Trump and Omarosa Had a ‘F*cking Weird’ Fight With Vietnam Vets … Early on in the Donald Trump administration, the president vested many of his nearest and dearest with tasks they were woefully unprepared for—and Apprentice superstar Omarosa Manigault Newman was no exception.

Resistance Twitter Hero Exposed as Pro-Trump Gamer … In the world of #Resistance Twitter, @GuardianRover was a hero.  As a former intelligence operative and Delta Force soldier, the person behind the account used a cartoon secret agent avatar and the alias “Mr. Smith” …

DOJ's Bruce Ohr wrote Christopher Steele was 'very concerned about Comey's firing — afraid they will be exposed'  —  A collection of Justice Department official Bruce Ohr's emails, texts and handwritten notes, reviewed by Fox News, reveals that he was deeply connected to the unverified Steele dossier …

Trump: Manafort trial is a ‘very sad day for our country’  —  President Donald Trump on Friday refused to say whether Paul Manafort, his former campaign chairman who's been wrapped up in the special counsel's Russia investigation, could count on a pardon from the White House.

Elon Musk Confronts a Fateful Tweet and an ‘Excruciating’ Year  —  Elon Musk was at home in Los Angeles, struggling to maintain his composure.  “This past year has been the most difficult and painful year of my career,” he said.  “It was excruciating.”  —  The year has only gotten …

Ocasio-Cortez bans press from town hall  —  MEDIA WAS BARRED AFTER REPORTERS ‘MOBBED’ HER AT AN EARLIER EVENT  —  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted on Monday that stops on her “listening tour” throughout the district, like the one held a day earlier in Corona, are “intended for lively …

Officials worry Trump may back Erik Prince plan to privatize war in Afghanistan  —  “I know he's frustrated,” Blackwater founder Prince said of the president.  “He gave the Pentagon what they wanted.  And they haven't delivered.”  —  WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump …

Has Russia hacked into Florida's election system?  There is no evidence.  —  Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.): “At the urging, I might say, of the chairman and vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee, we wrote and signed a joint letter to all 67 county supervisors of election to tell them that the Russians are in Florida's records.

Melania Trump, a Mysterious First Lady, Weathers a Chaotic White House  —  WASHINGTON — Hours after Melania Trump moved into the White House in June of last year, she peered out a window and took in a stunning view of the Washington Monument: “Looking forward to the memories we'll make in our new home! …

Trump cuts funding for projects to stabilize Syria  —  The Trump administration is ending up to $230 million in funding intended to help stabilize Syria, David Satterfield, the State Department's Acting Assistant Secretary for Near East Affairs, told reporters on a call Friday.

Detroit legislator apologizes for racial slurs  —  A Detroit legislator apologized after making racial slurs against a then-rival Asian-American candidate for state Senate.  —  State Rep. Bettie Cook Scott apologized in a statement issued Thursday after liberal advocacy group Progress Michigan revealed …

Lehigh Valley velodrome board put Pennsylvania congressional candidate Marty Nothstein on leave after sexual misconduct allegation  —  Congressional candidate Marty Nothstein was the subject of a sexual misconduct investigation prior to leaving his job this summer as leader …

Half-naked Athens woman punches officer  —  A 32-year-old Athens woman was arrested early Wednesday after she created a disturbance on Bray Street and then fought with a police officer, Athens-Clarke County police said.  —  Police said they responded to the area at about 12:30 a.m. on a report …

Free-speech conservatives, this is your call to arms  —  To all those supposed constitutional conservatives out there, consider this your call to arms: The First Amendment is under direct attack, and this time from a much more powerful foe than misguided college freshmen.

The Debt-Shaming of Stacey Abrams  —  Our pernicious double standard on politicians who owe money.  —  The campaign for governor of Georgia is a supersaturated microcosm of American politics right now, offering the starkest possible choice between irreconcilable visions of the country's future.

Rand Paul to ask Trump to lift sanctions on Russian leaders  —  (R-Ky.) says he will ask President Trump  —  this weekend to lift sanctions against top Russian officials so they can visit the United States later this year.  —  Paul said members of both bodies of Russia's legislature …

POLITICO Playbook PM: NEW: Dem super PAC hammers House GOP leadership in new ad  —  NEW ... YOU NEED TO WATCH THIS BOMBSHELL AD ... HOUSE MAJORITY PAC — a top super PAC that aims to elect Democrats to the House — drops a shockingly tough and sharp ad on House GOP leadership …

Signs of Trump-Putin collaboration, starting years before the campaign?  —  Shane Harris is a staff writer at The Washington Post.  He covers intelligence and national security and the Russia investigation.  —  Of all the allegations contained in the “Steele dossier,” …

What to Care About When Everything Is Terrible  —  In the Trump presidency, everything is a distraction from everything else, because it all matters.  —  Ms. Jurecic is the managing editor of Lawfare.  —  As of Thursday, 565 migrant children — 24 of them under the age of five …

Senate gets to work in August — but many don't show up  —  The Senate is working through the August recess.  Sort of.  —  Senators didn't arrive in Washington for this week's work until late in the day Wednesday and held their last votes of the week at 1:45 p.m. Thursday, adjourning a few hours later.

DOJ Sues Ivanka's Ex-Business Partner for Massive Fraud  —  Moshe Lax and members of his family allegedly conspired to deprive the U.S. of $60 million.  —  The Justice Department is suing a friend and former business partner of Ivanka Trump for his alleged role in schemes to defraud …

In a Divided Era, One Thing Seems to Unite: Political Anger  —  Ken Storey was in a pique, the kind that often seizes and overwhelms the better judgment of people who follow politics closely these days.  —  Hurricane Harvey was about to douse Texas with deadly flooding, and Mr. Storey had identified the culprit: Republicans.

California homeowners get to pass low property taxes to their kids.  It's proved highly profitable to an elite group  —  Actors Jeff and Beau Bridges, along with their sister, own a four-bedroom Malibu home with access to a semi-private beach and panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean.

Top former intelligence bosses speak out in favor of John Brennan  —  Twelve former directors and deputy directors of the Central Intelligence Agency and a former Director of National Intelligence signed a letter of support for former CIA director John Brennan, calling the signal sent …

Federal appeals court upholds Texas campus carry law  —  A three-judge panel of the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a prior dismissal of a lawsuit filed by three professors at the University of Texas at Austin, which aimed to block the law and allow professors to prohibit firearms in their classrooms.

565 Migrant Children Remain Separated From Families 3 Weeks Past Judge's Deadline  —  The number of kids who have been reunited in the last couple of weeks can be counted on two hands, according to court filings on the immigration detentions.  —  Only a small fraction of the nearly 600 …