Voter fraud charge dismissed in Florida after arrest  —  The accused was facing up to five years in prison and $5,000 in fines and fees.  —  A Florida man had his election fraud charges dismissed on Friday, making him the first of 20 people who Gov. Ron DeSantis announced had been charged with voter fraud in August, to beat his case.

Mar-a-Lago classified papers held U.S. secrets about Iran and China  —  Iran's missile program, U.S. intelligence work aimed at China were among the most sensitive material seized by the FBI, people familiar with the matter say  —  Some of the classified documents recovered by the FBI …

Steve Bannon sentencing live updates: Former Trump aide's contempt of Congress case … 29m ago / 1:42 PM UTC  —  DOJ argues for $200,000 fine: Bannon is ‘not above the law’  —  Steve Bannon should pay a fine of $200,000 because of his “contempt for the criminal justice system …

Why I'm Telling My Friends That The Senate Is A Toss-Up  —  The Senate started out as a toss-up when we launched our forecast in June — and after a summer in which political developments mostly played to Democrats' favor, there is now clear movement back toward Republicans.

Documents detail plans to gut Twitter's workforce  —  Previously unreported details shed new light on Twitter's motivations for selling the company — and Elon Musk's plans to transform it  —  Twitter's workforce is likely to be hit with massive cuts in the coming months, no matter who owns the company …

Joe Biden's Walk-and-Chew-Gum Campaign  —  The President says the midterms are “the most consequential” elections in recent history, but he's not acting like he means it. … For most of President Joe Biden's tenure, Fox News's Peter Doocy has played the role of pressroom scourge.

10 Iranians killed in Ukrainian strikes - report  —  The report comes as American and Ukrainian officials warn that Iranians are training Russians to use Iranian drones in Crimea.  —  10 Iranians who were training Russian soldiers were killed in Ukrainian strikes in the Russia-Ukraine war in the past week …

Newsmax Bans Lara Logan After She Goes Full QAnon, Spews Blood Libel on Network  —  “Newsmax condemns in the strongest terms the reprehensible statements made by Lara Logan,” the network said in a statement.  “We have no plans to interview her again.”  —  Nearly a year after she was kicked …

Daniel Smith, one of the last children of enslaved Americans, dies at 90  —  He grew up hearing stories from his father, who was born into bondage during the Civil War.  Decades later, he marched in Washington and Selma with fellow civil rights activists.  —  Growing up in the 1930s …

Sorry you went viral  —  TikTok's explosive stardom has created a new kind of celebrity.  But nothing goes viral like rage.  —  When Junna Faylee started making money on TikTok, the 21-year-old anime and gaming fan in London made it the centerpiece of her life.  She devoted every night and weekend to making videos.

With Texans focused on the border and the economy, Abbott leads O'Rourke 54%-43% among likely voters in new University of Texas/Texas Politics Project Poll  —  With in-person early voting set to begin in Texas on October 24, the latest University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll finds …

James Corden Would Rather Not Talk About That Omelet  —  In an interview to promote his coming series, “Mammals,” the actor and late-night host dismissed a flap stemming from an Instagram post accusing him of boorish restaurant behavior.  “I think it's so silly,” he said.

EXCLUSIVE: Balenciaga Severs Ties With Ye  —  The French fashion house, which collaborated with the rapper on a line sold at Gap, is walking away from the relationship after he repeatedly used hate speech. … “Balenciaga has no longer any relationship nor any plans for future projects related …

The complete and total failure of the Jan. 6 committee  —  If you want to see just how out of touch with reality the Democratic Party has gotten itself over the Jan. 6 riot, look no further than former FBI agent Peter Strzok.  The adulterous and unethical FBI agent told MSNBC this week …

The decider: Jill Biden's unparalleled influence and impact on the president  —  WASHINGTON — Whenever his aides are pressed about President Joe Biden's political future, they'll often point to one person as the true decider: his wife of 45 years, Jill Biden.  —  She is, after all, her husband's foremost defender.

Hofmeister, Stitt face each other in gubernatorial debate  —  OKLAHOMA CITY — State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister criticized Gov. Kevin Stitt on Wednesday evening for his handling of abortion, crime and medical marijuana.  —  During a debate between the two, Stitt touted his record …

Liz Truss's fall is a warning to populists everywhere  —  “I am a fighter and not a quitter!”  British Prime Minister Liz Truss thundered Wednesday in the House of Commons.  “I am resigning,” she said Thursday, in a less bombastic tone of voice.  Let's hope conservatives here and around …

Please don't play it again, Boris  —  I fear the Conservative party has forgotten that Johnson was the least popular postwar prime minister until Liz Truss  —  This article is an on-site version of our Swamp Notes newsletter.  Sign up here to get the newsletter sent straight to your inbox every Monday and Friday

Southern California's Notorious Container Ship Backup Ends  —  Slump in imports, cargo diversions to other ports help shrink queue of dozens of vessels  —  The backup of container ships off Southern California's coast that was at the heart of U.S. supply chain congestion during the Covid-19 pandemic has effectively disappeared.