Former U.S. attorney in Atlanta says Trump wanted to fire him for not backing election fraud claims.  —  Byung J. Pak, a former U.S. attorney in Atlanta, told congressional investigators on Wednesday that his abrupt resignation in January had been prompted by Justice Department officials' warning …

Republicans risk becoming face of delta surge as key GOP governors oppose anti-covid measures  —  In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott has banned local governments from implementing mask requirements even as he pleads for emergency medical help in combating a surge in coronavirus cases from the delta variant.

Mississippi's Hospital System Could ‘Fail’ In 10 Days, UMMC Warns As Feds Rush In  —  With COVID-19 patients overflowing at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, including in its pediatric center, hospital leaders are warning that the medical system statewide could be on the verge of failing without drastic intervention.

EXCLUSIVE: ‘The Russians have videos of me doing crazy f***ing sex!’  Hunter Biden is seen in unearthed footage telling a prostitute that Russian drug dealers stole ANOTHER of his laptops for blackmail while he was close to overdosing in a Vegas hotel room  — Hunter Biden claims Russian …

Joe Manchin just threatened to derail Biden's big win.  Please proceed, Senator.  —  Barely hours after Senate Democrats passed their $3.5 trillion reconciliation budget resolution, Sen. Joe Manchin III issued a statement that unleashed waves of dread across Twitter.

Vaccine Refusers Risk Compassion Fatigue  —  On social media, I've been seeing sentiments that I never thought I'd see anyone express in a public forum. … These are harsh, angry feelings.  And some of the people giving voice to them are doctors.  —  I am an obstetrician in New York.

Rand Paul discloses 16 months late that his wife bought stock in company behind covid treatment  —  An aide to the Kentucky Republican said he prepared the disclosure last year and only recently learned that it was never transmitted  —  Sen. Rand Paul revealed Wednesday that his wife bought stock …

EXCLUSIVE: Mike Lindell's lead cyber expert says they can't prove China hacked 2020 election  —  SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell's lead cyber expert now says the key data underpinning the theory that a China hacked the 2020 election unveiled at the Cyber Symposium is illegitimate.

FDA expected to authorize Covid-19 vaccine booster shots for immunocompromised people within the next 48 hours  —  Fauci: I believe FDA will approve vaccines ‘very soon’  —  (CNN)The US Food and Drug Administration is expected to announce within the next 48 hours that it is authorizing …

Giuliani told agents it was okay to ‘throw a fake’ during political campaign  —  Rudolph W. Giuliani's promise of a “big surprise” to help Donald Trump's election in October 2016 led to Democratic accusations the FBI was feeding him secrets about an investigation of Hillary Clinton.

Kathy Hochul vows big change from ‘toxic’ Cuomo administration, will fire ‘unethical’ staffers  — New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul said she is ready to take over as governor from Andrew Cuomo, and vowed not to have a “toxic” workplace as Cuomo allegedly has had for three terms.

Tennessee House GOP urges session to curb local COVID powers  —  NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — All 73 Tennessee House Republicans signaled their support on Wednesday for a special session to limit the authority of local officials to make rules aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19 …

Autonomy for Red America, Part 1  —  In biology, an ecosystem is a complex of living organisms and their interrelationships with their physical environment within a particular unit of space.  —  In American politics today, the ecosystem of the Right is no less complex and interwoven.

Lie of credit — American Express tells its workers capitalism is racist  —  American Express, which made a $2.3 billion profit last quarter, invited the great-grandson of the Nation of Islam's founder to tell its employees that capitalism is evil.  —  It was part of the credit-card giant's …

Federal government sends ventilators to Florida as DeSantis says he's unaware of shipment  —  (CNN)The Biden administration sent hundreds of ventilators to Florida in recent days as the state responds to a dramatic new increase in Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations, an official from the Department …

Suspected saline switch sparks vaccine stir in Germany  —  Authorities in northern Germany appealed to thousands of people on Tuesday to get another shot of COVID-19 vaccine after a police investigation found that a Red Cross nurse may have injected them with a saline solution.

Inflation Stayed High in July as Economy Rebounded  —  Consumer prices rose 5.4% from a year earlier, the same annual rate as in June, but the monthly pace slowed  —  Inflation remained elevated in July, but showed evidence of cooling as the economic recovery continued amid pandemic-related supply problems …

Court grants permission for judicial review into Unexplained Wealth Order against Donald Trump  —  Legal efforts to force Scottish ministers to scrutinise the financing of Donald Trump's golf and hotel resorts have overcome a significant hurdle, after the Court of Session granted permission …

NASA Says an Asteroid Will Have a Close Brush With Earth.  But Not Until the 2100s.  —  Scientists have improved their forecast of the orbital path of Bennu, a space rock the size of the Empire State Building that was visited by the OSIRIS-REX spacecraft.  —  An asteroid the size …

Federal judge says Trump's accountants must turn over tax records to House panel  —  A federal judge has ruled that former President Donald Trump's accountants must turn over two years' worth of his tax and financial records to a House committee investigating whether Trump and his businesses profited from his service in the White House.

U.S. #COVID19 vaccination levels by county OVER TIME  —  As regular readers know, I've become a bit obsessive over tracking COVID-19 vaccination rates at both the state and county levels over the past month or so.  I post the daily rate levels daily on Twitter, and once a week I've been updating …

The Delta Variant Isn't As Contagious As Chickenpox.  But It's Still Highly Contagious  —  In a leaked report, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made a surprising claim about the delta variant of the coronavirus: It “is as transmissible as: - Chicken Pox,” the agency wrote …

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.”

Donald Kagan, celebrated historian of the ancient world and revered teacher  —  Share this with Facebook Share this with Twitter Share this with LinkedIn Share this with Email Print this  —  Donald Kagan, Sterling Professor Emeritus of Classics and History, prominent for his scholarship …

Laredo sending busloads of migrants to Austin and Houston without testing for coronavirus  —  McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — Calling it a “public health crisis,” the mayor of Laredo told Border Report on Wednesday that his South Texas city is sending busloads of migrants to Austin and Houston without testing them for coronavirus.

'We are in harm's way': Election officials fear for their personal safety amid torrent of false claims about voting  —  In preparation for a vote on local tax assessments last week in Houghton County, Mich., county clerk Jennifer Kelly took extraordinary precautions, asking election staff …

Japan calls on Australia to lead resistance to China's regional sway  —  Normal text sizeLarger text sizeVery large text size  —  Japan's Defence Minister has warned China is trying to change the status quo in the region by force and has called on Australia and other allies to step up to ensure Beijing's dominance is not inevitable.

Children's hospitals are swamped with Covid patients — and it may only get worse  —  The number of kids infected with Covid-19 is soaring as the highly contagious Delta variant spreads and schools reopen, pushing children's hospitals around the country to the brink.

massachusetts holy ghost  —  martha's vineyard, cancellation, & the scammy demimonde  —  A little update: My introduction for Percival Everett's Erasure was published in The Telegraph.  It's paywalled—not my choice!—but you can read if you have a subscription, OR if you just buy …

I am a DACA beneficiary.  I can't work as an ER doctor anymore.  —  Juan Vasquez is a resident physician in the Department of Emergency Medicine at NYU Langone Health and NYU Grossman School of Medicine.  —  I'm an emergency medicine physician in New York.