DeSantis expected to enter 2024 presidential race next week  —  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to enter the 2024 presidential race next week, two Republicans familiar with the matter tell CNN.  —  DeSantis will file paperwork next week with the Federal Election Commission declaring his candidacy …

5/18/23 ☀️ Punchbowl News AM  —  THE TOP … The Justice Department has privately asked the House Ethics Committee to hold off on its own probe into the freshman lawmaker.  Santos was indicted last week on 13 federal criminal charges in New York.

F.B.I. Revokes Security Clearances of 3 Agents Over Jan. 6 Issues  —  At least two of the three agents are scheduled to testify on Thursday to a House panel investigating what Republicans contend is the “weaponization” of federal agencies against conservatives.

ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED … NATIONAL RESULTS  —  Recent midterms have typically involved national waves that favor one party over the other, particularly when there's backlash against a party that controls the presidency and both chambers of Congress.  —  Figure 1.  Two-Way Democratic Support in General Elections (1976 to 2022)

Exclusive: New evidence in special counsel probe may undercut Trump's claim documents he took were automatically declassified  —  The National Archives has informed former president Donald Trump that it is set to hand over to special counsel Jack Smith 16 records which show Trump and his top advisers …

Florida Democrats think the unthinkable: We're in play  —  The Jacksonville win was just one election.  But the party hopes it represents something more.  —  TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Democrats, long under the thumb of Ron DeSantis, are giddy the mayoral victory in Jacksonville could be the end to a long, long losing streak.

Ron DeSantis Signs Law Allowing Trans Kids to Be Taken From Their Families  —  Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a horrifying bill Wednesday that will let the state take transgender minors away from their families if they are receiving gender-affirming care.

When It Rains, It Amanpours  —  Notes on the ongoing fallout from a cable news makeover.  —  On Wednesday afternoon, CNN's revered chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour took the lectern to deliver the commencement address at Columbia Journalism School, in Morningside Heights.

Deutsche Bank Will Pay $75 Million to Victims of Jeffrey Epstein  —  A proposed court settlement closes another chapter in the German bank's relationship with the disgraced financier, which began in 2013 and continued up until late 2018.  —  Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million …

There's now even less reason to blame Clinton for the Russia probe  —  The front page of the New York Post on Wednesday showed Hillary Clinton, backed by an array of other frequent targets of opprobrium by the right, peering around the corner of a brick wall.

Military Caught Airman Mishandling Secrets Before Arrest but Left Him in Job  —  A Justice Department filing urging that Airman Jack Teixeira be held without bail said his superiors had admonished him for taking notes and conducting deep-dive searches last fall.  —  Reporting from Washington

Prince Harry, Meghan involved in car chase with paparazzi, spokeswoman says; taxi driver says it wasn't a chase  —  Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, were involved in a “near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi,” a spokeswoman for the couple said.

North Dakota Republican Gov. Doug Burgum likely to run for president  —  As potential Republican contenders Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott move closer to announcing their entries into the GOP presidential fray …

Study Offers New Twist in How the First Humans Evolved  —  A new genetic analysis of 290 people suggests that humans emerged at various times and places in Africa.  —  Scientists have revealed a surprisingly complex origin of our species, rejecting the long-held argument that modern humans arose …

Montana Governor Signs Total Ban of TikTok in the State  —  The legislation is the most extreme prohibition of the app in the nation and will almost certainly face legal challenges.  —  The governor of Montana, Greg Gianforte, signed a bill on Wednesday to ban TikTok from operating inside the state …

Appeals court shows openness to rolling back abortion pill access  —  A federal appeals court panel on Wednesday seemed skeptical of the Biden administration's arguments to keep the widely used abortion pill mifepristone on the market in its current form.  —  During oral arguments …

Democrats race to avoid a Biden embarrassment in New Hampshire  —  Democrats are searching for ways to get the president on the New Hampshire ballot after he pushed for changes to the nominating calendar.  —  NASHUA, N.H. — Top Democrats are scrambling for ways to avoid a catastrophe …

Columbia Journalism School to offer educational loan repayment assistance for recent graduates with inaugural program  —  The program is the first of its kind for graduate journalism schools.  With its inception, Columbia continues to stake its claim as a steadfast supporter of rigorous …

Heat Will Likely Soar to Record Levels in Next 5 Years, New Analysis Says  —  Global temperatures are likely to soar to record highs over the next five years, driven by human-caused warming and a climate pattern known as El Niño, forecasters at the World Meteorological Organization said on Wednesday.