Scoop: Beto plans Texas comeback in governor's race  —  Former Rep. Beto O'Rourke is preparing to run for governor of Texas in 2022, with an announcement expected later this year, Texas political operatives tell Axios.  —  Why it matters: O'Rourke's entry would give Democrats a high-profile candidate …

Scoop - Manchin: Delay Biden plan to '22  —  Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is privately saying he thinks Congress should take a “strategic pause” until 2022 before voting on President Biden's $3.5 trillion social-spending package, people familiar with the matter tell Axios.

Voters still don't like the GOP's answer to the coronavirus  —  (CNN)Republicans have been hoping to turn the political page from the coronavirus pandemic for over a year now.  —  We saw then-President Donald Trump try to do it in the lead-up to the 2020 election.  It didn't work.

Trump Looks for Challenger to Depose Mitch McConnell as Split Widens  —  GOP's most influential figure and its top elected official are divided on policy, politics and who should lead the party in the future  —  WASHINGTON— Mitch McConnell's record-long reign as Senate Republican leader …

Biden seeks a phone call with France's Macron to calm the waters  —  REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. — President Biden is pressing to set up a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron in coming days, U.S. officials said Sunday, hoping to end a frantic stretch of public snubs and behind-the-scenes exchanges between the two allies.

The Exvangelicals  —  Even as evangelicals maintain their position as the most popular religion in the U.S., a movement of self-described “exvangelicals” is breaking away, using social media to engage tens of thousands of former faithful.  —  The big picture: Donald Trump's presidency …

‘The pay is absolute crap’: Child-care workers are quitting rapidly, a red flag for the economy  —  Child care employment is still down more than 126,000 positions as workers leave for higher-paying positions as bank tellers, administrative assistants and retail clerks.

BLM to protest NYC restaurant where black women were denied service due to lack of vaccine proof  —  Following the altercation, Hawk Newsome, co-founder of Black Lives Matter NY, said that the organization plans to hold a protest on Monday in response to the incident.

Why Wokeism Will Rule the World  —  The woke movement could be the next great U.S. cultural export — and it is going to do many other countries some real good.  —  I am decidedly un-woke.  As a professor of economics, I strongly favor a market-oriented approach.

Bats in Laos Caves Harbor Closest Relatives to Covid-19 Virus  — Pasteur Institute scientists tested hundreds of horseshoe bats  — Finding moves researchers closer to pinpointing Covid origins  —  Bats dwelling in limestone caves in northern Laos were found to carry coronaviruses …

Op-Ed: Are Supreme Court justices ‘partisan hacks’?  All the evidence says yes  —  If Supreme Court justices don't want to be seen as “partisan hacks,” they should not act like them.  —  In a speech last week at the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville Law School …

In the Heart of Nashville, Rolling Parties Rage at Every Stoplight  —  As Nashville's popularity has grown, so has the “transportainment” business — a motley assortment including old buses, farm tractors and a truck with a hot tub.  Many think it has gotten out of hand.

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves attacks vaccine mandates, downplays state's high death toll  —  WASHINGTON — Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves downplayed the severity of the coronavirus pandemic in his state on Sunday, while challenging the legitimacy of vaccine mandates rolled out by the Biden administration.

Netanyahu mocks Biden about debunked falling asleep video  —  Israeli opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu mocked President Biden's physical appearance during a Facebook live session with supporters on Sunday and imitated him falling asleep.  —  Why it matters: This is an unprecedented move …

How Top Accounting Firms Help Their Clients Sidestep Taxes  —  Lawyers from top accounting firms do brief stints in the Treasury Department, with the expectation of big raises when they return.  —  For six years, Audrey Ellis and Adam Feuerstein worked together at PwC, the giant accounting firm …

Taliban-run Kabul municipality to female workers: Stay home  —  KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Female employees in the Kabul city government have been told to stay home, with work only allowed for those who cannot be replaced by men, the interim mayor of Afghanistan's capital said Sunday …

Biden's Del Rio border crisis - admin cedes control of US security to cartels  —  For every 1,000 people the Border Patrol was able to process, another 5,000 entered  —  Officials plead with Biden for more resources as southern border worsens  —  On June 17, 2021, the Department …