Murdochs Start to Sour on DeSantis: ‘They Can Smell a Loser’  —  The conservative media kingmakers' preferred candidate to knock off Donald Trump is not meeting expectations, and the family's patriarch is getting tired of waiting … But in recent weeks, the Murdochs have grown increasingly displeased …

EXCLUSIVE: Democratic Senator Joe Manchin to headline third party No Labels event in New Hampshire next week in push to give Americans a candidate other than Biden or Trump  — Manchin will be in New Hampshire on Monday, July 17th with No Labels  — Group holding an event as it seeks …

Lawyers with supreme court business paid Clarence Thomas aide via Venmo  —  Payments to Rajan Vasisht, an aide from 2019-21, underscore ties between the justice and lawyers who argue cases in front of him  —  Several lawyers who have had business before the supreme court …

Hollywood Studios' WGA Strike Endgame Is To Let Writers Go Broke Before Resuming Talks In Fall  —  EXCLUSIVE: Regardless of whether SAG-AFTRA goes on strike this week, the studios have no intention of sitting down with the Writers Guild for several more months.

CPI Report Shows Inflation Eased to 3% in June  —  Fed officials are still likely to raise interest rates when they meet later this month  —  U.S. inflation eased last month to its slowest pace in more than two years as underlying price pressures moderated more than expected.

Milan Kundera, Author of ‘The Unbearable Lightness of Being,’ Has Died  —  Milan Kundera, whose dissident writings in communist Czechoslovakia transformed him into an exiled satirist of totalitarianism, has died in Paris at the age of 94, Czech media said Wednesday.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville relents and says white nationalists are racist  —  Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), facing a barrage of criticism over a Monday night television interview in which he refused to say white nationalists are racists, relented Tuesday afternoon, acknowledging to reporters on Capitol Hill that they in fact are.

China-based hackers breached email accounts, Microsoft says  —  Microsoft said late Tuesday a known group that primarily focuses on hacking Western governments to spy on them had successfully breached some accounts.  —  Hackers in China recently broke into the email accounts of around 25 organizations …

The G.O.P. Backed Him on Hunter Biden Claims.  Now He Has Been Indicted.  —  Gal Luft, promoted by House Republicans as possessing evidence of corruption by the Biden family, was charged by federal prosecutors with lobbying and sanctions violations and with brokering arms deals with China and Iran.

Executed Russian sub commander may have been tracked on a fitness app  —  As with any news coming out of Russia, there's almost no telling what is true and what is not.  What we do know for certain is that a former Naval officer and sub commander who Ukraine had accused of war crimes was killed …

Iowa Republicans pass a new 6-week abortion ban  —  Passage capped a marathon one-day special legislative session.  It now goes to Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds for her signature.  —  Iowa Republicans passed a bill late Tuesday to ban most abortions after six weeks — a restrictive measure …

Thiel, Brock & a Gutter Oppo Campaign for Our Times  —  When Peter Thiel emerged as the right's potential heir to Sheldon Adelson during the '22 midterms, a highly connected Democratic operative launched a guerilla opposition research campaign to chill his political influence.

F.T.C.'s Lina Khan Faces Fresh Questions After Microsoft Ruling  —  Lina Khan has said a fear of defeat should not deter the agency from suing big tech companies.  But after Microsoft won a ruling this week, her critics say that strategy is flawed.  —  Reporting from Washington

McCarthy defends Marjorie Taylor Greene amid Freedom Caucus drama  —  Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) backed up Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) following news that she's been voted out of the conservative House Freedom Caucus. … - “I think Marjorie Taylor Greene is one of the best members we have …

Tax prep companies shared private taxpayer data with Google and Meta for years, congressional probe finds  —  Some of the nation's largest tax-prep companies have spent years sharing Americans' sensitive financial data with tech titans including Meta and Google in a potential violation of federal law …

A Glass House for Elon Musk Sparks Internal Tesla Probe  —  Plans for Tesla's secret ‘Project 42’ called for an unusual-looking glass structure in the Austin, Texas, area  —  AUSTIN, Texas—Inside Tesla , it was known as “Project 42,” and the plans called for a dramatic glass-walled building …

Trump Lashes Out at Gov. Kim Reynolds of Iowa  —  The former president snubbed one influential Iowa leader and attacked another, testing his immunity to traditional political pitfalls in a crucial state.  —  Iowa may be the most important state on Donald J. Trump's early 2024 political calendar …

Owner bans some LGBTQ customers from Michigan hair salon over pronouns.  ‘Not welcome’  —  The owner of a Michigan hair salon said she is refusing service to some members of the LGBTQ+ community.  —  Christine Geiger, who owns Studio 8 Hair Lab in Traverse City, said in a Facebook post …

Georgia election workers say Giuliani failed to turn over key evidence in defamation suit  —  “He failed to take any steps to preserve relevant electronic evidence,” their attorneys said of Giuliani.  —  Amid Donald Trump's desperate bid to subvert the 2020 election, a top adviser …

Roseanne Barr Screams at Piers Morgan That Zelensky Isn't a ‘Good’ Jew  —  The controversy-courting comic was back at it this week when she yelled that Ukraine is full of Nazis while dismissing the Ukrainian president's Jewish heritage.  —  Roseanne Barr is back at it.

McCarthy raises $62.5 million for House GOP  —  House Speaker Kevin McCarthy raised $21.7 million in the second quarter in 2023 through his joint fundraising committee, the McCarthy Victory Fund, bringing the total amount he raised this cycle to $62.5 million.

Farmers Insurance pulls out of Florida, affecting 100,000 policies  —  Farmers Insurance said Tuesday that it will no longer offer coverage in Florida, ending home, auto and others policies in the state in a move that will affect tens of thousands of residents.

Ukraine Needs NATO—and NATO Needs Ukraine, Too  —  Arguments against admitting Ukraine into the alliance aren't convincing.  —  Last week, an opinion article in Foreign Affairs argued for locking Ukraine out of NATO.  The authors, Justin Logan and Joshua Shifrinson of the Cato Institute …

House GOP election bill expands dark money and curtails D.C. autonomy  —  House Republicans have unveiled a bill that would open up the spigots of dark money nationwide and make voting more difficult, especially in D.C. What they are calling the American Confidence in Elections Act integrates …

How False History Is Used to Justify Discrimination Against Asian Americans  —  The Civil Rights Movement didn't pave the way for Asian American success in America.  A Jewish immigration activist did.  —  On June 29, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) …

Rough Days for Biden, Rougher Days for Trump  —  One man wants to govern.  The other wants to dodge prosecution.  —  WAS LAST WEEK “hellish” for President Joe Biden?  Is he in for a cruel summer, filled with setbacks, scandal and calls for him to step aside because he's too old?  On the contrary.

McCarthy summons GOP factions to counter threat of a new conservative rebellion  —  But several hard-right Republicans left the speaker's meeting less than satisfied, with several must-pass bills hanging in the balance.  —  Speaker Kevin McCarthy is working furiously to prevent another House floor takeover …