Breaking precedent, White House won't release formal economic projections this summer that would forecast extent of downturn  —  The president's aides will not publish updated economic forecasts, citing volatility in U.S. economy  —  White House officials have decided not to release updated …

George Floyd protest turns violent, deadly; Minneapolis mayor requests National Guard  —  “We can have peaceful demonstrations,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said.  “But I also have to ensure the safety of everyone in the city.”  —  The mayor of Minneapolis has requested help …

‘Callous liars’: Pennsylvania Democrats say GOP put them at risk by hiding member's positive covid-19 test  —  Democratic state legislators in Pennsylvania accused their Republican counterparts Wednesday of keeping a GOP lawmaker's positive coronavirus diagnosis under wraps for days …

The Psychopath in Chief … Among the accomplishments Trump parades most proudly is that he has won eighteen golf club championships.  Like so many of his claims, this one is pure fiction.  When the sportswriter Rick Reilly investigated for his book Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump …

Get Republicans to Vote Against Trump?  This Group Will Spend $10 Million to Try  —  A new organization, Republican Voters Against Trump, is testing the premise of whether there are really any persuadable voters left.  —  WASHINGTON — Four years ago, 50 of the country's …

‘Sorry, no mask allowed’: Some businesses pledge to keep out customers who cover their faces  —  For 64 days, Kevin Smith had shut down the Liberty Tree Tavern to comply with government orders.  Now he was cleaning and disinfecting and removing stools to cut seating by three-quarters as he prepared to reopen the bar.

Pelosi slams McConnell on stimulus delay: “You want a pause?  Tell that to the virus”  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi lambasted Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Thursday for delaying moving forward on the next coronavirus relief package.  —  The big picture: McConnell has said for weeks …

Graham urges senior judges to step aside before November election so Republicans can fill vacancies  —  Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) on Thursday urged federal judges who are in their mid-to-late 60s to step aside so that Republicans, increasingly nervous …

Americans on Unemployment Benefits Post First Drop of Pandemic  — Continuing claims fell to 21.1 million in week ended May 16  — Initial jobless claims totaled 2.12 million last week  —  U.S. states' jobless rolls shrank for the first time during the coronavirus pandemic …

GOP operatives worry Trump will lose both the presidency and Senate majority  —  Washington (CNN)A little more than three months ago, as Democrats cast their ballots in the Nevada caucuses, Republicans felt confident about their chances in 2020.  The coronavirus seemed a distant, far-off threat.

‘We Loved Each Other’: Fauci Recalls Larry Kramer, Friend and Nemesis  —  In public, the activist berated the infectious disease expert for federal inaction on AIDS.  But their affection lasted decades and changed the course of the epidemic.  —  “How did I meet Larry?

Trump is courting a landslide defeat  —  US president's bungled coronavirus response has alienated crucial older voters  —  Donald Trump's 2016 victory caught most people by surprise, including him.  The safest position since then has been to assume he will do it again.

Famed Democratic pollster: Warren as VP would lead to Biden victory  —  Stan Greenberg, one of the Democratic Party's longtime leading pollsters, urged Hillary Clinton in 2016 to pick Elizabeth Warren as her vice president.  He thinks Clinton would be president had she listened.

Pence Chief Of Staff Owns Stocks That Could Conflict With Coronavirus Response  —  Audio will be available later today.  —  Marc Short, the chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence, owns between $506,043 and $1.64 million worth of individual stocks in companies doing work related …

Exclusive: U.S. taxpayers' virus relief went to firms that avoided U.S. tax  —  LONDON/BOSTON (Reuters) - Last month Zagg Inc, a Utah-based company that makes mobile device accessories, received more than $9.4 million in cash from a U.S. government program that has provided emergency loans …

Trump continues to claim broad powers he doesn't have  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Threatening to shut down Twitter for flagging false content.  Claiming he can “override” governors who dare to keep churches closed to congregants.  Asserting the “absolute authority” to force states to reopen, even when local leaders say it's too soon.

U.S. to Expel Chinese Graduate Students With Ties to China's Military Schools  —  The move is the latest in the Trump administration's efforts to impose limits on Chinese students.  But many university officials say the government is paranoid, and that the United States will lose out.

New poll shows Sara Gideon leading Susan Collins by 9 points  —  Ethan: Did you take a look at the new poll on the U.S. Senate race I just sent?  It shows U.S. Sen. Susan Collins losing 51 percent to 42 percent to House Speaker Sara Gideon!  —  Phil: A-yuh.  Sobering news for Susan.

Reducing transmission of SARS-CoV-2  —  1Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.  —  2Department of Chemistry, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan 804, Republic of China.  —  3Aerosol Science Research Center …

Trump Towers Istanbul Partner Lobbied President and Cabinet on Pandemic  —  In three letters copied to the U.S. president, a Turkish businessman who partnered on the Trump Towers Istanbul deal implored White House officials to sizably boost trade with Turkey in response to the novel coronavirus.

Tim Kaine tests positive for coronavirus antibodies  —  Sen. Tim Kaine announced Thursday that he and his wife have tested positive for coronavirus antibodies.  —  In a statement, the Virginia Democrat and former vice presidential hopeful explained that after testing positive for the flu, he continued to experience symptoms.

The NSA has a warning: Russia's most infamous hackers are still active  —  The same Russian intelligence unit that leaked Democrats' files in 2016 is engaged in an ongoing email hacking campaign, the National Security Agency announced Thursday.  —  Hackers in Russia's GRU …

New FBI document confirms the Trump campaign was investigated without justification  —  Late last week the FBI document that started the Trump-Russia collusion fiasco was publicly released.  It hasn't received a lot of attention but it should, because not too long from now this document likely …

Lights.  Camera.  Makeup.  And a Carefully Placed 1,246-Page Book.  —  ‘The Power Broker,’ a biography by Robert Caro has become a must-have prop for numerous politicians and reporters appearing on camera from home.  —  It is 46 years old, weighs nearly four pounds in paperback …

Masks probably slow the spread of covid-19  —  But wearing one is mainly an act of altruism … “This is a, I would say, senseless dividing line,” said Doug Burgum, governor of North Dakota, his voice catching as he talked of the rows that have broken out in his state over the wearing of face-coverings.

Don't Bother Learning to Code  —  Ruthless outsourcing will be the death of the American Dream.  —  The shotgun blast reverberated across the parking garage of Bank of America's Concord Technology Center in the Bay Area suburb of Walnut Creek, California.  In the front seat of a pickup truck sat …