Pentagon reports past Chinese surveillance balloons near Florida, Texas  —  The Defense Department tells members of Congress about several previous incursions of U.S. airspace as Republicans criticize Biden's response  —  The Defense Department has notified Congress of several previous incursions …

Few Americans are excited about a Biden-Trump rematch, Post-ABC poll finds  —  Most say they would feel dissatisfied or angry if either wins the general election  —  President Biden and former president Donald Trump may have each drawn a record number of votes in 2020 …

AR-15 lapel pin is a perfect symbol for a GOP that's become a death cult  —  The backward walk of devolution that is the modern Republican Party, and the near-death experience of American governing, can be best told through the story of two adjacent Long Island congressional districts that …

House Republican says he's working with Democrats on ‘fail-safe’ option for debt ceiling  —  Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) said on Sunday that he is working across the aisle on a bipartisan solution on the debt ceiling as lawmakers brace for bitter negations in the coming months over the nation's finances.

Harry Whittington, longtime Texas GOP supporter shot by Dick Cheney in a hunting accident, dies  —  Whittington, 95, was active in Republican politics since the party was powerless in the state.  He died after a short illness.  —  Copy link  —  A potent Democratic machine used to dominate Texas politics.

Koch network to back alternative to Trump after sitting out recent primaries  —  The return of one of the biggest spenders in American politics to the presidential primary field poses a direct challenge to the former president's comeback bid  —  The network of donors and activist groups led …

In China's Covid Fog, Deaths of Scholars Offer a Clue  —  After Covid ripped uncontrolled through China, the government announced that 80,000 people had died.  But that is likely a vast undercount.  We scoured obituaries of the nation's top academics for clues about the true toll of the outbreak.

Man Accused of Firing Blanks at Synagogue Linked to Nazi Imagery  —  A man who allegedly fired blanks from a pistol at a Russian-speaking synagogue in San Francisco has been linked to social media accounts featuring antisemitic propaganda and pictures of him dressed in a World War II-era German military uniform bearing a swastika.

An ex-Romney presidential campaign strategist says Nikki Haley ‘embodies the collapse’ of the Republican Party  — Ex-Romney strategist Stuart Stevens on MSNBC blasted Nikki Haley for her expected White House bid.  — “No one else really embodies sort of the collapse of the party as well as Nikki Haley,” he said.