Career prosecutors recommend no charges for Gaetz in sex-trafficking probe  —  Investigators see credibility challenges for two of the main witnesses in the probe of the congressman's past dealings with a 17-year-old  —  Career prosecutors have recommended against charging Rep. Matt Gaetz …

Russia's Ukrainian referenda: Vote yes, or we'll shoot you  —  It's Election Day in parts of Ukraine — but only because Russia imposed it.  Vladimir Putin ordered referenda on annexation held in the parts of the Donbas that Russia still controls — and some areas it no longer does — in order to justify the seizure of those areas.

Exclusive: Trump's secret court fight to stop grand jury from getting information from his inner circle  —  Former President Donald Trump's attorneys are fighting a secret court battle to block a federal grand jury from gathering information from an expanding circle of close Trump aides …

Trump's special master pick turns into a headache  —  A push by Donald Trump's lawyers to appoint a special master in the Mar-a-Lago documents case has quickly lost its main utility, with an appeals court restoring the Justice Department's access to the documents with classified markings.

Trump to unleash millions in the midterms in possible prelude to 2024  —  Donald Trump's top lieutenants are launching a new super PAC that is expected to spend heavily to bolster his endorsed candidates in the midterm election — and, some people close to the former president say, could become a campaign apparatus if he runs in 2024.

Nina Totenberg Had a Beautiful Friendship With RBG.  Her Book About It Is an Embarrassment.  —  Did Nina Totenberg know a secret that could have changed history?  —  The question hovers over Dinners With Ruth, Totenberg's new memoir of her four-decade friendship with Ruth Bader Ginsburg …

The Polls Still Do Not Show A GOP Bounce Back  —  Ever since we launched our election model in late June, it has moved entirely in one direction: toward Democrats.  Pretty much every week, they've either gained ground in our forecast or held steady.  —  This week has been more in the “held steady” category.

House GOP eyes repeal of Dems' drug pricing law  —  Some key House Republicans are calling for the repeal of Democrats' newly-passed drug pricing measure if the GOP flips control of one or both chambers of Congress next year. … - Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), the top Republican on the House Ways …

No One but Trump Would Be Prosecuted Like This  —  The civil suit had to be partly political.  Trump made it that way.  —  Donald Trump has long believed that he lives by different legal rules than everyone else.  But this week, the law finally caught up with the former president.

Just 1/3 of Americans back Republican migrant flights, Reuters/Ipsos poll shows  —  Only a third of Americans - including half of Republicans and one in six Democrats - say it's OK for state officials to fly or bus migrants to other states, a sign the push by Republican Southern governors …

Maine Poll: Mills Leads LePage by 12; Majority of Voters Concerned Over Lobsters on Unsustainable Seafood “Red List”  —  Home Polls Maine Poll: Mills Leads LePage by 12; Majority of Voters Concerned Over Lobsters on Unsustainable Seafood “Red List”  —  The latest Emerson College Polling survey …

U.S. Treasury Issues Iran General License D-2 to Increase Support for Internet Freedom  —  WASHINGTON - Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued Iran General License (GL) D-2 to increase support for internet freedom in Iran by bringing U.S. sanctions guidance in line with the changes …

Breyer warns justices that some opinions could ‘bite you in the back’ in exclusive interview with CNN's Chris Wallace  —  Retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer is warning his colleagues against “writing too rigidly” in their opinions, saying that such decisions could “bite you in the back” in a world that is constantly changing.

McConnell seeks a Jan. 6 mop-up on his terms  —  Mitch McConnell opposed conviction in Donald Trump's second impeachment trial.  He may yet help clean up the mess of Jan. 6.  —  Things are playing out differently in the Senate GOP after only nine House Republicans — all of them retiring from Congress …

Zeldin Has a Path to Becoming Governor.  It Runs Through Brooklyn.  —  A curious thing happened last weekend when Representative Lee Zeldin brought his Republican campaign for governor of New York into Hasidic Brooklyn.  —  Mr. Zeldin, a pronounced underdog, was greeted like a rock star.

Hilary Mantel, Prize-Winning Author of Historical Fiction, Dies at 70  —  The two-time Booker Prize-winning author was known for “Wolf Hall” and two other novels based on the life of Thomas Cromwell.  —  Hilary Mantel, the British author of “Wolf Hall,” “Bring Up the Bodies” and …

How tight is the Mike Lee-Evan McMullin race for Senate?  New Utah poll has answers  —  Engaged in a fierce battle in the U.S. Senate race in Utah, a new poll shows Republican Sen. Mike Lee and independent challenger Evan McMullin neck and neck with a little over six weeks to Election Day.

Judge says Jan. 6 committee can get Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward's phone records  —  WASHINGTON — A federal judge in Arizona ruled Thursday that the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol can see the phone records of Arizona Republican Party Chairwoman Kelli Ward and her husband.

Biden officials weigh ousting Trump-picked World Bank head over climate comments  —  Biden administration officials are considering ousting Trump-appointed World Bank chief David Malpass after his remarks on climate change sparked uproar earlier this week.  —  Malpass dodged repeated questions …

Chris Christie mocks ‘disaster’ Donald Trump at upstate biz conference  —  Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie got lots of laughs at the expense of ex-President Donald Trump while lamenting the current state of national politics at an upstate business convention Thursday night.

Central Banks Accept Pain Now, Fearing Worse Later  —  Federal Reserve officials and their counterparts around the world are trying to defeat inflation by rapidly raising interest rates.  They know it will come at a cost.  —  A day after the Federal Reserve lifted interest rates sharply …

Democrats want to be a sane alternative to the GOP.  They're not  —  Nearly every election, many people view the impending vote as some sort of existential moment for the country.  That this language has returned in the lead-up to the midterm elections is not surprising.