I read six sycophantic pro-Trump books — and then I read Omarosa  —  Hagiographies of the president share seven core traits.  —  Some are born Trump sycophants.  Some achieve Trump sycophancy.  And some have Trump sycophancy thrust upon them — since he's a star, they let him do that.

Documents Reveal Successful Cyberattack in California Congressional Race  —  The FBI investigated hacking attempts targeting a Democrat who ran against “Putin's favorite congressman”  —  WASHINGTON — FBI agents in California and Washington, D.C., have investigated a series of cyberattacks …

Trump Revokes Ex-C.I.A. Director John Brennan's Security Clearance  —  WASHINGTON — In a remarkable attack on a political opponent, President Trump on Wednesday revoked the security clearance of John O. Brennan, the former C.I.A. director under President Barack Obama, citing what he called Mr. Brennan's “erratic” behavior.

New poll suggests attacks on Nancy Pelosi won't matter in midterms  —  GOP using Pelosi in ads as a midterms motivator  —  (CNN)Republican House candidates have attacked their Democratic opponents over their future potential vote to make Nancy Pelosi the speaker of the House again.

The organizer of the Charlottesville rally just got humiliated by his own father  —  “Get out of my room,” Jason Kessler's father said to him during a live stream.  —  I reported from the “Unite the Right 2” rally in Washington on Sunday.  It was a dreary failure that attracted around 30 people …

Mystery Russian satellite's behaviour raises alarm in US  —  A mysterious Russian satellite displaying “very abnormal behaviour” has raised alarm in the US, according to a State Department official.  —  “We don't know for certain what it is and there is no way to verify it,” …

Manafort trial Day 12: Prosecution hammers Manafort's ‘lies,’ defense chides ‘selective’ evidence  —  Prosecutors urged jurors in the trial of Paul Manafort to focus on financial records and Manafort's “lies”— and to set aside personal feelings about a tainted star witness — as they offered their closing argument on Wednesday.

Hostility unabated: Colorado seeks to punish cake artist Jack Phillips again  —  ADF attorneys file suit against state officials  —  DENVER - Although the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that Colorado cannot treat cake artist Jack Phillips differently than others, state officials have continued …

House: Three More GOP Seats Join the Toss Up Column  —  For Republicans, the 2018 House playing field is a lot like a game of Whack-a-Mole: everywhere they turn, new problems keep popping up in surprising places.  In January, we rated 20 GOP-held seats as Toss Ups or worse, including three leaning towards Democrats.

Tim Pawlenty goes down and six takeaways from Tuesday's primaries  —  First Read is your briefing from “Meet the Press” and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important political stories and why they matter.  —  WASHINGTON — Last night's primaries in Connecticut, Minnesota …

Trump Supporter Claims Social Distortion Lead Singer Mike Ness Beat Him Up Over Politics  —  SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A Trump supporter claims he was attacked by the lead singer of a punk rock band when he jeered the frontman's political statements.  —  Tim Hildebrand of Galt says the attack happened …

Joe Biden 'under doctor's orders' to skip Illinois State Fair Democrat Day  —  SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Former Vice President Joe Biden won't be campaigning at the Illinois State Fair due to an illness, state Democrats announced late Tuesday.  —  Biden had been scheduled to take part …

Elizabeth Warren has a plan to save capitalism  —  She's unveiling a bill to make corporate governance great again.  —  Elizabeth Warren has a big idea that challenges how the Democratic Party thinks about solving the problem of inequality.  —  Instead of advocating for expensive …

Andrew Cuomo: America “Was Never That Great”  —  8.15.18

New Estimates Show Overdose Deaths Surpassed 72,000, a New High, in 2017  —  Fentanyl is a big culprit, but there are also encouraging signs from states that have prioritized public health campaigns and addiction treatment.  —  Drug overdoses killed more than 72,300 Americans last year …

Treasury retweets Trump, possibly violating campaign law  —  The Treasury Department on Wednesday retweeted a post from President Trump  —  celebrating Republican wins in congressional elections this year, potentially violating federal campaign law.  —  The department's official Twitter account shared …

Jim Carrey's (Reluctant) Return to Hollywood: At Home With an Actor, Artist and Trump-Era Agitator  —  In his first extensive profile in years, the one-time $20 million-a-movie star and current political cartoonist opens up about his disappearance, his personal pain, his outrage and why he's returning …

Did I Join a Movement That Naturally Attracts Extremists and Kooks? … This week's news about Omarosa secretly taping chief of staff John Kelly and President Donald Trump is yet another reminder of something about Trumpworld: Politics has always attracted eccentric opportunists, but people in this administration are especially weird.

Kobach Primary Victory Moves Race to Toss Up  —  A week after the polls closed, Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer conceded the primary to Secretary of State Kris Kobach.  While Kobach's lead over Colyer dwindled to less than 100 votes two days after the primary, Kobach pulled ahead once county officials started counting provisional ballots.

Democrats Discard Washington Platform in Bid for House Control  —  DALLAS — House Democrats, looking to wrest control of the chamber from Republicans in November, are discarding the lessons of successful midterms past and pressing only a bare-bones national agenda, leaving it to candidates …

Your Name Is All Over the Internet.  It Doesn't Need to Be.  —  As more activity is linked to our real names, the stakes seem excessively high.  There has to be a better way.  —  In the 1981 sci-fi novel “True Names,” Vernor Vinge describes a dystopian future in which hackers go to great lengths …

Sex robots could IMPROVE marriages by letting spouses put more focus on companionship and creating a family, expert claims  — Sex robots could also lead to improvements in monogamous marriages, as partners are less focused on sexual compatibility and more on raising children

200+ newspapers will write pro-journalism editorials.  Will they also listen?  —  On Thursday, more than 200 newspapers will publish editorials in a “coordinated response” to President Trump calling the press the “enemy of the people.”  Each publication will write its own editorial.