Beto O'Rourke says he's running for Texas governor  —  O'Rourke's decision to challenge Gov. Greg Abbott ends months of speculation and gives Democrats a formidable campaigner at the top of the ticket — someone who transformed Texas politics with his blockbuster campaign against U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in 2018.

Trumps Selling Prized Washington, D.C., Hotel for $375 Million  —  CGI Merchant Group, a Miami-based investment firm, is in contract to acquire the hotel lease for the Trump International Hotel  —  Donald Trump's family hotel company has reached an agreement to sell the rights to its glittering Washington …

Exasperation and dysfunction: Inside Kamala Harris' frustrating start as vice president  —  (CNN)Worn out by what they see as entrenched dysfunction and lack of focus, key West Wing aides have largely thrown up their hands at Vice President Kamala Harris and her staff …

Biden to Name Mitch Landrieu to Lead Roughly $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan  —  The former Louisiana lieutenant governor led the city of New Orleans from 2010 to 2018  —  WASHINGTON—President Biden intends to name former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu to supervise the roughly $1 trillion …

Trump called January 6 ‘a very beautiful time with extremely loving and friendly people’ in a March 2021 interview for a new book  — Donald Trump called January 6 “a very beautiful time” in a March 2021 interview.  — ABC News' Jonathan Karl writes in his forthcoming book that Trump “fondly” recalled the crowd on Jan. 6.

US journalist jailed in Myanmar for nearly 6 months is freed  —  BANGKOK (AP) — American journalist Danny Fenster, who was recently sentenced to 11 years of hard labor after spending nearly six months in jail in military-ruled Myanmar, was freed and on his way home Monday, a former U.S. diplomat who helped negotiate the release said.

Liverpool Women's Hospital explosion declared a terror incident  —  An explosion outside Liverpool Women's Hospital on Remembrance Sunday has been declared a terror incident by police.  —  A taxi exploded and was engulfed in flames just before 11:00 GMT at a drop-off zone near the entrance …

New book alleges Fox's Maria Bartiromo shouted at Bill Barr about imagined voter fraud  —  (CNN Business)Former attorney general Bill Barr says Fox News host Maria Bartiromo called him up “screaming” about imaginary voter fraud, according to his account in a new book.

How Republicans Have an Edge in the Emerging 2022 Congressional Maps  —  On a highly distorted congressional map that is still taking shape, the party has added enough safe House districts to capture control of the chamber based on its redistricting edge alone.

Flu shots uptake is now partisan.  It didn't use to be  —  (CNN)Uptake of the Covid-19 vaccine has, unfortunately, become partisan like so much else in our society.  Almost every Democratic adult (90% to 95%) has gotten a shot, while a little less than two-thirds of Republican adults have.

In wake of Bannon indictment, Republicans warn of payback  —  GOP lawmakers say Democrats, by pursuing contempt charges against a Trump ally, are paving the way for them to go after Biden aides if they retake the House in 2022.  —  Republicans are rallying around former White House adviser Stephen K. Bannon …

Ukraine warned of ‘high probability’ of Russian military escalation this winter  —  Kyiv's deputy defence minister tells FT western intelligence not just based on troop surge at border  —  Western intelligence suggests a “high probability of destabilisation” of Ukraine by Russia as soon …

The Bad Guys Are Winning  —  The future of democracy may well be decided in a drab office building on the outskirts of Vilnius, alongside a highway crammed with impatient drivers heading out of town.  —  I met Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya there this spring, in a room that held a conference table, a whiteboard, and not much else.

AP Exclusive: ‘Sesame Street’ debuts Asian American muppet  —  What's in a name?  Well, for Ji-Young, the newest muppet resident of “Sesame Street,” her name is a sign she was meant to live there.  —  “So, in Korean traditionally the two syllables they each mean something different and Ji means, like, smart or wise.

Dems' bitter pill: Popular health provisions won't kick in until after the midterms  —  Democrats are close to making good on long-held promises to lower prescription drug costs and make health care more affordable.  The rub?  Voters won't feel much of it until after the 2022 elections.

His Reasons for Opposing Trump Were Biblical.  Now a Top Christian Editor Is Out.  —  A clash over culture and politics comes to World, a groundbreaking journalistic institution that covers evangelical Christians.  —  When Marvin Olasky gets angry emails from readers …

Biden has underestimated problems facing the country — and Democrats fear that has become a political problem  —  In June, senior White House officials promised that rising inflation was just “transitory.”  —  In July, President Biden declared that “the virus is on the run.”

On inflation, it's past time for team ‘transitory’ to stand down  —  There is a wise apocryphal saying often attributed to John Maynard Keynes: “When the facts change, I change my mind.  What do you do?”  After years of advocating more expansionary fiscal and monetary policy …

China's nuclear build-up: ‘one of the largest shifts in geostrategic power ever’ … On July 27, China became the first nation to fly a hypersonic glide vehicle — a manoeuvrable craft that travels at more than five times the speed of sound — around the earth.

Biden to propose 20-year drilling ban around Chaco Culture National Historical Park, a sacred tribal site  —  Officials will announce the move, which affects a contested swath of federal land in New Mexico, at the White House Tribal Nations Summit  —  The Biden administration on Monday …

Marilyn Manson: The Monster Hiding in Plain Sight  —  He was a provocative media darling for decades.  Offstage, exes allege, he was an abuser who made their lives hell.  A Rolling Stone investigation based on court documents and more than 55 new interviews  —  It started as a vocal booth.