This is how Trump ends democracy  —  The past week has revealed Trump's policy road map to veto one-party rule.  Will Americans let him follow it? … I mean this literally.  The specific threats that Federal Communications Commission head Brendan Carr made against networks …

House passes a bill to avoid a partial government shutdown, but prospects in the Senate look dim  —  The House on Friday passed a short-term spending bill to extend government funding for seven weeks and avoid a partial government shutdown on Oct. 1, but prospects looked dimmer in the Senate …

Cruz calls out FCC for taking down Jimmy Kimmel  —  Sen. Ted Cruz on his podcast Friday admonished Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr for demanding ABC suspend Jimmy Kimmel's late night show over comments regarding Charlie Kirk — calling Carr's actions “dangerous as hell” …

Draft Bill Would Authorize Trump to Wage Drug Trafficking War  —  The potential legislation would grant President Trump sweeping power to use military force if he saw a link to “narco-terrorists.”  —  Draft legislation is circulating at the White House and on Capitol Hill …

Russian warplanes breach NATO airspace in ‘dangerous provocation’ over Estonia  —  Three Russian fighter jets flew into Estonian airspace on Friday in what would appear to be the third attempt by the Kremlin this month to test NATO's eastern border.  —  The MiG-31 aircraft …

Pessimism about the direction of the country is growing among Republicans  —  Forty-nine percent of Republicans say things in the United States are heading the right direction down from 75% in June. … Since June, the share of adults who say the country is on the wrong track increased 13 percentage points from 62% to 75%.

Judge Dismisses Trump's Lawsuit Against The New York Times  —  The judge said that the complaint failed to contain a “short and plain statement of the claim.”  Mr. Trump has 28 days to refile.  —  A federal judge in Florida on Friday threw out President Trump's defamation suit …

RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine panel realizes it has no idea what it's doing, skips vote … The second day of a two-day meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices—a panel currently made up of federal vaccine advisors hand-selected by anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. …

At Broadview ICE facility, federal agents hurl tear gas and pepper spray at protesters blocking vans  —  Federal agents hurled tear gas and pepper spray into a crowd of about 100 protesters who attempted to block vans from entering and exiting a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement holding facility in Broadview Friday morning.

Trump to Add New $100,000 Fee for H-1B Visas in Latest Crackdown  —  President Donald Trump is expected to sign a proclamation as soon as Friday that would move to extensively overhaul the H-1B visa program, requiring a $100,000 fee for applications in a bid to curb overuse, according to a White House official familiar with the matter.

Children's Hospital Chaplain Jailed by Trump Admin Finally Released  —  Ayman Soliman, a beloved former children's hospital chaplain in the Cincinnati area, was released on Friday … Just before 1:15 p.m. on Friday, Adam Allen — one of the Cincinnati Children's Hospital chaplains who was fired …

Most Americans critical of Trump on crime, economy and other issues, poll finds  —  The Post-Ipsos survey paints a downbeat picture of Trump's presidency, as Americans disapprove of his performance by double-digit margins on a broad range of issues.  —  Just now

House Oversight chair says committee has Epstein files from Treasury  —  Rep. James Comer, chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said Friday his panel had begun receiving materials from the Treasury Department as part of its investigation into the agency's handling of the case against Jeffrey Epstein.

Soros cuts $10M check for California redistricting campaign … Progressive megadonor George Soros has given $10 million to boost Gov. Gavin Newsom's redistricting campaign as Democrats continue to raise huge sums from reliable allies.  —  The donation from Soros, first reported by the New York Times …

AOC builds toward a big choice for 2028  —  Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and her team are positioning her to run for president or the U.S. Senate in 2028, according to people familiar with her operation. … A fellow New Yorker, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, 74, is up for re-election in 2028.

The S.E.C. Drops Efforts to Recoup Funds From Trump Clemency Recipients  —  Devon Archer, Trevor Milton and Carlos Watson were convicted in fraud schemes totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.  Now, they will not be required to pay back victims.  —  The Securities and Exchange Commission …

Weighted vest women are the 2026 swing voters … Matthews' wanted answers to two simple questions: How many women were wearing weighted vests?  And what were their politics?  So she commissioned a poll of 1,000 women across the U.S., the results of which she shared exclusively with POLITICO.