AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka dead at 72  —  Richard Trumka, president of the powerful AFL-CIO labor organization, has died unexpectedly, the federation announced Thursday.  —  Trumka, 72, had served as president of the AFL-CIO, which represents more than 12.5 million workers …

Republican Lawmaker Who's Suing Pelosi Over Mask Rule Says He Has Covid  —  Columbia, S.C. (AP) — Rep. Ralph Norman, one of the three congressional Republicans suing Speaker Nancy Pelosi over fines for not wearing masks during a vote on the U.S. House floor, has contracted a breakthrough case of COVID-19 …

Exclusive: Going Down The ‘Big Lie’ Rabbit Hole With Former President Trump  —  The Uprising obtained the former president's purported evidence of election fraud.  Trump's statement reveals the origins of his conspiracy theories and how key conservative allies fuel them.

A critical ocean system may be heading for collapse due to climate change, study finds  —  ‘The consequences of a collapse would likely be far-reaching.’  —  Human-caused warming has led to an “almost complete loss of stability” in the system that drives Atlantic Ocean currents …

Rudy Giuliani Admitted He Lied About Feds Slipping Him Info Ahead of 2016 Election, Watchdog Finds  —  The 2016 election was upended just as Giuliani went on the radio and claimed “active agents” had shared “rumors” about the Hillary Clinton email probe.  —  Rudy Giuliani has admitted …

What Mike Fanone Can't Forget  —  It wasn't a cop bar; that was the point.  They weren't there to meet other cops.  They were there to meet girls.  The three police officers took seats at the wine bar in D.C.'s trendy Navy Yard neighborhood—exposed concrete walls, leather banquettes …

Scoop: Dem fundraising platform ActBlue boots Cuomo  —  The Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue has removed a donation page that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's campaign committee used to solicit contributions, the company confirmed to Axios.  —  Driving the news: ActBlue is the lifeblood of grassroots Democratic fundraising.

CBO says bipartisan infrastructure bill would add $256B to deficit over 10 years  —  The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on Thursday released an analysis saying the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package would add $256 billion to the federal deficit over the next decade …

Scoop: Inside a Kamala Harris crisis dinner  —  A group of the Democratic Party's most influential women met for dinner at a home in the nation's capital last month to game out how to defend Vice President Kamala Harris and her chief of staff, Tina Flournoy, against a torrent of bad press.

Matt Gaetz denies sex crimes and attacks Fox News in desperate hourlong YouTube video  —  Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) targeted Fox News this week in the premiere episode of his Firebrand YouTube program.  —  Earlier this year, Gaetz disappeared from Fox News broadcasts after he made an appearance …

Biden awards medal to cops at Capitol riot, likens them to brave high school brawlers  —  President Biden on Thursday signed a bill awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to the police forces that battled Capitol rioters on Jan. 6 — while bizarrely comparing the officers to student athletes …

Letter from Acting Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection Samuel Levine to Facebook  —  Today, Acting Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection Samuel Levine sent the following letter to Mark Zuckerberg concerning Facebook's misleading claims regarding the company's consent decree with the FTC:

Nancy Pelosi's Surprise Flip on Student Debt Cancellation Came After Urging From Billionaire Power Couple … The drive to persuade President Joe Biden to cancel student debt took a major hit last week when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stunned Congress with a surprise statement in opposition.

GOP fears grow over Herschel Walker as party leaders seek other candidates in Georgia Senate race  —  (CNN)Republicans from Georgia to Washington, DC, are searching for a viable candidate to mount a Senate bid in the Peach State next year, fearing that former President Donald Trump's choice …

Biden told White House chief to seek Harvard legal scholar's guidance, leading to reversal on evictions  —  Ron Klain consulted with Laurence Tribe about the legality of a new eviction moratorium, helping to bring about a dramatic White House pivot  —  After White House legal advisers found …

Abbott calls new special session to push voting restrictions Texas Democrats have blocked by fleeing state  —  AUSTIN — Texas Republicans will redouble their efforts to pass new voting restrictions by convening a second special House session this weekend, hardening a stalemate …

Florida's hospitals set a bleak pandemic record  —  The Delta variant is putting new pressure on US states with the lowest vaccination rates  —  Hospitals in Florida are struggling with more Covid-19 patients than at any point in the pandemic, as the fast spreading Delta variant strains US states …

Institutionalism Can't Save Us Now  —  Garland should learn from the Obama administration and ensure that government officials can't act outside the law to benefit themselves and their party.  —  We have no shortage of information about how historically bad an Attorney General William Barr was.

The Capitol Rioters Attacked Police.  Why Isn't the FOP Outraged?  —  On Tuesday, the National Fraternal Order of Police decided to “clear up confusion” about its position on the January 6 assault on the Capitol by enraged Donald Trump supporters.  “Those who participated in the assaults …

Jimmy Graham says he was ‘basically forced’ to get COVID-19 vaccine  —  Jimmy Graham is vaccinated against COVID-19 - but he doesn't seem happy about it.  —  “Was basically forced into getting the vaccine.  Now I'm just confused @NFLPA,” the five-time Pro Bowler and Bears tight end tweeted Thursday …

‘All of them’: Tennessee health chief says children's hospitals will fill up as the delta variant surges  —  Natalie Allison Brett KelmanNashville Tennessean  —  The delta variant of the coronavirus is ravaging hospitals in Tennessee, and pediatric wings won't escape the crisis, the state's health chief said Thursday.

Novavax Delays Seeking U.S. Regulatory Approval for Covid-19 Vaccine  —  The shot, which can be stored at normal refrigerator temperatures, could provide much-needed boost to global vaccination efforts  —  Novavax Inc. said it would delay seeking U.S. emergency authorization …

Jan. 6 select panel takes over House probe of Trump DOJ  —  A key House committee has postponed multiple scheduled witness interviews about Donald Trump's final days in office, handing them off to the select panel investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.  —  “As the Oversight Committee continues …

The Fox News Fallacy  —  It's Blinding the Democrats to Real Problems  —  The Fox News Fallacy is having a dire effect on many Democrats.  This is the idea that if Fox News (substitute here the conservative bête noire of your choice if you prefer) criticizes the Democrats for X …

Graham says he's told Trump to ‘speak up’ on COVID vaccines  —  COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — As he recovers from a breakthrough infection of the coronavirus, Sen. Lindsey Graham said Thursday that he has urged former President Donald Trump to press his supporters to get the COVID-19 vaccine …

Americans On COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements: Yes For Health Care Workers, No For Restaurant Customers, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Majority Support Masking Up Indoors And At Schools  — mail_outline  —  As both the government and the private sector grapple …