FBI raids former Rep. Eric Swalwell's home, seizes devices in probe tied to sexual assault claims  —  Federal agents seized electronic devices from former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell at the San Francisco airport on Saturday and then raided his home in Washington, DC, the next day as part …

Trump aide Natalie Harp worked at the White House without security clearance for a year  —  The close aide to the president, known to filter much of the information reaching the commander-in-chief, ultimately relented in recent months after pressure from White House staff.

Florida Dems scramble to regroup after Nixon upset  —  MIAMI — Progressive Angie Nixon's stunning upset in Florida's Senate race has many Democrats in the state spiraling.  —  The Jacksonville lawmaker's primary victory on Tuesday night over retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman jolted a state few thought would hold any surprises.

After Six Months of War, Trump Is Still Losing to Iran  —  The conflict marks a “precipitous collapse of American power and American prestige.”  —  Spare a thought for the sailors of the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln.  As the United States' campaign against Iran drags on, their deployment aboard …

'It's Bonkers': Jennifer Hegseth's Hands-On Role in Her Husband's Pentagon  —  After an 18-year career at Fox News, she is now her husband's most influential adviser and de facto producer, shaping the job like no Pentagon spouse has before.  —  There has never been a Pentagon spouse quite like Jennifer Hegseth.

North Korea fires barrage of missiles toward the sea after dismissing overture from Trump  —  North Korea launched a barrage of ballistic missiles toward the sea on Thursday, South Korea's military said, a day after the North shrugged off a U.S. decision to scale back military drills …

More than 150 Polymarket wallets may have traded on military secrets, research finds  —  More than 150 wallets on Polymarket International may have traded on inside U.S. military information, attracting copycat bets and raising concerns that the market could broadcast signals exploitable …

Ukraine Planned to Swarm Moscow Airports With AI-Guided Drones  —  The stalled operation, code-named “M&Ms,” sought to isolate Russian elites and force Vladimir Putin to negotiate a truce.  —  Early this year, Ukrainian officials came to President Volodymyr Zelensky with a risky new plan to end the war with Russia.

Two Years Ago, They Revered Trump; Now, They Ridicule and Revile Him  —  Donald Trump has lost his war in reality and virtual reality, not only with Iran but also in the arena where he thought he was the eternal master, in image and myth.  He has lost it on land, sea, and air—and in thin air.

Religious groups ask judge to consider contempt over undercover ICE operation  —  Religious groups are asking a federal judge to consider holding Department of Homeland Security officials in contempt after an undercover agent inadvertently dropped a recording device inside a Minnesota church …

US long-term bonds slide as Bessent intervention fails to soothe investors  —  Yield on 30-year Treasuries rises despite move to ‘at least double’ purchases of securities  —  US long-term government bonds were hit with a fresh wave of selling on Thursday as Treasury secretary Scott Bessent's intervention …

Elon Musk Is Expected to Point His Money Machine at Texas Politics  —  Sources tell WIRED that Elon Musk is expected to spend up to $200 million in the midterms.  It could be a big boost for GOP Senate candidate Ken Paxton, who's struggled to raise cash.  —  Elon Musk is expected to spend big …

Michael Cohen addresses backlash over his Trump interview: ‘We forgave’  —  “The good times don't cease to have existed because the bad times came afterward,” Cohen wrote about the man he once called a “Cheeto-dusted cartoon villain.”  —  Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former lawyer turned nemesis …

August 2026 National Poll: Democrats Lead Congressional Ballot by Eight Points; Rubio Outperforms Vance on 2028 Ballot Tests  —  Home Polls August 2026 National Poll: Democrats Lead Congressional Ballot by Eight Points; Rubio Outperforms Vance on 2028 Ballot Tests

A fake poll tested media and poll trackers.  Here's who passed and failed.  —  Median Strategies, a fake polling firm, claimed it was a “social experiment.”  The fraudulent poll received some attention but was shunned by mainstream poll aggregators and exposed by a reporter.

Experts raise alarms over Census Bureau report Trump is touting on noncitizen voting  —  A highly unusual Census Bureau report that President Trump is using to reup dubious claims of widespread illegal voting by non-U.S. citizens has ties to a Trump-aligned think tank, NPR has learned.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott takes aim at Muslim washing stations in airports  —  Legal experts dispute Abbott's claims that the ritual washing stations are discriminatory, with some saying his attack fits a pattern of anti-Muslim actions and rhetoric.  —  Summary

Poll: Tight race for US Senate between Cotton, Shoffner  —  Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Hallie Shoffner holds a slim lead over incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, but the race is within the statewide survey's margin of error of 4.7%.  —  The new Talk Business & Politics-Hendrix College Poll …

Air Force major detained again for Capitol protest after Trump criticism  —  The U.S. service member who was arrested on the steps of the U.S. Capitol last month after he advocated for President Trump's impeachment was detained again, a U.S. Air Force spokesperson confirmed Wednesday evening.

If you made $1 million a day, it would take nearly 110,000 years to pay off $40 trillion  —  This is the Aug, 20, 2026, edition of “The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe” newsletter.  Subscribe here to get it delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday.

Florida school board at the center of culture wars loses conservative majority  —  Democrats say the flip indicates voters want education to move on from political fights over social issues, while conservatives point to their wins.  —  Summary  —  A Florida school board that was at the epicenter …

JD Vance Thinks You Are Not Christian Enough  —  JD Vance doesn't think our nation is Christian enough to be truly free.  Your faithlessness has broken the social compact, and now it is time for the government to seize greater control.  —  If I had to distill many of our most important economic …

New Drone Unit to Be Phased Out as Hegseth's Army Pick Makes His Mark  —  Gen. Christopher LaNeve takes aim at a cutting-edge drone unit, one of several moves he has made since taking over the Army  —  WASHINGTON—The Army took a major step to prepare for wars of the future in January …

Bonus 244: Minnesota v. Abbott  —  Governor Abbott is refusing to comply with a demand to extradite an ICE officer under criminal indictment in Minnesota.  He has no legal leg to stand on, but may instead be trying to run out the clock.  —  ∙ Paid  —  Interstate extradition is supposed to be boring.

The Dollar, the Dopamine, and JD Vance  —  Get ready for boring econ talk.  —  Before we start: Earlier this week Tim talked about a family currently being held in an American internment camp in Texas.  Freddys Padilla Revilla, Edgarianny Cortez Gervis, and their 7-year-old daughter came to America from Venezuela legally.

Crypto bank part-owned by Trump family offers depositors way to ‘gain favor’ with White House, experts say  —  Democrats have called World Liberty Trust Company a stark example of corruption but officials claim there is no insider dealing  —  Two fundamentals underpin the business model …