Top U.S. General Said Trump Preached ‘Gospel of the Führer’  —  General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, likened Donald Trump's effort to hold on to power after the 2020 election to Adolf Hitler, saying the president was preaching “the gospel of the Führer” …

FBI failed to pursue Nassar sex-abuse allegations, inspector general finds  —  The FBI failed to properly investigate sex-abuse allegations against Larry Nassar, the former doctor for USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University, according to a scathing report by the Justice Department's Inspector General …

The Moral Collapse of J. D. Vance  —  What do we call a man who turns on everything he once claimed to believe?  For a practitioner of petty and self-serving duplicity, we use “sellout” or “backstabber.”  (Sometimes we impugn the animal kingdom and call him a rat, a skunk, or a weasel.)

Robin DiAngelo Wants White Progressives to Look Inward  —  The author of “White Fragility” discusses her new book, “Nice Racism.”  —  In 2018, Robin DiAngelo, an academic and anti-racism consultant, published the surprise best-seller “White Fragility.”  The book, which argues that white people tend …

The Deeply Racist Dimensions To Ashli Babbitt's Martyrdom  —  “Who killed Ashli Babbitt?”  —  It's a question that, in recent weeks, has become a mainstream rallying cry among the MAGA crew after growing in volume for months on the far-right fringes.  Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) has asked it repeatedly …

Inside Facebook's Data Wars  —  Executives at the social network have clashed over CrowdTangle, a Facebook-owned data tool that revealed users' high engagement levels with right-wing media sources.  —  One day in April, the people behind CrowdTangle, a data analytics tool owned by Facebook, learned that transparency had limits.

Britney Spears granted right to hire own lawyer; accuses father of ‘conservatorship abuse’ … LOS ANGELES — Britney Spears was granted a request to hire her own attorney on Wednesday, a development that could mark a major shift in how her 13-year conservatorship case has been handled.

Michigan GOP executive who blamed Trump for election loss resigns leadership post  —  Dave Boucher Clara HendricksonDetroit Free Press  —  A Michigan Republican Party leader who faced grassroots pushback after saying the 2020 presidential election wasn't stolen and blaming ex-President Donald Trump …

Drug overdoses soared to a record 93,000 last year  —  Deaths from drug overdoses soared to more than 93,000 last year, a staggering record that reflects the coronavirus pandemic's toll on efforts to quell the crisis and the continued spread of the synthetic opioid fentanyl in the illegal narcotic supply …

Cuba's authoritarian repression is a feature of socialism, not a bug  —  After decades of oppression, the Cuban people are rising up against the island nation's authoritarian regime.  Protesting the shortages and economic ruin wrought by their leaders' centralized mismanagement …

US to begin evacuation of Afghans who aided US military  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is set to begin evacuations of Afghans who aided the U.S. military effort in the nearly 20-year war during the last week of July, according to a senior administration official.

Bolsonaro in hospital as hiccups persist for more than 10 days  — President, 66, to be observed by doctors for next 48 hours  — Speculation grows over health of Brazil's far-right leader  —  The Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has been admitted to hospital complaining of abdominal pain …

How Tucker Carlson became the voice of White grievance  —  Tucker Carlson huddled in a low-ceilinged dungeon that had served as a holding pen for Africans bound for enslavement in the United States.  It was a July day in 2003 in Ghana, and Carlson stood alongside some of America's most prominent civil rights leaders.

Two-thirds of Southern Republicans want to secede  —  And that number is rising  —  A new YouGov survey conducted on behalf of a democracy watchdog group finds that 66 percent of Republicans living in the South say they'd support seceding from the United States to join a union with other Southern states.

Poll: 1.8 million Americans have turned down jobs due to unemployment benefits  —  About 1.8 million out-of-work Americans have turned down jobs because of the generosity of unemployment insurance benefits, according to Morning Consult poll results released Wednesday.

GOP Criticism of Defender Judicial Picks Rebutted by Law Groups  —  President Joe Biden's judicial nominees with public defender backgrounds are being “singled out for extra criticism” during the confirmation process, a coalition of more than 50 legal groups, including multiple state criminal …

Disgusting: Deliver driver tampered with NYPD officer's food claiming ‘we at war’  —  A Door Dash delivery driver posted a video of himself tampering with food that had been ordered by an NYPD officer in Brooklyn.  The Facebook account where it was originally posted has been deleted but not before it was captured:

Ex-Kamala Harris staffers have bad memories of a toxic culture in her past offices and are texting each other about it  — Some former Harris staffers are feeling vindicated after reports of dysfunction in her office.  — They're texting one another and having flashbacks about their time working for her.

Democrats Call for a Tax on Imports From Polluting Countries  —  The party's $3.5 trillion budget plan would include a carbon tariff, as well as a host of other climate actions.  —  WASHINGTON — Democrats have agreed to include a tax on imports from nations that lack aggressive climate change policies …

Welcome to Year Zero  —  A Tentative Beginning in a Subdued Key  —  The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of America announced last year that it would set diversity quotas for any film eligible to win a best picture award.  In order to enforce these targets …

Biden Taps Son of Top Dem Donor for Product Safety Post  —  President Joe Biden on Tuesday tapped the son of one of his closest political allies to an important federal post.  —  Biden appointed Rich Trumka Jr., son of AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka, to the Consumer Product Safety Commission …

Jared Kushner ‘slow walked’ carrying out Trump's craziest orders until he forgot he ever gave them: Michael Wolff  —  Since leaving the White House, Jared Kushner and Donald Trump haven't been as close as they were during the previous four years.  —  Journalist Michael Wolff's new book …

Have You Herd?  The Goats Are Back at Riverside Park.  —  After taking a break last year, goats have returned to help fend off invasive plant species.  New Yorkers can use ranked-choice voting to pick their favorites.  —  It was about 15 minutes into the second-ever “Running of the Goats” …

Under Trump, Republicans touted the coronavirus vaccines.  Now, under Biden, they're questioning them.  —  Days after initial data from two coronavirus vaccines showed broad effectiveness at preventing illness, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) went on Fox Business Network to laud them.

For Democrats, Money Is Just a Number  —  Why stop at $3.5 trillion?  Why not $5 trillion or $10 trillion?  —  The Democrats just unveiled a new $3.5 trillion spending package that, when combined with the $600 billion bipartisan proposal tentatively in place, adds up to a lot of money.

Groups sue to block enforcement of DeSantis' anti-riot law as Cuban violators in FL go largely untouched  —  Quality Journalism for Critical Times  —  Civil rights groups have asked a federal judge to block enforcement of HB 1, Gov. Ron DeSantis' crackdown on street protests …

The Real Cuba Isn't a Potemkin Airbnb  —  Antonio García Martínez on what people taking to the streets are protesting.  —  8 hr ago … The difference between the communist system and the capitalist one is that both kick you in the ass, but in the communist one they kick …

Jenny Erpenbeck Is Keeping Time  —  When the Berlin Wall fell, some called it the end of history.  For Erpenbeck, history just needed saving.  —  Every time I spoke with the German author Jenny Erpenbeck over Zoom, the conversation began with her cheerfully noting the fun …

Biden's civil rights nominee remains unapologetically divisive on Title IX  —  The Department of Education's former civil rights head Catherine Lhamon has not changed much over the past four years.  —  On Tuesday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a hearing …

Cuban protests risk exacerbating COVID-19 spike - PAHO  —  Protests in Cuba will increase the risk of COVID-19 transmission because of an already high level of cases and the more contagious Delta variant, health officials said on Wednesday.  —  The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) …

Family of five charged for allegedly storming the Capitol after tipster provides social media screenshots  —  For five people arrested this week after they were charged by federal prosecutors for allegedly storming the U.S. Capitol, the Jan. 6 insurrection appeared to be a family affair.

Most Voters Reject Biden's ‘Door-to-Door’ COVID-19 Vaccine Push  —  President Joe Biden said last week it is time to go “door-to-door” to vaccinate people against COVID-19, but most voters disagree.  —  A new national telephone and online survey by Rasmussen Reports finds that 53% …

Inside the Industry That Unmasks People At Scale  —  Unique IDs linked to phones are supposed to be anonymous.  But there's an entire industry that links them to real people and their address.  —  Joseph Cox  —  Tech companies have repeatedly reassured the public that trackers used …