Biden defies expectations.  Again.  —  The Senate on Tuesday passed a $1.2 trillion infrastructure deal with 19 Republican votes.  Had someone polled the White House press corps a month ago, few would have expected any bipartisan deal possible.  —  Journalists at mainstream media outlets are creatures of habit laced with cynicism.

'A Publisher's Worst Nightmare': How Cuomo's Book Became a Cautionary Tale  —  Last summer, publishers really wanted to buy Gov. Andrew Cuomo's book.  —  At the time, it seemed like a guaranteed best seller.  Sales of political books were surging, and Mr. Cuomo had become a cable news fixture …

Republicans are seizing on backlash to new mask and vaccine mandates  —  'You do not know what you're talking about': Fauci excoriates Rand Paul  —  (CNN)Republicans have found a new boogeyman in t he battle for the House: the nation's top public health agency.

U.S. officials warn collapse of Afghan capital could come sooner than expected  —  The Biden administration is preparing for Afghanistan's capital to fall far sooner than feared only weeks ago, as a rapid disintegration of security has prompted the revision of an already stark intelligence …

Federal prosecutors came to suspect Trump Org CFO Allen Weisselberg lied, and considered charging him with perjury  —  New York (CNN)New York federal prosecutors came to suspect the Trump Organization's chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, lied in testimony during their investigation …

It's the end of the world as the IPCC knows it, and we feel fine  —  In response to the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report on global warming, the Western world's newspapers seemed to be competing to publish the most apocalyptic headlines possible.

Secret IRS Files Reveal How Much the Ultrawealthy Gained by Shaping Trump's “Big, Beautiful Tax Cut”  —  The Secret IRS Files … In November 2017, with the administration of President Donald Trump rushing to get a massive tax overhaul through Congress, Sen. Ron Johnson stunned his colleagues by announcing he would vote “no.”

CA college professor held in arson spree near Dixie Fire |  The Sacramento Bee  —  A college professor suspected in a series of arson fires in remote forested areas of Northern California near the massive Dixie Fire has been charged in connection with one of the blazes in Lassen County …

‘No One I Know Is Vaccinated’: Sturgis Rally Bikers Are Coming for America  —  SUM OF ALL FEARS  —  Thousands of unvaccinated, unmasked people traveling across the country.  An ultra-contagious new variant.  Overloaded hospitals.  If you thought it could get no worse, think again.

Neal Conan, Longtime Host Of NPR's ‘Talk Of The Nation,’ Dies At 71  —  Neal Conan, who spent 36 years with National Public Radio and 11 years as the host of the network's Talk of the Nation died Tuesday in Hawaii of glioblastoma at the age of 71.  —  I met Neal almost 50 years ago …

White House plans to fund Florida schools who defy DeSantis' order against mask mandates  —  You have been added to Daily News Newsletter  —  WASHINGTON, D.C., (WFLA) — The White House announced Tuesday that it is planning to support schools who defy Gov. Ron DeSantis' executive order and enact mask mandates for student s.

WNDB official: Radio host Marc Bernier hospitalized with COVID-19  —  Jim AbbottThe Daytona Beach News-Journal  —  DAYTONA BEACH — Longtime radio talk-show host Marc Bernier has been hospitalized with COVID-19, according to a top official at WNDB (1150 AM, 93.5 FM).

President Biden to Convene Leaders' Summit for Democracy  —  The President has said that the challenge of our time is to demonstrate that democracies can deliver by improving the lives of their own people and by addressing the greatest problems facing the wider world.

Andrew Cuomo Leaves as He Governed  —  The New York governor's overdue departure, after months of defiance, is a salutary act of political .  —  Andrew Cuomo announced at a press conference today in Albany that he will resign as New York's governor, effective in 14 days.  Good riddance.

‘The Rundown’: Gov. Cox gets letter demanding he change his ‘foul, dirty name’  —  Your Monday morning Utah political cheat sheet  —  Good Monday morning Utah!  Thanks for reading “The Rundown”.  —  Got a news tip?  Some interesting political gossip?  Just want to chat about politics?

The con is winding down  —  Allow me to present to you the evidence that China stole the 2020 election.  Please sit down; I don't want you to be injured when you faint.  —  So: voilà.  —  Yes, you're reading that right.  Looks like you owe MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell an apology.  —  Hm?

Tax the Unvaxxed  —  People who refuse the Covid vaccine are imposing costs on society.  Time to make them pay.  —  More than 700,000 people are flooding the South Dakota badlands this week for what will surely be the COVID-19 superspreader event of the year, the 81st annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

Senate Republicans block effort by Democrats to advance voting and election bill  —  Dems race to revive election bill as DOJ targets GA law  —  (CNN)Senate Republicans blocked an attempt by Democrats to advance their signature voting and elections overhaul bill in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Watchdog to Scrutinize Fox News Host's Claim the N.S.A. Spied on Him  —  Tucker Carlson accused the government of intercepting his emails without disclosing that he had been reaching out to the Kremlin.  —  WASHINGTON — The office of the National Security Agency's inspector general …

Mask bullies don't want to persuade you — but to humiliate and rule you  —  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's rather confused masking advice is thinly supported by science.  And by now, everyone who wants a COVID jab can get one.  Yet elite shaming of ordinary people keeps ratcheting up.

Infrastructure Summer: Bipartisan Bill Boosts Corporate Giants  —  In broadband and other areas, the corporate dominance that has been an impediment to progress emerges unscathed.  —  Travis Sheetz, a worker with the Mason County Public Utility District, installs fiber optic cable, August 4 …

‘It Was Just Disbelief’: Parent Files Complaint Against Atlanta Elementary School After Learning the Principal Segregated Students Based on Race  —  An Atlanta mom filed a federal complaint against her daughter's Atlanta elementary school after she learned that the school was separating students on the basis of race.

KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor: Parents and the Pandemic  —  , Mellisha Stokes , and Mollyann Brodie … Key Findings  — As children around the country head back to school, nearly half of parents of children ages 12-17, the age group currently eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine …

See the Data on Breakthrough Covid Hospitalizations and Deaths by State  —  Serious coronavirus infections among vaccinated people have been relatively rare since the start of the vaccination campaign, a New York Times analysis of data from 40 states and Washington, D.C., shows.

NSA Awards Secret $10 Billion Contract to Amazon  —  Much of the NSA's most prized intelligence data may be moving to the cloud.  —  The National Security Agency has awarded a secret cloud computing contract worth up to $10 billion to Amazon Web Services, Nextgov has learned.

Texas House speaker signs warrants to arrest 52 wayward Democrats  —  The House voted 80-12 to issue the warrants, hours after the Texas Supreme Court blocked a lower court order preventing arrest warrants for fugitive legislators. … AUSTIN — House Speaker Dade Phelan signed civil arrest warrants …