Trump Delivers Bitter Snub to First Son's Wedding Invite  —  PAR FOR THE COURSE  —  The president says he needs to stay in Washington—despite his public schedule stating he plans to spend the weekend at his New Jersey golf club.  —  President Donald Trump has returned his eldest son's wedding RSVP …

The real reason Democrats lost in 2024  —  My weekly Friday column is free to read, but it is not free to produce.  Become a paying member today to support work like this and all the original data Strength In Numbers publishes.  —  Upgrade to support Strength In Numbers

There's a Way to Stop Trump's I.R.S. Slush Fund  —  These days it takes a spectacular burst of corruption to get the attention of our scandal-weary nation, but President Trump and his administration have managed, once again, to transfix Americans by establishing a $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization” …

Judge dismisses human smuggling charges against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported  —  A human smuggling case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose mistaken deportation helped galvanize opposition to President Donald Trump's immigration policies, was thrown out on Friday.

The Prosecutor at the Center of a Botched DOJ Case Was Working For Senate Democrats  —  Sheri Mecklenburg had been assigned to work for the minority on the Judiciary Committee, but ranking member Dick Durbin said she had been dismissed on Friday.  — Copy

Lutnick Donated $5 Million to House Republicans Before Epstein Testimony  —  Howard Lutnick, the commerce secretary, made the donation after agreeing to an interview with lawmakers about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.  —  Howard Lutnick, President Trump's secretary of commerce …

Exclusive: Trump officials tried to ban half of U.S. voting machines, citing conspiracy theories  —  U.S. President Donald Trump's election-security czar last year sought to ban voting machines used in more than half of U.S. states by asking whether the Commerce Department could declare …

Science: NIH, NASA Restrict Co-Authoring With Foreign Scientists  —  The National Institutes of Health and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration are targeting collaborations between U.S. scientists and foreign researchers, Science reports.  —  The journal wrote that NIH officials …

Trump directs legal migrants to return to home country to apply for green cards  —  The Trump administration on Friday announced prospective immigrants would need to return to their home country to apply for green cards, a move that would stifle the most common pathway used for legal immigration.

NYT publisher calls out news outlets for ‘capitulation’ to Trump administration … Sulzberger reprehended publications he said have settled “winnable cases” with the president, refocused their editorial pages away from White House criticism and adopted Trump's favored language in their reporting …

Their Loved Ones Died for the Voting Rights Act.  The Supreme Court's Ruling Is a New Injustice.  —  Dennis Dahmer was 12 years old in January 1966 when Klansmen stormed his family home and set it on fire, murdering his father, Vernon.  He still remembers the shootout; he remembers watching his father die from smoke inhalation.

Tom Kean Jr.'s absence from Congress makes Democrats bullish they can flip his seat … But others caution they're being “cocky” about taking down Kean, who's never been big on unscripted public appearances anyway.  On Thursday, Kean spoke to the New Jersey Globe and reiterated that he'll …