As the debt ceiling deal clears its first major hurdle, its conservative opponents begin to admit defeat  —  The News  —  Hard-right Republicans spent much of Tuesday furiously denouncing Washington's new debt ceiling deal as it began moving through Congress, promising to use any means within their reach to derail it.

Trump White House Aides Subpoenaed in Firing of Election Security Expert  —  The special counsel is scrutinizing the dismissal of Christopher Krebs, who contradicted baseless claims by the former president that the 2020 election was marred by fraud.  —  The special counsel investigating …

Scoop: Chris Christie to announce GOP presidential campaign next week … - Being joyful and hitting a more hopeful note aimed at America's “exhausted majority.”  — Being authentic — a happy warrior who speaks his mind, takes risks and is happy to punch Donald Trump in the nose.

Leaked Audio From a Ron DeSantis Donor Event Is Really Bad News for His Campaign  —  Team DeSantis tried to hype poll numbers to deep-pocketed supporters.  But the data actually points to a Trump primary victory. … When Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gathered top allies with deep pockets …

Tara Reade, who accused Joe Biden of sexual assault, defects to Russia  —  Former Senate staffer who made claim in 2020 appears on Russian media alongside convicted Russian agent in US Maria Butina  —  Tara Reade, a former Senate staffer who in 2020 accused Joe Biden of sexual assault, said on Tuesday she had defected to Russia.

Former Vice President Mike Pence to Launch Campaign for White House Within 2 Weeks (Exclusive)  —  Pence, who is polling in single digits, believes he has a lane with evangelicals in the GOP primaries. … Former Vice President Mike Pence is set to launch his run for the White House against his old boss …

Mar-a-Lago prosecutors eye July episode with Trump surveillance cameras  —  Summer interactions inside Trump's home and private club are part of the special counsel's classified documents investigation  —  A Mar-a-Lago employee who helped move boxes of documents last June has been questioned …

This class president is the model of a successful Texas teen.  After a ban on trans health care, she can't wait to leave the state.  —  For one Round Rock teen, getting accepted to Harvard was her ticket out of a state that she says is hostile to trans youth.

Twitter Is Now Worth Just 33% of Elon Musk's Purchase Price, Fidelity Says  —  Twitter is now worth just one-third of what Elon Musk paid for the social-media platform, according to Fidelity, which recently marked down the value of its equity stake in the company.

Suspected Chinese spies, disguised as tourists, attempted to infiltrate Alaskan military bases  —  ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Chinese citizens posing as tourists but suspected of being spies have made several attempts in recent years to gain access to military facilities in this vast state studded …

After teen's killing, activists fear Metro violence becoming ‘normal’  —  In February, D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) announced plans to deploy D.C. police to accompany transit officers at Metro stations across the District — hoping, she said, that the extra patrols would help keep commuters …

Teens arrested in connection to assault of U.S. Marines that was caught on camera  —  Authorities say they have arrested multiple teenagers in connection with the assault of the three U.S. Marines in San Clemente, California, an incident that sparked outrage after footage of the attack went viral.

North Korean satellite plunges into sea after rocket failure  —  A North Korean satellite launch on Wednesday ended in failure, sending the booster and payload plunging into the sea, North Korean state media said, and the South's military said it had recovered parts of the launch vehicle.

Congress threatens to block Space Command headquarters funding as abortion politics impact location decision  —  The Biden administration is considering reversing a plan to move the facility to Alabama because of concerns about the state's strict new anti-abortion laws.

Ashli Babbitt's Mother Arrested After Striking Woman at Pro-Jan. 6 Event  —  Micki Witthoeft, 58, was spotted by The Daily Beast being taken into custody just after 6:45 p.m.  —  The mother of Ashli Babbitt, Micki Witthoeft, was arrested Tuesday evening after striking a counter-protester …

Nevada Republican governor approves abortion protections in cross-party move  —  Nevada's Joe Lombardo on Tuesday became one of the first Republican governors to enshrine protections for out-of-state abortion patients and in-state providers, adding the western swing state to the list …

Andrew Tate Partnered in Casinos with Alleged Romanian Organized Crime Figures  —  New documents uncovered by reporters show that Andrew and Tristan Tate were involved in a profit-sharing agreement with a casino company whose owners are now under investigation for creating a violent organized crime group.

NASA panel to hold first public meeting on UFO study ahead of report  —  It's the first such inquiry ever conducted under the auspices of the U.S. space agency.  —  WASHINGTON — A NASA panel formed last year to study what the government calls “unidentified aerial phenomena,” commonly termed UFOs …

How a High-Value Russian Wanted by the U.S. Escaped From Italy  —  Artem Uss was awaiting extradition to the U.S. Italy's failure to hold on to him has left red faces in Rome.  —  MILAN—A Kremlin-linked businessman accused of illegally exporting American military technology to Russia was arrested in Italy at the U.S.'s request.

Kevin McCarthy releases the hostage — this time  —  The debt ceiling deal shows how we can muddle through fascism, at some cost. … At least since Trump's election in 2016, it's felt like we are careening towards crisis.  The GOP has been rapidly radicalizing.

U.S. Mood Remains Glum; 18% Satisfied With State of Nation  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Eighteen percent of Americans are satisfied with the way things are going in the U.S., staying below 20% as it has since March.  Americans are slightly more satisfied than last summer when gas prices and inflation were soaring.

Indiana state legislator arrested on suspicion of drunken driving  —  A state lawmaker from southern Indiana was arrested early Wednesday on suspicion of drunken driving after crashing his vehicle at an Interstate 65 interchange and leaving the scene, state police said.

Jamie Dimon Says He Never Discussed Jeffrey Epstein's Accounts at JPMorgan; Jes Staley Says Dimon Did  —  Former JPMorgan executive Jes Staley said he and Dimon discussed whether to keep Epstein as a client; JPMorgan says that is false  —  A former top JPMorgan Chase executive said in legal documents …

The Fringe Figure Who Says He's Advising Republicans On Their Hunter Biden Probe  —  “There are some things that I agree with Nick Fuentes on, and some that I don't,” the former White House staffer told HuffPost.  —  As congressional Republicans ramp up their efforts to investigate Hunter Biden …

Roger Stone and the Key to Trump's Evangelical Support  —  TRUMP ADVISER AND MAD-HATTER political operative Roger Stone made a strange declaration at a recent gathering of pastors at the Trump National Doral resort in Miami, Florida: He claimed that he was the subject of a modern prophecy about a …

Twitter Fails to Remove Hate Speech by Blue-Check Users: Report  —  If you pay $8 a month, Twitter will boost your tweets, new research found, even if you post about how “Hitler was right.” … Twitter is failing to remove 99 percent of hate speech posted by Twitter Blue users …

State officials ask Yellen for clarity on what will happen if debt bill doesn't pass by June 5  —  Top financial officers from 20 different states on Wednesday wrote to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen seeking clarity in the event lawmakers do not vote to raise the debt ceiling in time and the U.S. defaults.

Black people were three times more likely to receive Covid fines in England and Wales  —  Exclusive: those in poorest areas were seven times more likely to be fined, says research into how police used emergency pandemic powers  —  Fines during the pandemic were three times more likely …

Case against ex-CIA officer accused of abusing women may collapse because of how federal agents searched his phones  —  A federal judge will hear arguments Thursday about whether hundreds of photos of the defendant allegedly abusing incapacitated women should be thrown out.