Manchin says he has reached deal with Democrats on economy, climate bill  —  Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) on Wednesday said he had reached a deal with Democrats to advance economic legislation that aims to lower health-care costs, combat climate change and pay down the deficit.

CNN Exclusive: Biden administration offers convicted Russian arms dealer in exchange for Griner, Whelan  —  After months of internal debate, the Biden administration has offered to exchange Viktor Bout, a convicted Russian arms trafficker serving a 25-year US prison sentence …

Japanese city alarmed by biting, clawing, attacking monkeys  —  TOKYO (AP) — People in a southwestern Japanese city have come under attack from monkeys that are trying to snatch babies, biting and clawing at flesh, and sneaking into nursery schools.  —  The attacks — on 58 people since July 8 …

Clarence Thomas won't teach GW Law seminar  —  Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas will not teach a Constitutional Law Seminar this fall, according to an email addressed to students in the seminar that was obtained by The Hatchet.  —  Gregory Maggs, who has co-taught the course with Thomas since 2011 …

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson cooperating with DOJ's Jan. 6 probe, say sources  —  Hutchinson recently testified before the House Jan. 6 committee.  —  Cassidy Hutchinson, a former top adviser to then-President Donald Trump's chief of staff Mark Meadows, has recently cooperated …

Matt Gaetz Body-Shamed a Teen — Who Then Launched a Fundraiser for Abortion Rights  —  Olivia Julianna has raised over $230,000 for abortion funds.  —  According to Rep. Matt Gaetz, body-shaming a teenager to his 1.4 million Twitter followers is behavior befitting a congressman.

Gab CEO Andrew Torba on Jews: We're “done” being “told what we're allowed to do in our own country by a 2% minority”  —  Andrew Torba, Gab CEO and consultant to Republican Pennsylvania gubernatorial nominee Doug Mastriano, responded to criticism of Mastriano using his antisemitic platform by telling Jews that …

AJC poll: Kemp, Warnock slightly ahead in Georgia's top races  —  U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock is slightly ahead of Republican Herschel Walker in the latest Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll of a race that could decide control of the Senate, while Gov. Brian Kemp has an apparent lead …

DeSantis spokeswoman Christina Pushaw makes sure reporters feel the burn  —  Known for her aggressive Twitter comments and brusque treatment of the media, the Florida governor's press secretary has used taunts to solidify a tough image  —  When Florida Republicans held their annual conference last week …

Sources: Alex Lasry will withdraw from Wisconsin Democratic U.S. Senate primary, solidifying Mandela Barnes' front-runner status  —  Bill Glauber Daniel BiceMilwaukee Journal Sentinel  —  In a stunning move with less than two weeks before the primary, Milwaukee Bucks executive Alex Lasry …

RNC warning to Trump: If you run for president, we stop paying your legal bills, says official  —  Since October 2021, the RNC has paid nearly $2M to firms representing Trump.  —  Former President Donald Trump delivers speaks at the America First Agenda Summit hosted by America …

Trump's Jan. 6th National Guard Lie Crumbles  —  Christopher Miller, Trump's acting defense secretary, gave a different story under oath than he did to Sean Hannity.  —  One of the biggest lies that former President Trump and his allies have perpetuated about January 6th is that Trump ordered the National Guard to secure the Capitol.

Californians and other Americans are flooding Mexico City.  Some locals want them to go home  —  Fernando Bustos Gorozpe was sitting with friends in a cafe here when he realized that — once again — they were outnumbered.  —  “We're the only brown people,” said Bustos, a 38-year-old writer and university professor.

Christopher Shea, Washington Post editor, dies at 53  —  At The Post, he assigned and edited hundreds of pieces that reflected his voracious consumption of politics, social science and popular culture  —  Christopher Shea, a Washington Post editor who specialized in assigning and editing news essays …

Without Media Accountability, Republicans Will Govern Like a One-Party State  —  Last week, the Florida Republican Party held its annual Sunshine Summit, which was marked by a new policy: The mainstream media was not permitted to cover the event.  Instead, the only “news” would be transmitted through conservative-approved sources.

Trump threatens CNN with lawsuit over ‘defamatory’ reporting  —  Former President Trump on Wednesday said he planned to file a lawsuit against CNN, alleging the network has repeatedly defamed him dating back to his 2016 campaign for the presidency.  —  “I have notified CNN of my intent …

What Archie Bunker Would Have Thought of Donald Trump and Jan. 6  —  Well, I made it.  I am 100 years old today.  I wake up every morning grateful to be alive.  —  Reaching my own personal centennial is cause for a bit of reflection on my first century — and on what the next century will bring for the people and country I love.

America's real college debt: How we failed an entire generation … Ewan Johnson's college dreams nearly crashed down on him after just four days.  The saga had started in the mid-2010s near the end of what by his own admission had been an unambitious time in high school.

Trump Just Told Us His Master Plan  —  Yesterday, an ex-president who had tried to overturn a democratic election by violence returned to Washington, D.C., to call for law and order.  Again and again, the speech reversed reality.  The ex-president who had spread an actual big lie …

F.T.C. Sues to Block Meta Virtual Reality Deal as It Confronts Big Tech  —  The move is a potential blow to Meta's metaverse efforts and signals a shift in how the Federal Trade Commission is approaching tech deals.  —  WASHINGTON — The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday filed …

Trump Got Burned by a Major Mistake in His First Term.  He Won't Make It Again.  —  There's a reason authoritarians target the bureaucracy.  Once they have it under their control, they are better able to stifle dissent and criticism, reward friends and punish enemies, using the levers of government to maintain power.

Dr. Oz's Turkish Nationalist Pals Living in His Secret N.J. Condo  —  Dr. Oz failed to report his ownership of a Garden State apartment, home to friends tied to groups involved in Armenian genocide denial. … Dr. Mehmet Oz owns an undisclosed apartment in New Jersey that houses close associates …

Federal prosecutors obtain warrant to search lawyer John Eastman's cell phone in January 6 criminal probe  —  The Justice Department obtained a second warrant to search the cell phone of right-wing lawyer John Eastman as part of a January 6-related criminal inquiry, prosecutors said in a court filing Wednesday.

The Aging Student Debtors of America  —  In an era of declining wages and rising debt, Americans are not aging out of their student loans—they are aging into them.  —  On a warm October evening, in 1932, Franklin Delano Roosevelt stood in a baseball field in Pittsburgh …

Dark power: How FPL, other utilities neutralize opponents, grow profits  —  The CEO of the biggest power company in the U.S. had a problem.  A Democratic state senator was proposing a law that could cut into Florida Power & Light's profits.  Landlords would be able to sell cheap rooftop solar power directly …

Explosive revelations about Trump's coup plot demand a quick response  —  When discussing a future coup attempt, dry parliamentary reforms can seem almost comically beside the point.  What can mere procedural tweaks accomplish against a movement that is fully prepared to wreck our political order …

House Dems berate campaign arm over ‘very dangerous’ GOP primary scheme  —  A growing number of House Democrats are seething at their own campaign arm for meddling in a GOP primary to promote a pro-Trump election conspiracy theorist — after months of warning that such candidates were a threat to democracy.

The Dangerous Overreach of California's SB107  —  In the name of social justice, Democrats are endangering families  —  Year Zero is a reader-supported publication.  To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.  One time payments by Paypal also accepted.

A new Georgia voting law reduced ballot drop box access in places that used them most  —  Monica Poole looked forward to voting in Georgia's primary in May.  —  But after breaking her ankle, she couldn't drive.  Even navigating the stairs from her second-floor Atlanta apartment was impossible …

Senate Passes $280 Billion Industrial Policy Bill to Counter China  —  The lopsided bipartisan vote reflected a rare consensus in the otherwise polarized Congress in favor of investing federal resources into a broad industrial policy to counter China.  —  WASHINGTON — The Senate …