Two False Narratives About the Capitol Riot  —  As the Jan. 6 committee meets, politics drowns out the actual story.  —  By The Editorial Board  —  The House inquiry on the events of Jan. 6 held its opening hearing Tuesday, and it showed why no Republican should try to brush aside the ugliness of the Capitol riot.

Sinema doesn't support Democrats' $3.5T bill, clinches bipartisan infrastructure deal  —  Sen. Kyrsten Sinema does not support Democrats' $3.5 trillion budget plan that aims to deliver major components of President Joe Biden's economic agenda that Democrats hope to pass after moving …

Meet the Corporations That Went Back on Their Word Not to Support the Sedition Caucus  —  They promised not to support Republicans who voted not to certify the election results.  And then they changed their minds and hoped Americans wouldn't notice.  —  Following the January 6 insurrection …

Pass ‘Manchin Plus’ voting and election protection with or without Republicans  —  I implore my former Republican colleagues to step forward.  If they don't, Manchin and other Democrats must override the filibuster to save democracy.  —  American democracy is at a critical juncture.

U.S. GDP increased at 6.5% pace in the second quarter, well below expectations  — GDP rose at a 6.4% annualized pace in the second quarter, according to the Commerce Department's first estimate Thursday.  — That was well below the Dow Jones estimate of 8.4%.

CDC reversal on indoor masking prompts experts to ask, 'Where's the data?'  —  New recommendations from federal health officials this week on when vaccinated Americans should don face masks came with a startling bolt of news: People who have had their shots and become infected with the delta variant …

How the Head of the N.R.A. and His Wife Secretly Shipped Their Elephant Trophies Home  —  The couple had their names removed from the shipment, and placed an order for the animals' feet to be turned into “stools,” an “umbrella stand,” and a “trash can.”  —  In the early fall of 2013 …

Something strange is happening in Britain.  Covid cases are plummeting instead of soaring.  —  LONDON — This is a puzzler.  Coronavirus cases are plummeting in Britain.  They were supposed to soar.  Scientists aren't sure why they haven't.  —  The daily number of new infections recorded …

St. Louis County Health Director: I Was Assaulted, Called ‘Brown C—  ’ After Mask Plea  — Dr. Faisal Khan, acting director of the St. Louis County Department of Health. … Dear Chairwoman Days,  —  I appreciated the opportunity to share the latest data, scientific research …

She risked everything to expose Facebook.  Now she's telling her story.  —  The world first learned of Sophie Zhang in September 2020, when BuzzFeed News obtained and published highlights from an abridged version of her nearly 8,000-word exit memo from Facebook.

GOP Could Retake the House in 2022 Just by Gerrymandering Four Southern States  —  Fight disinformation.  Get a daily recap of the facts that matter.  Sign up for the free Mother Jones newsletter.  —  Before Georgia voted for Joe Biden, the biggest upset in recent state politics came …

Republicans have become the party of nihilism  —  US conservatives who might once have criticised Trump are now falling in line with disturbing speed  —  As long as Donald Trump is breathing, the odds are that he will run again in 2024.  This has become clear not because his ambitions have changed …

Arizona's GOP-backed ballot review has raised more than $5.7 million in private donations, organizers say  —  A private contractor conducting a Republican-commissioned review of 2020 presidential ballots in Arizona's largest county announced late Wednesday that it has collected more than $5.7 million …

‘Election integrity committee’ in York County accused of voter intimidation  —  A group calling itself an “election integrity committee” drew allegations of voter intimidation after its members reportedly knocked on doors across York County asking about how and for whom residents voted.

As Trump pushed for probes of 2020 election, he called acting AG Rosen almost daily  —  President Donald Trump called his acting attorney general nearly every day at the end of last year to alert him to claims of voter fraud or alleged improper vote counts in the 2020 election, according to two people familiar with the conversations.

A Fresh Reminder of Russiagate's Failed Guardian(s) of Integrity  —  Above left, RCI writer Aaron Maté in a tense 2017 interview with Luke Harding of the Guardian (full video below).  Harding was lead author on a supposed blockbuster this month ignored by major news outlets …

RNC fact-checks Biden on driving ‘18-wheeler’  —  The Republican National Committee circulated a “fact check” on Twitter of whether President Joe Biden drove an 18-wheeler after a speech on manufacturing to a Mack truck facility in Pennsylvania.  —  “There is *zero evidence* that Biden 'used …

After Adams Criticizes the Left, New York Democrats Try to Clear the Air  —  In a meeting in Washington, Representative Nydia Velázquez reminded Eric Adams to treat everyone with respect.  —  When Eric Adams arrived on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, he received a warm welcome from members …

The Beltway Can't Stop Talking About Him.  The Voters He Needs Barely Know Him.  —  LONDON, OHIO—Patrick Closser takes the political temperature most days from his drive-thru window here.  The ring-ding sound of another car approaching the little hut at Casey's Carry Out & Drive Thru for beer …

Georgia Republicans take first step to Fulton elections takeover  —  Georgia Republicans have taken the first step on their freshly blazed path toward a possible takeover of Fulton County's elections.  —  A letter obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution shows two dozen state senators support …

Biden shifts onus for pandemic onto the unvaccinated as he readies federal worker vaccine requirement  —  Avlon: Unvaccinated are holding us hostage  —  WASHINGTON (CNN)President Joe Biden, who for months used techniques like public service announcements and grassroots campaigns …

‘A nightmare scenario’: how an anti-trans Instagram post led to violence in the streets  —  Misinformation about Wi Spa, a Korean spa in Los Angeles, quickly spread around the world.  Since then, trans women in LA have faced violence and online abuse  —  On 24 June, a woman claimed …

Trump allies blame conservative leader for failed Texas endorsement  —  Susan Wright's defeat in a Republican runoff dealt a blow to Trump's aura of invincibility as a GOP kingmaker.

CIA Drove Spike in Media Leak Investigation Requests Under Trump … In partnership with  —  New data obtained by The Intercept adds considerable detail to what we already know about former President Donald Trump's relentless campaign against whistleblowers and leakers in the intelligence community.

Charlie Kirk's pro-Trump youth group stokes vaccine resistance as covid surges again  —  Turning Point USA and its affiliates are urging students to resist mandates and spreading baseless claims about “medical raids,” part of a bid for donations  —  A young emergency room doctor stood …

The Infrastructure Plan: What's In and What's Out … Sources: Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget; White House  —  The infrastructure bill that started moving forward again Wednesday is undeniably large: It calls for new federal spending of about $550 billion, an amount roughly equivalent …

China's New Ambassador to the U.S. Adopts Placating Tone  —  NEW YORK—China's new envoy to the U.S. struck a conciliatory note upon his arrival in Washington on Wednesday, pledging to repair the increasingly testy relationship between the two world powers days after Chinese Foreign Ministry officials greeted …

Simone Biles and the Power of ‘No’  —  By withdrawing from competition citing concerns over her mental health, Biles showed that resisting expectations can be more powerful than persisting through them.  —  No.  —  What a small and simple word.  —  What transformative power it possesses.

Rumblings: Teachers union head, Fed chair hint that schools might not reopen on schedule  —  I've said it before, but once again for emphasis: If you have school-aged kids and you live in a blue state, you're courting disaster by not moving before the fall semester.  Which is now only a month or so away.

Pandemic Aid Programs Spur a Record Drop in Poverty  —  The most comprehensive study yet of the federal response to the pandemic shows huge but temporary benefits for the poor — and helps frame a larger debate over the role of government.  —  WASHINGTON — The huge increase in government aid prompted …