Grand Jury Votes to Indict Donald Trump in New York: Live Updates  —  Mr. Trump will be the first former president to face criminal charges.  The precise charges are not yet known, but the case is focused on a hush-money payment to a porn star during his 2016 campaign.  —  Pinned

Russian Court Orders Wall Street Journal Reporter to Be Held in Custody  —  Evan Gershkovich is part of WSJ's Moscow bureau; Journal vehemently denies espionage allegations against him, seeks his immediate release Russia's main security agency said Thursday it had detained Wall Street Journal …

How Disney's lawyers brutally outmaneuvered DeSantis over control of Disney World  —  Did you really believe that Florida's arrogant, petty, childish Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) would get the better of Walt Disney Co. in their fight over Disney's supposed “wokeness”?  —  If so, you don't know your Disney.

Federal Judge Strikes Down Obamacare Requirement for Free Preventive Care  —  The decision by a judge in Texas, which applies nationwide and could have far-reaching implications for millions of Americans, is likely to be appealed by the Biden administration.

McCarthy offers to make Biden ‘soft food’ lunch if he will meet on debt limit  —  Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) offered to make President Biden a “soft food” lunch if he agrees to meet on the debt limit.  —  “He is making the decision that he wants to put the economy in jeopardy.

What If DeSantis Doesn't Run?  —  1. Maybe He Isn't Running?  —  Let me drop two items here for you to consider:  —  George Conway🌻 @gtconway3d  —  It makes no sense for DeSantis to run this cycle.  To beat Trump, DeSantis would have to go hammer and tong in a one-on-one race against him.

QAnon Shaman Jacob Chansley is released 14 months early from prison after Jan. 6 footage showed him being ‘ESCORTED’ by cops inside the Capitol  — Jacob Chansley, 35, was released on Thursday after serving 27 months in prison  — His move to a halfway house appears to be a matter of routine prison policy

Trump Grand Jury Digs Into Hush Money Paid to Second Woman  —  Manhattan prosecutors investigating former president for payment to porn star Stormy Daniels have pressed witnesses on money paid to former Playboy model Karen McDougal  —  Trump-Stormy Daniels Investigation: The Path to a Possible Indictment

Elon Musk Tried to Meet With F.T.C. Chair About Twitter but Was Rebuffed  —  Mr. Musk requested a meeting with Lina Khan, the chair of the F.T.C., which has been investigating Twitter's privacy and data practices.  —  David McCabe reports on tech policy from Washington.

Kushner Firm Got Hundreds of Millions From 2 Persian Gulf Nations  —  The infusion of money from interests in the two Persian Gulf monarchies reflects the close ties to Middle Eastern countries established by Jared Kushner, former President Donald Trump's son-in-law.

Mark Russell, Piano-Playing Political Satirist, Dies at 90  —  Washington was his main quarry.  Did he have any writers?  “Oh, yes — 100 in the Senate and 435 in the House of Representatives.”  —  Mark Russell, a master of political satire who stood at a star-spangled piano and kept …

Secret trove offers rare look into Russian cyberwar ambitions  —  More than 5,000 pages of documents from a Moscow-based contractor offer unusual glimpses into planning and training for security services, including the notorious hacking group Sandworm  —  Russian intelligence agencies worked …

Nashville shooting exploited by right to escalate anti-trans rhetoric  —  Conservative commentators and Republican politicians unleashed a new wave of anti-trans rhetoric following Monday's shooting at a Nashville Christian school that killed six people, escalating a broader backlash …

Executive Director of the San Jose Police Officers' Association charged with importing fentanyl  —  SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — The executive director of the San Jose Police Officers' Association (SJPOA) has been charged with attempting to illegally import a controlled substance, according to the United States Department of Justice.

BuzzFeed Is Quietly Publishing Whole AI-Generated Articles, Not Just Quizzes These read like a proof of concept for replacing human writers.  —  Earlier this year, when BuzzFeed announced plans to start publishing AI-assisted content, its CEO Jonah Peretti promised the tech would be held to a high standard.

Male powerlifter enters women's event, breaks record  —  A bearded pro powerlifter entered a women's competition in Canada — and smashed a record held by a trans lifter who was watching on.  —  Avi Silverberg — the head coach for Team Canada Powerlifting for more than 10 years …

Sweden's bid to join NATO remains blocked by Turkey and Hungary.  —  With Finland's bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization now ratified by Turkey, the last of the alliance's 30 member nations to do so, Finns can look forward to a carefully choreographed dance of paperwork that will formalize its membership.

Joint Base Andrews on lockdown following report of active shooter  —  Joint Base Andrews (JBA) was placed on lockdown on Thursday, following reports of an active shooter.  —  “An armed individual has been reported near base housing,” the base said in a Facebook post.  “Stay away from base housing.

Former Fox News producer Abby Grossberg calls the network a ‘big corporate machine that destroys people’  —  Grossberg told NBC News she believes she was set up to be a scapegoat in the defamation suit against Fox News over baseless election fraud claims.  —  Abby Grossberg got off …

Clash at House hearing: GOP claims social media censorship, Democrats want to strike testimony  —  The hearing was part of widespread House Republican investigations of the Democratic Biden administration.  —  WASHINGTON - A fiery House hearing Thursday sounded like a Monty Python skit.

Newsom forms new group to fight ‘rising authoritarianism’ in red states  —  The California governor, who is widely viewed as a potential future Democratic White House contender, plans to travel to “states where freedom is most under attack.”  —  California Gov. Gavin Newsom is launching …

Texas GOP Proposes Bill To Allow Sec Of State To Overturn Election Results In State's Largest Blue County  —  Republican members of the Texas state legislature introduced a slate of bills Thursday designed to subvert election processes and curb voting rights in the state.

The Tired Trope of the ‘Power Hungry’ Woman  —  In an exclusive op-ed, Gisele Fetterman recounts the “vicious attacks” she received after her husband, Sen. John Fetterman, checked into Walter Reed to seek treatment for clinical depression.  —  Politics can require living the worst moments of your life in public.

Florida Legislature approves carrying a concealed loaded gun without a permit  —  The bill now goes to Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has repeatedly indicated he will sign it.  —  Florida's Republican-controlled Legislature passed a bill Thursday allowing individuals to carry concealed loaded weapons anywhere without a permit.

Chicago's Jewish community could swing mayoral race  —  Crime and education emerging as top issues as Paul Vallas and Brandon Johnson square off on Tuesday  —  As Chicago's mayoral campaign approaches its end with next Tuesday's election, the two candidates, Paul Vallas and Brandon Johnson …

Two Army helicopters crash in Kentucky; as many as 9 feared dead  —  The Army says two of its helicopters crashed Wednesday night in Trigg County, Kentucky.  CBS News correspondent David Martin says it's feared that as many as nine people were killed.  —  Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear tweeted that …

Republicans react after learning Hunter Biden associate frequented White House: ‘Will be under strict review’  —  Chairman Comer says, 'This is more evidence showing the Biden family enterprise centered around Joe Biden's political career'  —  EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans …

Secret Pence ruling breaks new ground for vice presidency  —  For the first time in history, a federal judge ruled that vice presidents can benefit from a type of immunity typically provided to lawmakers.  —  A federal judge's secret order on Tuesday requiring Mike Pence to testify about aspects …