POLITICO Playbook: New Jan. 6 witness: Trump had mystery call with Putin  —  With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  THE PLAYBOOK INTERVIEW: ALEX HOLDER — In September 2020, U.K. documentarian ALEX HOLDER started working on a film about DONALD TRUMP.

Confidence in U.S. Supreme Court Sinks to Historic Low  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — With the U.S. Supreme Court expected to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision before the end of its 2021-2022 term, Americans' confidence in the court has dropped sharply over the past year and reached a new low in Gallup's nearly 50-year trend.

Winning Lawyers in Supreme Court Gun Case Leave Firm  —  Partners Paul Clement and Erin Murphy depart Kirkland & Ellis after it says it won't take any more Second Amendment cases  —  WASHINGTON—Discord over gun rights erupted within the law firm that secured Thursday's Second Amendment victory …

BREAKING: Gov. Kemp to testify in Fulton County's Trump probe  —  Governor will deliver sworn recorded statement instead of appearing before grand jury  —  Gov. Brian Kemp will deliver testimony next month to Fulton County prosecutors investigating efforts to overturn Georgia's 2020 elections …

Senate Breaks Decades-Long Impasse on Gun Safety  —  The 65-33 vote late Thursday was aimed at keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous people.  Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court struck down New York's gun law, likely limiting the ability of other state and local governments to restrict guns outside the home.

Live Updates: Ukraine Is Withdrawing From Sievierodonetsk  —  The ruined industrial city in eastern Ukraine fell after months of Russian bombardment and weeks of urban combat.  Like Mariupol, it became emblematic of the savagery of the war.  —  Here's what you need to know:

What Happens if the GOP Tries to Leave Trump Behind  —  It's not exactly a thunderous roar, more like a stage whisper, running through the ranks of what we used to think of as mainstream Republicans: “Maybe he doesn't have to be our nominee in 2024.”  —  They grasp, if not at straws …

Liz Cheney sends instructions to Wyoming Democrats on how to switch parties  —  Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) is sending mailers to Wyoming Democrats with instructions on how to switch their political parties ahead of the state's primary on Aug. 16.  —  News of the mailers comes as Cheney faces …

U.N. rights body says Israeli soldiers killed American journalist in West Bank  —  TEL AVIV — A veteran Palestinian American journalist was killed by Israeli forces while covering a military raid in the occupied West Bank, a spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights …

‘Unwilling to accept defeat’: How Sinema and Murphy clinched guns deal for Dems  —  In a Washington run by Baby Boomers and octogenarians, it took two 40-something Democrats with a yin-and-yang approach to get a gun safety deal done.  —  Chris Murphy had developed self-described “pessimism” …

‘YOU take YOUR seat’: Very specific cheat sheet reminds Biden how to act  —  MORE ON:  —  President Biden on Thursday inadvertently held up a comically detailed cheat sheet prepared by his staff instructing the gaffe-prone leader of the free world to “take YOUR seat” and to limit his remarks to “2 minutes.”

Internal GOP poll shows Biden's slide endangering Democratic House member  —  President Joe Biden's approval ratings are still dropping — and the effects of that plunge are reverberating across the House map.  —  A new internal GOP poll found Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) …