Biden tests positive for COVID-19, has ‘mild symptoms’  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, underscoring the persistence of the highly contagious virus as new variants challenge the nation's efforts to resume normalcy after two and a half years of pandemic disruptions.

We Are Retired Generals and Admirals.  Trump's Actions on Jan. 6 Were a Dereliction of Duty.  —  The inquiry by the House's Jan. 6 committee has produced many startling findings, but none to us more alarming than the fact that while rioters tried to thwart the peaceful transfer of power …

Secret Service watchdog knew in February that texts had been purged  —  Listen  —  Gift Article  —  A watchdog agency learned in February that the Secret Service had purged nearly all cellphone texts from around the time of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, but chose not to alert Congress …

House passes legislation to enshrine a right to contraception in federal law  —  WASHINGTON — The House voted 228-195 largely along party lines Thursday to pass legislation to codify the right to contraception nationwide, seeking to protect it from potential Supreme Court intervention.

Healthy Pregnant Women Beg Docs in Anti-Abortion States: Don't Let Me Die  —  Amid harrowing stories of complications and miscarriages left untreated, women are preemptively warning doctors to remember who their patients are.  —  Dr. Shefaali Sharma was just two patients into her day when a pregnant mother …

I Was Wrong About Trump Voters  —  The worst line I ever wrote as a pundit — yes, I know, it's a crowded field — was the first line I ever wrote about the man who would become the 45th president: “If by now you don't find Donald Trump appalling, you're appalling.”

America's Self-Obsession Is Killing Its Democracy  —  In 2009, a violent mob stormed the presidential palace in Madagascar, a deeply impoverished red-earthed island off the coast of East Africa.  They had been incited to violence by opportunistic politicians and media personalities, successfully triggering a coup.

At Ivana Trump's Funeral, a Gold-Hued Coffin and the Secret Service  —  “People adored Ivana.”  — Give this article- - - Read in app  —  In death, as in life, her famous former husband loomed over Ivana Trump's story.  —  On Wednesday afternoon, when a funeral was held for Ms. Trump …

GOP begins to look for new 2024 candidates amid fears over Trump  —  A growing number of Republicans are openly cheering for a competitive primary field in 2024 and encouraging candidates to jump into the race, as some in the GOP get increasingly anxious about the idea of Donald Trump becoming …

I Was Wrong About Al Franken  —  During the height of the #MeToo movement in 2017, a woman named Leeann Tweeden accused Al Franken of sexually harassing her during his comedian days and produced a photo of him pretending to grope her breasts.  I called on Franken to resign from the Senate …

Amazon and One Medical Sign an Agreement for Amazon to Acquire One Medical  —  One Medical is a human-centered, technology-powered U.S. primary care organization on a mission to make quality healthcare more affordable, accessible, and enjoyable through a seamless combination of in-person, digital, and virtual care services

Three Charged In First Ever Cryptocurrency Insider Trading Tipping Scheme  —  Former Coinbase Employee Allegedly Tipped His Brother and Friend Regarding Crypto Assets That Were Going to be Listed on Coinbase Exchanges  —  Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York …

Reporter Says Taliban Forced Her to Publicly Retract Accurate Articles  —  A veteran war reporter in Afghanistan was told she would go to jail if she didn't tweet an apology for her reporting.  She has since safely left the country.  — Give this article- - - Read in app

Dave Chappelle Show Canceled by Minneapolis Venue After Social Media Backlash … A Dave Chappelle stand-up show in Minneapolis, Minn. was canceled on Wednesday, just hours before the comedian was set to perform.  —  First Avenue, the iconic venue that provided the setting for Prince's …

Sweeping changes remake Facebook app in TikTok's image  —  Meta announced major changes Thursday to the Facebook app that will transform its experience into a more TikTok-like selection of algorithmically chosen videos — and shunt off content posted by family, friends and groups into a separate side feed.

Attorneys for Steve Bannon to call no witnesses in contempt trial  —  WASHINGTON - Attorneys for Steve Bannon said Thursday that they will call no witnesses in the contempt trial of the former White House strategist, indicating that the case could be submitted to the jury later Thursday.

Iowa Poll: Most think Joe Biden should not run again in 2024 as approval rating falls  —  Less than a quarter of Iowans say they think President Joe Biden should make another run for the White House in 2024, even as he insists he will seek a second term in office.

Holy Frijolx II: Gonzalez' non-apology boogaloo fails to impress even MSNBC and Univision  —  As apologies go, “Donald Trump made me do it” fails the smell test.  After a blogger paid by Vicente Gonzalez' campaign called Latina Republican opponent Mayra Flores “Miss Frijoles 2022” …

Trump's New Campaign Expense: Lawyers for Jan. 6 Witnesses  —  Trump is spending quite a bit to cover legal expenses for his former aides.  —  It's been widely reported that former President Donald Trump has covered legal expenses for witnesses testifying before the Jan. 6 committee …

Fetterman says he has ‘nothing to hide’ about health after two months off trail  —  John Fetterman, the Democratic nominee for Senate in Pennsylvania, does not have any “physical limits” and has “nothing to hide” about his health status, he said in his first interview since experiencing a stroke in May.

America Was in an Early-Death Crisis Long Before COVID  —  Jacob Bor has been thinking about a parallel universe.  He envisions a world in which America has health on par with that of other wealthy nations, and is not an embarrassing outlier that, despite spending more on health care than any other country …