'It's some galaxy brain stuff they wanted us to believe:' How Russia's effort to sabotage Mueller's investigation backfired  —  The fake trove of the special counsel's files were immediately dismissed as largely fabricated by the reporter and researcher who received them.

Schultz deletes tweet of column calling Warren ‘fauxcahontas’ and Harris ‘shrill’  —  Howard Schultz, the former Starbucks CEO who has floated an independent run at the White House, deleted a tweet Wednesday in which he praised a column that insulted other 2020 contenders.

NRA Heavyweight Wanted Access to Putin: Leaked Email  —  “[I]mpressing the NRA's Russian hosts is the quickest way to secure a private interview with President Putin,” an organizer of the NRA's infamous 2015 trip to Moscow wrote.  —  Betsy Woodruff  —  A former NRA president hoped …

Virginia lawmaker says she wouldn't have co-sponsored controversial abortion bill if she had read it closely  —  A Virginia lawmaker sent an email to her constituents Wednesday night apologizing for attaching her name to a controversial abortion bill without reading it closely enough.

POLITICO Playbook: Mulvaney eyeing Commerce ... again  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  WHITE HOUSE BUZZ ... MICK MULVANEY, the acting chief of staff, is interested in succeeding WILBUR ROSS as Commerce secretary, according to several people with knowledge of his plans.

Trump singled out Dan Coats in morning rant about intelligence community  —  (CNN)President Donald Trump seethed Wednesday morning as he watched the highlights of his intelligence chiefs testifying on Capitol Hill and singled out Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats by name during his morning rant …

GOP delay in naming House Intelligence Committee members may have cost Mueller  —  Democrats have been unable to authorize release of witness transcripts to the special counsel without GOP members who were just named Wednesday.  —  WASHINGTON — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. …

Rand Paul awarded more than $580K after neighbor's attack  —  U.S. Sen. Rand Paul was awarded more than $580,000 in damages and medical expenses on Wednesday in his lawsuit against the neighbor who tackled him and broke several of his ribs in a dispute over lawn maintenance.

President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Judicial Nominees  —  Today, President Donald J. Trump announced his intent to nominate the following judicial nominees:  —  Daniel A. Bress of California, to serve as a Circuit Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

McConnell says bill that would make Election Day a federal holiday is a ‘power grab’ by Democrats  —  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday that a Democratic bill that would make Election Day a federal holiday is a “power grab,” sparking a fierce backlash online.

Foxconn Reconsidering Plans for a Wisconsin Factory Heralded by Trump  —  It was heralded a year and a half ago as the start of a Midwestern manufacturing renaissance: Foxconn, the Taiwanese electronics behemoth, would build a $10 billion Wisconsin plant to make flat-screen televisions, creating 13,000 jobs.

Disgraced former NY AG Eric Schneiderman now a meditation teacher  —  A champion of the #MeToo movement, he resigned last year after a report in The New Yorker magazine detailed allegations of physical abuse.  —  Former New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman …

Tim Scott still opposes Thomas Farr, and has sharp words for conservative critics  —  U.S. Sen. Tim Scott has a message for the conservatives excoriating him for opposing Thomas Farr to be a district court judge: They ought not challenge the conclusion of the Senate's only black Republican …

Family of Fallen Navy Linguist Fights Regulation That Forced Her Deployment  —  WASHINGTON — Navy Chief Petty Officer Shannon Mary Kent wasn't supposed to be in Syria.  —  Last year, the 35-year-old mother of two was slated to attend a clinical psychology doctoral program near Walter Reed …

Chicago police confirm surveillance video in homophobic, racist assault of ‘Empire’ star Jussie Smollett  —  Chicago police said late Wednesday that detectives have found video footage of suspects who allegedly attacked “Empire” star Jussie Smollett.  —  Spokesman Anthony Guglielmi …

Sarah Sanders: God ‘wanted Donald Trump to become president’  —  (CNN)White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said she believes God wanted President Donald Trump to win the 2016 election, the Christian Broadcasting Network reported on Wednesday.  —  “I think God calls all of us …

The BuzzFeed Layoffs as Democratic Emergency  —  Digital media has always been a turbulent business, but last week's layoffs suggest a reason for panic.  —  Working in digital media is like trying to build a fort out of marshmallows on a foundation made of marbles in a country ruled by capricious and tyrannical warring robots.

We Asked 2016 ‘Never Trump’ Republicans if They'll Back the President in 2020: 'I Mean, He's in Office'  —  In 2016, a number of Senate Republicans made the rare political decision to oppose their own party's nominee, then-candidate Donald Trump.  They were known as “Never Trumpers.”

Former Mass. Gov. William Weld to announce possible run for president  —  HIDE TRANSCRIPT SHOW TRANSCRIPT  —  William Weld, the former Republican governor of Massachusetts who was the Libertarian Party's nominee for vice president in 2016, is mulling a run for president and could make an announcement …

Kamala Harris Was Right About Medicare for All (And That's Why It Won't Work)  —  Sen. Kamala Harris committed a most unusual gaffe at her CNN town hall the other night — not by misspeaking about one of her central policy proposals, but describing it accurately.

Elephant seals took over a Pt. Reyes beach during shutdown.  It won't reopen anytime soon.  —  You know the saying: When the cat's away the mice will play.  It appears the Bay Area is ready to coin a new turn of phrase: When the rangers are gone the elephant seals will swarm.

Juan Guaidó: Venezuelans, Strength Is in Unity  —  To end the Maduro regime with the minimum of bloodshed, we need the support of pro-democratic governments, institutions and individuals the world over.  —  Mr. Guaidó is leading the effort to remove Nicolás Maduro from office.

Pennsylvania admits to 11,000 noncitizens registered to vote  —  A top Pennsylvania lawmaker called on the state Wednesday to immediately expunge the names of 11,198 noncitizens whom the state confirmed are registered to vote, despite not being eligible.  —  State Rep. Daryl Metcalfe …

The Racists On Gab Are Sharing Obscene Advice For Cooking Pasta … Gab, the preferred social media platform of white nationalists and neo-Nazis, is already known as a haven for violent and abhorrent rhetoric.  On any given visit, you're mere clicks away from Holocaust denial, racist propaganda and vile troll campaigns.

Maybe Only Tim Cook Can Fix Facebook's Privacy Problem  —  It's nowhere in his job description, but Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive, has recently taken a moonlight gig as Facebook's privacy watchdog.  —  On Wednesday, Mr. Cook and his lieutenants took aim at Facebook for violating Apple's rules …