Republicans Grapple With Being Speakerless, but Effectively Leaderless, Too  —  With a speaker fight in the House, concerns about an aging Senate leader and a 2024 front-runner who has the party in a vise grip, some G.O.P. members worry the turmoil could have long-term effects.

Trump is ‘Very Likely’ to Attend His New York Fraud Trial for Michael Cohen's Testimony: Source  —  Asked about Trump's likelihood of attending his testimony, Cohen said that the former president's ‘presence in the courtroom does not intimidate me’  —  JWPlayer

Editors' Note: Gaza Hospital Coverage  —  On Oct. 17, The New York Times published news of an explosion at a hospital in Gaza City, leading its coverage with claims by Hamas government officials that an Israeli airstrike was the cause and that hundreds of people were dead or injured.

US expects Israeli-Hamas war to escalate as strike group heads to region: Live updates  —  The United States has urged Israel to delay its ground invasion of Gaza to encourage hostage negotiations as Hamas might be willing to free dozens of dual-citizenship captives, U.S. and Israeli officials say.

New SAT Data Highlights the Deep Inequality at the Heart of American Education  —  New data shows, for the first time at this level of detail, how much students' standardized test scores rise with their parents' incomes — and how disparities start years before students sit for tests.

Ukrainian spies with deep ties to CIA wage shadow war against Russia  —  KYIV — The cluttered car carrying a mother and her 12-year-old daughter seemed barely worth the attention of Russian security officials as it approached a border checkpoint.  But the least conspicuous piece of luggage …

Exclusive poll: Nikki Haley surges, nearly ties Ron DeSantis as the alternative to Trump  —  Haley's support has surged to 11% and DeSantis' plunged to 12%, the USA TODAY/Suffolk Poll finds.  But Trump still dominates.  —  Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley has surged nationally …

House GOP speaker race balloons to nine candidates  —  House Republicans will hear Monday from nine lawmakers vying to be the next speaker of the House, with a candidate forum that ushers in a grueling day of voting Tuesday.  —  Why it matters: Candidates will be given just minutes …

Top Warren aide to join Biden's economic team  —  A longtime top aide to Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is joining President Biden's National Economic Council (NEC) as a deputy director, the White House confirmed on Monday.  —  Jon Donenberg will replace former deputy director Bharat Ramamurti, who left the NEC last month.

Yes, Byron Donalds should be the next speaker of the House  —  Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) declared his candidacy for speaker of the House Friday evening, the Washington Examiner reported.  —  It was a bold declaration after Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) could not secure enough votes to proceed with his candidacy.

COVID Is Ramping Up for a Year of Deadly Surges  —  Scientists hope that by the end of 2024 COVID may become more flu-like but before that fading immunity means more killer waves are on the way.  —  COVID is back.  But then, it never really left.  And the respiratory disease's late-summer resurgence might …

Turnover has plagued local election offices since 2020.  One swing state county is trying to recover  —  Worker turnover, understaffing and lack of training cause mistakes in US elections that get twisted by conspiracy theorists.  Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, is now on its fifth election director in the last three years.