Supreme Court Focuses on Procedure in Kentucky Abortion Case  —  After the state's political landscape shifted in 2019, the Democratic governor and the Republican attorney general disagreed on defending the law.  —  WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court heard arguments in an abortion case on Tuesday …

CBS News poll: Vaccine and economy fights driving tight Virginia governor's race  —  The Virginia governor's race is but one state contest, an entire year before the midterms.  So why are the nation's political eyes all watching it so intensely?  Because, as our poll finds …

The U.S. will open the Canada and Mexico borders for fully vaccinated travelers.  —  WASHINGTON — The Biden administration will lift travel restrictions at the land borders with Canada and Mexico starting in November for fully vaccinated travelers, reopening the door of the United States …

Kyrie Irving and his vaccine stance clarified: Why the Nets star has made a decision that will sideline him  —  Kyrie Irving believes he is fighting for something bigger than basketball — and the unintended consequences are that his mission is conflicting with his career and his franchise, the Brooklyn Nets.

Democrats need a win — now  —  In politics, success tends to beget success.  That truism apparently eluded leftwing Democrats on Sept. 30 when they refused to vote for President Biden's $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill.  —  Instead of basking in accolades for having passed …

Marine who criticized U.S. handling of Afghanistan withdrawal will plead guilty, seek favorable discharge  —  A Marine officer whose viral videos criticizing senior officials for how they withdrew from Afghanistan created a political uproar will plead guilty to several charges and seek …

Walgreens closes five more San Francisco locations, citing ‘organized retail crime’  —  Walgreens is closing five more San Francisco locations as drug stores from the Bay Area to the Big Apple are besieged by rampant shoplifting and lax enforcement.  —  San Fran shoplifters have been emboldened …

President Biden to meet with port heads ahead of expected Christmas supply crunch  —  Holiday delays could prove politically problematic for the president.  —  With global supply chain bottlenecks threatening the Christmas shopping season, President Joe Biden will highlight his administration's work …

Council member Robert C. White Jr. will run for D.C. mayor  —  D.C. Council member Robert C. White Jr. plans to run for mayor of Washington, setting up a potential 2022 race pitting the popular at-large member against Mayor Muriel E. Bowser, who is expected to seek a third term.

POLITICO Playbook: Scoop: Manchin-Sinema split vexes the White House  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  So what's the state of negotiations between the White House and JOE MANCHIN and KYRSTEN SINEMA?  —  The talks have been shrouded in mystery, but we have some fresh details we can share this morning.

Catholic Troops Can Refuse COVID Vaccine, Archbishop Declares  —  “No one should be forced to receive a COVID-19 vaccine if it would violate the sanctity of his or her conscience,” Broglio wrote.  —  Catholic U.S. troops should be allowed to refuse the COVID-19 vaccine based solely …

Peter Thiel lines up against Liz Cheney  —  Cheney outraised her primary challenger last quarter, but prominent Trump fundraisers are lining up against the impeachment backer.  —  Rep. Liz Cheney speaks during the House Armed Services Committee on Sept. 29 on Capitol Hill.  Rod Lamkey/Pool via AP

Bashar Assad's Playboy Cousin Spotted Driving $300K Ferrari in Beverly Hills  —  Ali Makhlouf, whose one-time billionaire father is on multiple U.S. sanctions list for financing the Syrian regime, told “what do you do for a living” Instagram star Daniel Mac he was doing an internship.  —  MP

Rubio hauls in $6M in fundraising as Florida GOP senator gears up for 2022 reelection  —  Likely Rubio-Demings 2022 Florida showdown could become most expensive Senate race ever  —  Fox News Flash top headlines for October 12  —  EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida is building …

Southwest, American airlines workers will have to get vaccinated, despite Texas order  —  Southwest Airlines and American Airlines, both based in Texas, said Tuesday that they will continue plans to require employees to get vaccinated, despite an edict issued by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott …

Trump-Era Pentagon Official Sues as Suspension Reaches 5 Months  — Katie Arrington says her due process rights were violated  — Official was ‘left dangling’ without explanation, lawsuit says  —  The Pentagon official who led a new cybersecurity initiative for defense contractors sued …

How Not to De-Trumpify the GOP  —  Jonah Goldberg's plan to create a conservative third party would likely exacerbate the problems it's meant to solve.  —  In the Los Angeles Times, Jonah Goldberg proposes that the best way to fix the now-terminally “Trumpified” GOP is to establish …

Time Is Running Out to Indict Trump for His Sex Hush Money Payment to Stormy Daniels  —  Federal prosecutors were never able to erect a criminal case against Donald Trump for directing a scheme to keep Stormy Daniels quiet about their two-minute sex session.

GOP Lawmaker's Campaign Spent Thousands on Her Own Companies  —  Trump acolyte Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) paid her own firms for rent, printing, and utilities.  —  BEAST INSIDE … Swing-district Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) has styled herself as a small business booster in the image of Donald Trump …

Buses replace trains on 3 Blue Line stations as Metro investigates derailment  —  There will be no rail service between Rosslyn and Pentagon Metro stations on the Blue Line Wednesday, as Metro continues to investigate a derailment that left several riders stranded during the Tuesday afternoon rush.

Pro-Trump PAC fined over foreign money offer  —  A pro-Trump political group has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle allegations it illegally solicited $2 million from reporters posing as intermediaries for a Chinese national.  —  Why it matters: A key player in the scheme, a veteran Republican operative …

W.H.O. Will Announce New Team to Study Coronavirus Origins  —  “This new group can do all the fancy footwork it wants, but China's not going to cooperate,” one expert said.  —  The position is unpaid.  The world's scientists and internet sleuths will scrutinize every move.

What happened during the 2020 election must be investigated and discussed  —  The last time Democrats fully accepted the legitimacy of a presidential election they lost was in 1988  —  Mollie Hemingway calls for ‘accountability’ after the Afghanistan exit  —  Editor's note …

Past Pandemics Remind Us Covid Will Be an Era, Not a Crisis That Fades  —  The skeletons move across a barren landscape toward the few helpless and terrified people still living.  The scene, imagined in a mid-16th-century painting, “The Triumph of Death” by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, illuminated the psychic impact of the bubonic plague.

25 years of Fox ‘News’ is nothing to celebrate.  No company has done more to inflame partisanship and the pandemic.  —  Last week, Fox “News” Channel celebrated 25 years since its launch.  More than 700,000 victims of covid-19 were not available for comment.