Seeking Immunity From Suit Over Jan. 6th Attack, Rep. Mo Brooks Tells Judge He Was Simply ‘Cooperating’ with the ‘White House’  —  Rep. Mo Brooks asked a federal judge to declare that he was immune from a civil lawsuit filed by Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) alleging that the Alabama Republican …

$5,800 Whiskey Bottle, a Gift From Japan to Pompeo, Is Missing, U.S. Says  —  The State Department is investigating what happened to it.  —  The State Department is investigating the whereabouts of a $5,800 bottle of whiskey the Japanese government gave to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in 2019 …

Texas GOP Official Mocked COVID Five Days Before He Died of Virus  —  H. Scott Apley's Facebook page was filled with anti-mask, anti-vaccine content until he was suddenly hospitalized on Sunday.  —  A GOP official from Texas who regularly espoused anti-vaccine and anti-mask views online …

In String of Wins, ‘Biden Democrats’ See a Reality Check for the Left  —  Progressives are holding their own with moderates in fights over policy.  But off-year elections suggest they need a new strategy for critiquing President Biden without seeming disloyal.

Selfie shows Andrew Cuomo SMIRK moments after he 'grabbed and rubbed trembling assistant's butt' as embattled NY Governor refuses to resign despite prosecutors claiming he sexually harassed 11 women  — A selfie released in the official report into sexual harassment allegations against NY …

Biden Loses Ground On His Handling Of COVID-19 Response, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Infrastructure Bill Gets A Thumbs Up By A 2 To 1 Margin  — mail_outline  —  With the Delta variant spreading and coronavirus cases once again spiking in the U.S. …

Fauci warns COVID-19 cases may double in delta variant surge  —  Coronavirus cases driven by the delta variant are rising in a “very steep fashion” across the United States and may double in the coming weeks to 200,000 cases a day, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday.

White woman in viral video says she had no choice but to call police on Black bird-watcher … The white woman who was recorded on video calling police to claim that a Black bird-watcher was threatening her in New York City's Central Park last year said she felt she was backed into a corner.

‘The stuff of which violent insurrections are made:’ Federal judge punishes Colorado lawyers for 2020 election lawsuit  —  A federal judge in Colorado has punished two lawyers who filed a lawsuit challenging the 2020 election late last year, finding that the case was “frivolous,” “not warranted by existing law” and filed “in bad faith.”

EXCLUSIVE U.S. developing plan to require foreign visitors to be vaccinated -official  —  The Biden administration is developing a plan to require nearly all foreign visitors to the United States to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as part of eventually lifting travel restrictions that bar …

Boston mayor compares NYC's vaccine mandate to slavery, birtherism  —  The mayor of Boston said the city won't be following New York's lead requiring proof of vaccination at many indoor businesses, claiming the move is reminiscent of “slavery” and birtherism.

'Winning a medal doesn't make him Jewish': Israel's gymnastics champion tumbles into marriage controversy  —  JERUSALEM — When gymnast Artem Dolgopyat stepped off the podium as only the second Israeli to win an Olympic gold medal, he triggered one of Israel's many cultural tripwires …

NYC vaccine campaign surges 40 percent amid mandates, new incentives  —  Sometimes it takes a carrot — and a stick!  —  The Big Apple's vaccination campaign has surged 40 percent after Mayor Bill de Blasio offered $100 gift cards for shots and ordered city employees to get vaccinated …

Facebook executive helped Cuomo smear sex-harassment accuser: AG report  —  A top communications manager at Facebook helped Gov. Andrew Cuomo fight sexual misconduct allegations — including by helping leak confidential files about accuser Lindsey Boylan and by participating in regular discussions …

Tucker Carlson Has Seen the Future, and It Is Fascist Orban's Hungary is the road map for American authoritarianism.  —  In 1919, the progressive journalist Lincoln Steffens visited the nascent Soviet Union and declared, “I have seen the future and it works.”

Mexico to sue U.S.-based gunmakers over flow of arms across border  —  MEXICO CITY — The Mexican government said Wednesday it plans to file legal action against several major U.S.-based gun manufacturers, alleging that lax controls contribute to the illegal flow of weapons over the border …

Defense Secretary Austin expected to make Covid-19 vaccine mandatory for active duty troops  —  Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is expected to seek authorization to make Covid-19 vaccines mandatory for all active duty troops as soon as this week, following President Joe Biden's directive …

A Quick Reminder That Mandating Vaccines Is Totally Constitutional  —  No, the Bill of Rights does not block vaccine mandates.  Neither does HIPAA.  Just ask the three Republican judges who ruled that Indiana University can require students to be vaccinated.  —  Anti-vaxxers and anti-mask people are loud and wrong all the time.

“I Don't Believe Anything”: Among the Unvaccinated in One Central Texas Community  —  “You don't have to wear a mask!” the man shouted as I approached the Army Store in downtown Killeen.  It was a brutally hot afternoon in late July, and Bell County, where Killeen is located …

CNN goes entire week without reaching 1 million viewers  —  The scandal-plagued network has not had 7-digit viewership 7 days straight  —  CNN continues to sink to new lows- and not only in journalistic ethics.  —  According to Nielsen data, the scandal-plagued network has gone …

Two House Democrats who broke quorum missing from Washington, D.C., reportedly vacationing in Portugal  —  Their vacation does not affect the lack of quorum that the House has in Austin to pass the elections bill.  But it is at odds with Democrats' insistence that they would use their time away …

What Is Biden Waiting For?  —  The Delta variant is making clear what the Administration should have done back in January: mandate vaccines, mandate passports and crack down on the denialists.  Now time is running short.  —  Why is it taking the Delta variant to get the Biden administration to do what it should have done in January?

NYU researchers speak out after Facebook disables their accounts  —  On Tuesday, Facebook suspended the accounts, apps and pages of several New York University researchers who have been using scraping tools to better understand political ads and disinformation on Facebook.

Reality Winner's lawyer lays out the case for her freedom  —  Scott speaks with Alison Grinter, a lawyer to some of America's most politically persecuted people, including Reality Winner, whose bombshell NSA leak about Russia's attack on the 2016 election changed the course of our nation's politics.

These corporations just donated to a Republican group that helped create the January 6 mob  —  Judd Legum, Tesnim Zekeria, and Rebecca Crosby … That was an excerpt from robocalls sent on January 5 by the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA), through its self-described “policy branch,” the Rule of Law Defense Fund (RLDF).

A Near Press Blackout in Afghanistan  —  The war that Americans forgot is ending in chaos and secrecy.  —  The exit of the last American commander from Afghanistan was marked by a strange and sombre ceremony.  Standing outside the military headquarters in Kabul, among flagpoles left bare …

‘Dark times’: Houston's fourth COVID-19 wave to be the largest yet, medical leaders predict  —  Fueled by the delta variant, a surge in Houston COVID-19 hospitalizations is growing as fast as at any time during the pandemic so far, and is projected to pass previous records by mid-August …