Foreign aid  —  Trump blocks $4.9B in foreign aid Congress OK'd, using maneuver last seen nearly 50 years ago  —  President Donald Trump has told House Speaker Mike Johnson he won't be spending $4.9 billion in congressionally approved foreign aid, effectively cutting the budget without going through the legislative branch.

Lawyer: Oregon firefighter arrested by Border Patrol during wildfire was on track for legal status  —  Lawyers are demanding the release of a longtime Oregon resident arrested by Border Patrol while fighting a Washington state wildfire, saying Friday that the firefighter was already on track …

Mark Knoller, longtime CBS News correspondent, dies at 73  —  Longtime CBS News correspondent Mark Knoller has died at the age of 73.  —  He died in Washington, D.C., according to a close friend.  The cause of death was not disclosed, but he suffered from diabetes and had been in ill health.

The political ‘diploma divide’ now applies to members of Congress  —  A new study shows that over the past 50 years, fewer and fewer Republicans have attended elite colleges, while an increasing share of Democrats attend those schools.

Israeli airstrike kills Houthi rebel prime minister in Yemeni capital Sanaa  —  An Israeli airstrike killed the prime minister of the Houthi rebel-controlled government in Yemen's capital Sanaa, the Houthis said Saturday.  He was the most senior Houthi official killed in the Israeli-U.S. campaign against the Iranian-backed rebels.

Netflix co-founder drops $2 million into Gavin Newsom's redistricting campaign … Enormous sums have already poured into both sides of a race that has thrust California into the epicenter of American politics.  Labor unions, wealthy Californians and House Democrats' super PAC …

Targeting Iran's Leaders, Israel Found a Weak Link: Their Bodyguards  —  Israel was able to track the movements of key Iranian figures and assassinate them during the 12-day war this spring by following the cellphones carried by members of their security forces.

While Trump Rattles the World, China Basks in the Limelight  —  Russian and Indian leaders to meet Xi as Trump courts Putin and alienates Modi  —  BEIJING—The leaders of three of the world's four most powerful nations will meet in China this weekend to discuss how to react to the upending …

Trump casts doubt on Putin-Zelensky meeting: ‘Maybe they have to fight a little longer’  —  President Trump cast doubt on the prospects of a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as part of an effort to end the war in Eastern Europe …

Sanders pressures RFK Jr. to resign as Health chief after CDC chaos  —  Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is pressuring Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign after this week's tumult at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that saw top officials depart after the agency director was ousted.

White House advances plan for Department of War as Trump looks to restore historical military title  —  The White House is pushing to rebrand the Pentagon, confirming Saturday plans to rename the Department of Defense the Department of War, The Wall Street Journal first reported.

Trump Says He Will Sign Executive Order Mandating Voter I.D.  —  He also wants to restrict mail-in voting and allow only paper ballots.  The Constitution doesn't give the president explicit authority over election law.  —  President Trump said late Saturday that he would issue an executive order …

MAGA Radio Host's Cancer-Stricken Wife Can't Get COVID Shot Because of ‘Kook’ RFK Jr.  —  MAHA UPRISING  —  Erick Erickson criticized HHS's moves to restrict who can get the COVID vaccine.  —  An ultra-conservative radio host attacked Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday …

Fleischmann says ‘never’ to town hall  —  Chattanooga congressman calls them ‘left-wing bait’  —  Historically, during August, congressional representatives have held town halls.  Regular legislative business is suspended in Washington, and elected officials make their way back to their home states.

DOJ reassigned top attorneys.  They quit after feeling sidelined.  —  People familiar with the Sanctuary Cities Enforcement working group say members were assigned menial busy work, and their impression was that the real goal was to force senior career lawyers to resign.  —  Just now

Trump officials fire EPA employees for signing dissent letter  —  The move to terminate the staffers marks an escalation in the Trump administration's effort to clamp down on dissent within the federal bureaucracy.  —  The Trump administration has fired at least seven Environmental Protection …

From Cracker Barrel to Sydney Sweeney, Trump Has an Opinion to Share  —  In his second term, President Trump is using his power to reshape American culture, not just policy.  He has threatened consequences for many who disagree.

Alarm as US far-right extremists eye drones for use in domestic attacks  —  Experts say extremists openly talking of how home-built drones will be critical tool in so-called second civil war  —  Taking their cues from modern warfare, the far-right American terrorist movement sees off-the-shelf …

Where is the Party?: time for Democratic leaders to ‘fight with both hands’ or ‘step aside’  —  Even in easy times, this democracy needs care.  And right now it is in dire need of defense.  And it needs defenders who are willing to do whatever it takes.  Americans are begging for more.

The Media Dismissing The Transgender Factor In This School Shooting Are Enabling Another One  —  It's truly as if the news media wish for more transgender psychotics to commit mass murders before offing themselves.  Why else would they look at what happened in Minneapolis this week …

Kari Lake lays off more than 500 staff at Voice of America parent agency  —  Amid a contentious court battle, the Trump administration official sent long-awaited termination notices to staffers who have been waiting on administrative leave for months.  —  Kari Lake, the Trump administration …

Scientists breathe new life into climate website after shutdown under Trump  —  Climate.gov, which went dark this summer, to be revived by volunteers as climate.us with expanded mission  —  Earlier this summer, access to climate.gov - one of the most widely used portals of climate information …