putin polls higher than President Biden among Trump voters.

Democrats really don't like democracy  —  Worried Capitol Hill Democrats whisper that they face a shellacking in the 2022 midterm elections.  They're tied 50-50 with Republicans in the Senate until Vice President Kamala Harris casts her deciding vote.  And their House majority vaporizes if five or six members peel off from the caucus.

Pack-a-day puffer Kathryn Garcia would be first cigarette-smoking mayor since '65 … City Hall hasn't had a cigarette smoker-in-residence since Mayor Robert Wagner left office in 1965 — but that would change if former Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia wins the June 22 Democratic primary.

Many Expected to Shun Iran Vote Seen as Presidential Race of One  —  An ultraconservative judiciary chief appears to have the only real chance of winning after a council of powerful clerics disqualified virtually all the other viable candidates.  —  TEHRAN — Come presidential election time …

Janet Malcolm, Provocative Journalist With a Piercing Eye, Dies at 86  —  Her subjects ranged widely, but she took special aim at journalism itself, writing that every journalist “knows that what he does is morally indefensible.”  —  Janet Malcolm, a longtime writer for The New Yorker …

Parents who opposed critical race theory on Fox News are GOP activists, report says … Fox News failed to fully disclose the professional conservative ties of 11 guests featured in numerous segments about the teaching of critical race theory in schools, according to a new report from Media Matters …

We Won the Cold War, Right?  Right?  —  The state trudges on while the soul of the nation atrophies.  —  6 hr ago … - Leo Strauss, Natural Right and History  —  Leo Strauss wrote those lines in 1949 referring to the depressing fact that though Germany had been defeated in war …

Blade, the Uber for helicopters and chartered jets, had a fake spokesperson for 3 years  — Before Blade went public, spokesman Simon McLaren would rep the helicopter service in publications.  — When Insider sought to confirm McLaren's identity, a Blade employee initially said McLaren was real.

Americans Can Pack Bags for Europe, as EU Lifts Travel Curbs  — U.S. added to Europe's ‘white list,’ allowing leisure travel  — Bloc is pushing the Biden administration to reciprocate  —  The European Union lifted travel restrictions for U.S. residents, in the latest step toward …

Nicaragua Denies Entry to New York Times Journalist Amid Escalating Crisis  —  The refusal to admit the reporter comes amid a nationwide crackdown on journalists, opposition politicians and civil society groups.  —  MEXICO CITY — A New York Times journalist was denied entry into Nicaragua …

It's Not Too Late to Avert a Historic Shame  —  In the past few weeks, the outlook for Afghans who helped the United States in Afghanistan has gone from worrying to critical.  As U.S. and NATO troops leave the country with breathtaking speed, the Taliban are attacking districts that had long …

Washington's Dangerous New Consensus on China … The unprecedented global challenges that the United States faces today—climate change, pandemics, nuclear proliferation, massive economic inequality, terrorism, corruption, authoritarianism—are shared global challenges.