Several Women Who Dated Graham Platner Recall ‘Unsettling’ Behavior  —  The Democratic candidate for Senate in Maine could be charming, women said in interviews, but some found his actions intimidating and disturbing.  —  TIMES EXCLUSIVE  —  The Democratic candidate for Senate in Maine could be charming …

House Passes Ukraine Aid in Defiance of Republican Leaders  —  Eighteen G.O.P. lawmakers broke with their party and joined Democrats to deliver yet another blow to the president's foreign policy agenda.  —  The House voted on Thursday to approve new aid for Ukraine and impose a fresh round …

Kennedy Center orders staff to begin removing Trump's name after ruling  —  The Kennedy Center's general counsel instructed staff members in a memo to strip all uses of President Donald Trump's name from signs, brochures, the website and other materials.  —  Summary

House bill rolls back food aid for pregnant women, children  —  Millions of WIC recipients would have less money for fruits and vegetables under the legislation, which funds the Agriculture Department and other agencies.  —  Summary  —  As grocery prices continue to rise nationally …

Exclusive: John Bolton reaches plea deal over mishandling of sensitive national security documents  —  John Bolton, President Donald Trump's former national security adviser-turned-adversary, is expected to plead guilty over mishandling classified documents, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

ICE to stop reporting deaths of newly released detainees, internal memo says  —  The agency is facing pressure to improve medical care in its facilities after reporting the deaths of 18 detainees in the first five months of this year.  —  Summary  —  As the number of immigrants dying …

Blanche faces uncertain path through Senate  —  Senators voted to confirm Todd Blanche for deputy attorney general in early 2025, but there's no guarantee they will now vote to install him as the nation's chief law enforcement officer.  Blanche, now serving as acting attorney general …

The real Nick Bilton revealed — from political beliefs of new ‘60 Minutes’ boss to the rivals he beat to top job  —  It turns out Nick Bilton wasn't the only candidate that Bari Weiss considered for the top job at “60 Minutes.”  —  Multiple sources with knowledge of CBS News' hiring practices …

Vanilla Ice Is In, Bret Michaels Is Out: Trump's Battle for Celebrity Validation  —  President Trump has pursued fame his entire adult life.  Now in his second term in the White House, he is finding how little power he has to force cultural figures to fall in line.

Pentagon likely to cancel missile deal with Germany over fears of Russia … Europe “can step up now and in the near term,” Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO's top commander and the head of U.S. forces in Europe, told military leaders this week.  America, he said, will “refocus” equipment and forces elsewhere.

I wrote about George Santos.  Then he made a violent threat and lied about it  —  I was winding down my work day here in Los Angeles when my phone rang at 5:37 p.m. from a blocked number.  It was former Congressman George Santos.  He was boiling with rage.

Ballroom donors won $50B in contracts after giving to Trump project, watchdog group finds  —  President Donald Trump has repeatedly touted the gifts as a boon to taxpayers, but critics of the project say the administration's refusal to release a full list of donors creates the potential for corruption.

Screwworm In Texas Cattle Could Drive Up Beef Prices—After DOGE Axed Prevention Efforts  —  Topline  —  A flesh-eating parasite that was largely eradicated from U.S. livestock in the 1960s has been found in a 3-week-old calf in a south Texas border town, the USDA confirmed …

The Jan. 6 Pardons: How Many Clemency Recipients Have Faced Other Charges?  —  The real count is much higher than the public knew.  —  katherinepomps  —  katherinepomps.bsky.social  —  Meet The Authors  —  At least 97 of the more than 1,500 individuals granted clemency by President Trump …

US-Iran Talks at a Standstill as Hezbollah Rejects Truce  —  There was no sign of progress in ceasefire talks between the US and Iran after the worst burst of violence in weeks and Tehran-backed Hezbollah rejected a US-brokered truce in Lebanon.  Bloomberg's Abeer Abu Omar breaks down the situation.

Van Hollen blasts AIPAC, crypto spending for Hoyer's chosen successor  —  Sen. Chris Van Hollen is slamming the pro-Israel lobby and crypto industry for pouring millions of dollars into the race to replace retiring Rep. Steny Hoyer, accusing the special interest groups of trying to “buy this congressional seat” in their state.

Arizona AG to seek new indictment in Trump 2020 election case … The brief, unexplained decision closed the book on a two-year-old case that threatened some of Trump's closest allies, including former chief of staff Mark Meadows, attorneys Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman and nearly …

Todd Blanche was ‘in charge’ of Epstein matter, Bondi told lawmakers, according to new transcript  —  Epstein files Federal agencies Donald Trump  —  Todd Blanche, President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Justice Department, was responsible for overseeing the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files …

Wildfires are making the US smoggy again, reversing progress on cleaner air, study finds  —  For more than a decade, the United States dramatically reduced its national smog levels, but since 2015 smoke from increasingly larger wildfires is reversing that clean-up trend and making the air dirtier and deadlier, a new study finds.

House panel adopts measure on fired senior officers, putting pressure on Hegseth, Pentagon  —  The House Armed Services Committee adopted a provision for the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would demand the Pentagon inform Congress why senior military officers were fired or dismissed within five days.

Hezbollah rejects latest ceasefire agreement as Israeli strikes kill 4 in Lebanon  —  Hezbollah on Thursday rejected the latest ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Lebanese government, and the militant group demanded a complete Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon as more fighting there hampered efforts to end the Iran war.