Democrat Donna Deegan becomes first female mayor of Jacksonville  —  Democrat Donna Deegan will serve as the first female mayor of Jacksonville..  —  After months of hard campaigning and millions of dollars spent between both sides, Degan won the highly contested election against Republican Daniel Davis.

The GOP's Work-Requirement Scam  —  The Republican Party is threatening to deliberately engineer a global financial crisis unless Joe Biden slashes aid for America's most vulnerable.  And the president seems inclined to pay that ransom.  —  In recent days, the parameters of a deal to raise the debt ceiling have come into view.

Kaitlan Collins, Moderator of Trump Forum, Named CNN's 9 p.m. Anchor  —  The appointment caps a fast rise at the network by Ms. Collins, 31, who previously covered the Trump and Biden administrations.  —  CNN has selected Kaitlan Collins to host a new weeknight show at 9 p.m. …

After Years of Political Hype, the Durham Inquiry Failed to Deliver  —  A dysfunctional investigation led by a Trump-era special counsel illustrates a dilemma about prosecutorial independence and accountability in politically sensitive matters.  —  Reporting from Washington

A Brief, Concerning Conversation With Dianne Feinstein  —  “Oh, you're an eager one,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein said as the elevator door opened and she saw me on Tuesday afternoon.  —  The senior California senator had just voted, after returning to the Senate last week after an extended absence following a case of shingles.

DeSantis Goes 0-for-2 on Election Night  —  The 2024 hopeful made a dramatic, election-eve show of support in the Kentucky governor's race, only for his chosen candidate to get clobbered.  Another favored candidate in Jacksonville, Fla., lost, too.  —  On Monday, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida went out on a limb.

Key Trump attorney departs legal team  —  Timothy Parlatore, an attorney for Donald Trump who played a key role in the Mar-a-Lago documents investigation and once testified before the grand jury, is leaving the former president's legal team, two sources familiar with the exit tell CNN.

Elon Musk Among the Anti-Semites  —  Criticizing George Soros is not inherently anti-Semitic.  But presenting him as a literal comic book villain certainly is.  —  Last night, Elon Musk made two rookie social-media mistakes: He tweeted after 10 p.m., and he echoed paranoid anti-Semitic conspiracy theorists.

Frank Luntz Can't Quit … “That's the original Big Boy,” Frank Luntz said, gesturing to the deep end of a peanut-shaped swimming pool where the iconic restaurant mascot of a portly child triumphantly hoists a hamburger above his head.  —  We were standing in the backyard of Luntz's home …

Yemi Mobalade elected mayor of Colorado Springs — the first Black man to lead the city — in political upheaval  —  Yemi Mobolade, a Nigerian immigrant and businessman with no political experience, will be the first Black mayor of Colorado Springs after he defeated Wayne Williams on Tuesday night in the city's runoff election.

Naomi Klein investigates ‘conspiracy theory culture’ that has shaken her life  —  Doppelganger, due out this autumn, examines ‘the wildness of right now’, including personal issues arising from being confused with Naomi Wolf  —  Award-winning author and Guardian columnist Naomi Klein …

Daniel Penny shows how much the right loves white vigilante violence  —  “Law and order” is often code for white supremacy.  —  ∙ Paid … Republicans often present themselves as the law and order party — the ones committed to public safety and fighting crime.

Biden admin pushing for Saudi-Israeli peace deal by end of year, officials say … - Such a deal could be unpopular among Democrats and might cost Biden a lot of political capital. … - But a deal could be a historic breakthrough in Middle East peace, leading to a domino effect of more Arab …

PEN America, Penguin Random House sue Florida school district over book bans  —  Writers' group PEN America and publisher Penguin Random House have sued a Florida school district over its removal of books about race and LGBTQ+ identities  —  TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Writers' group PEN America …

I've never seen the Kremlin so rattled  —  Anna Nemtsova is a Daily Beast correspondent and a contributing writer for the Atlantic.  —  A mysterious drone attack on the Kremlin.  A car bombing that wounded a key advocate of the invasion of Ukraine.  Four military aircraft shot down in a single day — inside Russia's borders.

Republican councilman caught smoking crack and fentanyl in his car: report  —  A city councilman in Cranston, Rhode Island who chaired the local Republican Party was arrested on Monday for drug possession after police found him smoking a mix of crack cocaine and fentanyl in his car, reportedThe Providence Journal this week.

639-foot Great Lakes freighter runs aground at Belle Isle  —  Detroit ― A 639-foot Great Lakes freighter carrying salt ran aground Wednesday morning on the east end of Belle Isle, just feet from the shoreline.  —  The freighter was headed toward Lake St. Clair from Cleveland …

Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, May 16, 2023  —  Click here to see ISW's interactive map of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.  This map is updated daily alongside the static maps present in this report.  —  Click here to access ISW's archive of interactive time-lapse maps of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Ron DeSantis's immigration law is already leading to worker shortages  —  Dozens of videos on social media show empty construction sites and farms even before a new law goes into effect.  —  The videos from Florida aren't hard to find: Dozens of clips of empty fields, abandoned construction sites …

As GOP aims to punish poor, CBO says extending Trump tax cuts for rich would add $3.5 trillion to deficit  —  While congressional Republicans hold the global economy hostage by refusing to raise the U.S. debt ceiling without major spending cuts that would hurt the working class …

Supreme Court leaves in place Illinois restrictions on military-style weapons  —  The Supreme Court turned down a request to put on hold laws banning AR-15-style weapons and large ammunition magazines  —  The Supreme Court on Wednesday left in place for now Illinois's new ban on the purchase …

A Massive Leak Spotlights the Extremism of an Anti-Trans Medical Group  —  How the tiny American College of Pediatricians helped turn fringe beliefs into government policy.  —  Michelle Cretella had a problem.  In 2018, Cretella, then-president of the American College of Pediatricians …

‘We Sale Your Bank’: WaPo Reporter Rewrites Disastrous Fetterman Word Salad as a ‘Quote’  —  To protect the ever-brilliant Sen. John Frankenstein — er, Fetterman (D-Pa.) — a Washington Post reporter rewrote a muddled Fetterman ramble and posted it as a quote.

Lauren Boebert files for divorce from her husband  —  U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert has filed for divorce from her husband, Jayson, the Garfield County Republican announced Tuesday.  —  The couple has been married for roughly two decades.  —  “It is with a heavy weight on my heart that I have filed for divorce from my husband.

Jeffrey Epstein Moved $270,000 for Noam Chomsky and Paid $150,000 to Leon Botstein  —  Academics acknowledge financial transactions with the late convicted sex offender  —  Jeffrey Epstein paid $150,000 to Leon Botstein and transferred $270,000 between accounts for Noam Chomsky …

Intrusion at national security adviser's home under investigation  —  Secret Service is investigating how unidentified man entered Jake Sullivan's home undetected by his protective detail  —  The U.S. Secret Service is investigating how a man entered the home of President Biden's national security adviser …

Clarence Thomas, Still There  —  Clarence Thomas is still sitting on the Supreme Court, deciding cases, including ones he should probably be recusing from.  If he were Justice Kagan, Justice Jackson, or Justice Sotomayor, impeachment proceedings would have already started, following insistent Republican recriminations.