Trump supporters are neither underrecognized nor half the country  —  The morning after the channel's widely pilloried “town hall” with former president Donald Trump, CNN chairman and CEO Chris Licht defended the program in a call with staffers.  —  “While we all may have been uncomfortable …

DeSantis allies could shift $86 million to help him run for president as watchdogs cry foul  — Allies of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are reportedly planning to move nearly $86 million of state campaign money to support his expected 2024 presidential campaign.

GOP lawmaker: Former Trump prosecutor declined to provide details on hush-money investigation  —  An ex-prosecutor who once oversaw Manhattan's yearslong investigation of former President Donald Trump repeatedly declined to substantively answer questions at a closed-door meeting Friday …

Republican at Trump Town Hall Says Many in Audience Were ‘Disgusted’ or ‘Bewildered’ By Ex-President  —  Many audience members at CNN's town hall with former President Donald Trump on Wednesday were “disgusted” and “bewildered” by the spectacle, but were told to be respectful and not to boo, according to a report.

Poll: Florida Republicans Strongly Support Donald Trump for 2024 Run  —  2024 election cycle will be here very soon.  —  Amidst massive legal battles involving former U.S. President Donald Trump and jockeying for control of the GOP that puts Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the public light …

Russian lawyer claims Putin is building settlements for conservatives looking to leave the US for ‘ideological reasons’  —  A Moscow-based immigration lawyer claims that a settlement for conservative American and Canadian immigrants seeking to leave the West “for ideological reasons” is being built in Russia, Vice News reported.

Cat and dog torture videos litter Twitter, adding to concerns about moderation  —  Twitter's search function suggested searches for animal abuse, leading some viewers to the video.  As of Friday afternoon, Twitter appeared to have turned off all suggestions.

Sununu on Trump: 'He's like a shell of himself'  —  Good morning, Early Birds.  To all the moms, may you get to sleep in on Sunday.  Happy Mother's Day.  Moms are the best, especially ours.  Tips: earlytips@washpost.com.  Thanks for waking up with us.  —  Reading this online?

U.S. Ally Rebuffs Requests to Block Russian Military Flights  —  Egypt is giving Moscow crucial access to its airspace, allowing a path to transport weapons to Ukraine from Syria  —  Egypt has ignored U.S. requests to close its airspace to Russian military flights, American and Egyptian officials said …

Ex-ByteDance Executive Accuses Company of ‘Lawlessness’  —  The former executive sued ByteDance, which owns TikTok, for wrongful termination and accused the company of lifting content from rivals and “supreme access” by the Chinese Communist Party.  —  A former executive at ByteDance …

The GOP Is the Party of ‘Fuck You’  —  It was once a political party, now it's a nihilistic, corrupt, fake populist scam. … There is an apocryphal belief that among the Indigenous people of the north there are more than 30 words for snow.  Well, I'm from New Jersey and I can tell …

U.S. can avoid default in July if Treasury can make it through June cash crunch, Congressional Budget Office says  —  WASHINGTON — The Congressional Budget Office on Friday said that tax revenues and emergency measures after June 15 “will probably allow the government to continue financing operations through at least the end of July.”

Group trying to gain official party status warned against misleading voters  —  Maine's secretary of state has sent a cease-and-desist letter to national organization No Labels, expressing concerns that it has confused voters who think they are signing a petition but instead are enrolling in a new party.

Florida rejects Holocaust education textbooks in clampdown on ‘woke’ instruction  —  (JTA) — Florida's state education department rejected two new Holocaust-focused textbooks for classroom use, while forcing at least one other textbook to alter a passage about the Hebrew Bible in order to meet state approval.

KARE 11 Investigates: Legislators failing to reform broken juvenile competency system  —  A teen accused of shooting a man in the head was found incompetent to stand trial, then let go.  He's now charged with shooting another man in the head.  —  FAILURE TO ACT  —  JUDGES' HANDS TIED

The GOP's Failing Politics of Retribution  —  Heavy-handed attempts to punish dissent are producing unexpected and unwelcome outcomes for Republicans in power across the country.  —  As is so often the case, Donald Trump set the template.  He told the MAGA faithful gathered on March 4 …

Clarence Thomas Can't Undermine the Legitimacy of the Supreme Court Fast Enough  —  For Republicans, the investigations into Clarence Thomas and his friendship with Harlan Crow, a Texas billionaire, are just pretexts for an attack on the legitimacy of the Supreme Court.

McCarthy's chief of staff retiring  —  Dan Meyer, the chief of staff to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), will be retiring from his role next month after four years in the position.  —  McCarthy's office announced Meyer's retirement in a release on Friday, praising him for his work …

CIA had ‘no evidence’ Biden laptop was Russian disinformation, says top intel officer during 2020 election  —  Official says President Biden's allies lacked ‘clear and compelling evidence’ to claim Russian involvement  —  EXCLUSIVE: A former top intelligence officer with oversight …

The Jolt: Herschel Walker mum on massive campaign cash request  —  During his ill-fated run for U.S. Senate last year, Herschel Walker repeatedly declined to answer even simple questions about his policy stances, his background and how he would vote if elected.He appears to be taking …

Millennial GOP candidate wants to raise voting age to 25.  Some young Republicans fume.  —  Vivek Ramaswamy, 37, says, ‘When you attach greater value to the act, we will see more 18- to-25-year-olds actually vote than do now.’ Others disagree.  —  URBANDALE, Iowa — Vivek Ramaswamy …