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Trump signs four executive orders after economic relief talks with Democrats collapsed — The orders aim to temporarily extend unemployment aid and eviction protections — President Trump on Saturday signed several executive orders that he said would provide economic relief to millions of Americans …
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Lawyers, Guns & Money, CNN, NPR, Forbes, The Wrap, Power Line, UPI, Slate and Raw Story
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Trump seems ready, willing to bypass lawmakers on virus aid — BEDMINSTER, N.J. (AP) — Ready and willing to bypass elected lawmakers, President Donald Trump seemed set to claim the power to defer payroll taxes and extend expired unemployment benefits after negotiations with Congress on a new coronavirus rescue package collapsed.
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Politico, One America News Network, Breitbart, The Hill, FOX 5 San Diego, CANNONFIRE and Florida Politics

Trump signs executive orders on coronavirus economic relief — WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed four executive orders Saturday for coronavirus economic relief, upending negotiations with Congress after lawmakers failed to reach a deal on Friday. — The executive orders defer …
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Reuters

‘Like Groundhog Day’: Republicans fret over Trump's fading fortunes — President Donald Trump is in an August, coronavirus-induced slump — and his team is feeling it. — The White House's negotiations with Capitol Hill over a fourth economic stimulus package fell apart on Friday …
Discussion:
Reuters, ABC News, Associated Press, One America News Network, TheBlaze, Raw Story and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Pelosi Is Playing Hardball on Coronavirus Relief. She Thinks She'll Win. — Emboldened by Republican divisions and a favorable political landscape, the speaker is refusing to agree to a narrow relief measure, unbothered by charges that she is an impediment to a deal.
Discussion:
Raw Story
Marisa Schultz / Fox News:
Trump orders $400-per-week unemployment payments amid COVID crisis, hits Dems for stonewalling
Trump orders $400-per-week unemployment payments amid COVID crisis, hits Dems for stonewalling
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal and Fox Business
Katherine Faulders / ABC News:
Trump expected to sign executive orders on coronavirus relief
Trump expected to sign executive orders on coronavirus relief
Discussion:
Reuters

Trump antagonizes GOP megadonor Adelson in heated phone call — When President Donald Trump connected by phone last week with Republican megadonor Sheldon Adelson — perhaps the only person in the party who can cut a nine-figure check to aid his reelection — the phone call unexpectedly turned contentious.
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The Hill, The Mahablog, The Moderate Voice, New York Post, Outside the Beltway, The Week and Raw Story
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Trump aides exploring executive actions to curb voting by mail — This past spring, President Donald Trump began a full-fledged assault on voting by mail, tweeting, retweeting and railing about massive fraud and rigged elections with scant evidence. — Then the Republican apparatus got to work backing up the president.
Discussion:
Law & Crime, Common Dreams, Associated Press, Raw Story, American Prospect, Washington Post and The Dispatch

How Kristi Noem, Mt. Rushmore and Trump Fueled Speculation About Pence's Job — After Ms. Noem, the South Dakota governor, flew to Washington on Air Force One, speculation about her ambitions ensued. She made a second trip to smooth things over with Mike Pence.
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Mark Walker / New York Times:
‘If We Get It, We Chose to Be Here’: Despite Virus, Thousands Converge on Sturgis for Huge Rally
‘If We Get It, We Chose to Be Here’: Despite Virus, Thousands Converge on Sturgis for Huge Rally
Discussion:
Daily Kos and New York Post

Unwanted Truths: Inside Trump's Battles With U.S. Intelligence Agencies — Last year, intelligence officials gathered to write a classified report on Russia's interest in the 2020 election. An investigation from the magazine uncovered what happened next. — In early July of last year …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Week and Raw Story

No Wrist Corsages, Please — Has America grown since 1984, or will the knives still be out for Biden's running mate? — WASHINGTON — On the cusp of Joe Biden teaming up with a woman, I am casting back to my time covering the first woman who was a serious contender for veep.
Discussion:
Townhall, Twitchy, Power Line, Althouse, Just The News, New York Post, Washington Times, Mediaite, Fox News, Balloon Juice, The Hill, Instapundit and The Wrap

97,000 children reportedly test positive for coronavirus in two weeks as schools gear up for instruction — Nearly 100,000 children tested positive for the coronavirus in the last two weeks of July, a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics finds.

Twitter, TikTok Have Held Preliminary Talks About Possible Combination — Microsoft still seen as front-runner in bidding for video-sharing app's U.S. operations — Twitter Inc. TWTR -1.46% has had preliminary talks about a potential combination with TikTok, the popular video-sharing app …
Discussion:
The Verge, more at Techmeme »

TikTok's fate was shaped by a ‘knockdown, drag-out’ Oval Office brawl — Trump advisers Mnuchin and Navarro fought over TikTok as Silicon Valley dealmakers tried to get closer to Trump — Last week, as leaders in Silicon Valley, China and Washington raced to seal the fate …
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The Hill, New York Times, Investor's Business Daily, The Verge, Tennessee Star, Wired, Bloomberg, TikTok and The Indian Express, more at Techmeme »

“Friday Night Massacre” at US Postal Service: Postmaster General boots top brass ahead of election — The Postmaster General — a major Trump donor — suddenly ousted the Postal Service's top officials … Government watchdogs, Democratic lawmakers, and pro-democracy advocates declared it a …
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Talking Points Memo, Axios and Slate
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Calling it a ‘peaceful protest,’ Trump flouts coronavirus guidelines with golf club gathering — The Debrief: An occasional series offering a reporter's insights — BEDMINSTER, N.J. — Just before 7 p.m. Friday evening, members of President Trump's private golf club here began streaming into a gilded ballroom by the dozens.
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Slate, IJR, The Hill, The Daily Beast and Twitchy
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Andrea Widburg / American Thinker:
President Trump wittily shuts down a snarky reporter
President Trump wittily shuts down a snarky reporter
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New York Post, The Western Journal, Power Line and The Gateway Pundit

A protester tried to ID a police officer on Twitter. Now he faces a felony — along with four who retweeted him. — When Kevin Alfaro noticed a masked police officer befriending a counterprotester who had threatened him at a Black Lives Matter demonstration in Nutley, N.J., on June 19, he whipped out his phone and took a picture.
Discussion:
Law & Crime, The Verge and New Jersey Online
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Jerry Falwell's Zipper Has Been Down for Years — His bizarre Instagram picture is just the latest in a long line of bad decisions that have harmed Liberty University. — The board of trustees of Liberty University announced on Friday that the president and chancellor of the university …
Discussion:
Slate, Raw Story, Pulpit & Pen News and Politico

The Air Force just awarded a contract to develop a hypersonic Air Force One — Editor's Note: This article originally appeared on Business Insider. — The Air Force One of the future might get a major speed boost. — An aerospace company called Hermeus on Thursday announced a contract …
Discussion:
The Drive

Democrats see payoff from pressure campaign on intelligence community — Congressional Democrats — stung by the Obama administration's soft-pedaled approach to Russian election interference in 2016 — have a plan to prevent a repeat under President Donald Trump: make as much noise as possible, early and often.
Discussion:
Raw Story, Just The News, Outside the Beltway, Talking Points Memo and Power Line
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Memphis woman, who said she is recovering from COVID-19, evicted in Raleigh — Leslie Nelson, a 56-year-old Raleigh resident, was evicted from her home of several years Thursday. Nelson, who struggled to breathe while talking to The Commercial Appeal, said she is recovering from COVID-19.

Clemson prof: Trump and ‘anyone who still calls themselves a Republican’ is ‘racist’ — A Clemson University professor wrote that Trump and “anyone who still calls themselves a Republican” is “xenophobic and racist.” — The professor also asked for the home address for the author …
Discussion:
Power Line