Chasing Side Deals, Flexing Influence: Lewandowski's Power Moves at DHS  —  Kristi Noem's close adviser effectively controlled billions in spending at Homeland Security.  Lewandowski denies seeking business or playing any role in the agency's contracts.  —  Summer Said

Europe's centre fears nationalist wave after AfD victory but only has itself to blame  —  Saxony-Anhalt win part of wider trend driven by mainstream policy failures and gradual normalisation of far right ideas  —  The numbers speak for themselves: Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) …

Canada's Retaliatory Tariffs Set to Take Effect as Trump Threatens to Escalate  —  New Canadian levies of up to 50 percent are expected to begin Tuesday, even as Washington warns of a new round of American tariffs.  —  With an insulted and angry nation solidly behind him …

Trump throws fuel on international feuds with Truth Social post bathing multiple countries in the American flag  —  The president's posts come amid an ongoing trade war with Canada  —  President Donald Trump posted an image on Truth Social on Monday showing a map where the United States covered …

With Ohio's governorship up for grabs, a toxic race turns violent  —  An alleged assailant forced his way Sunday toward Democratic candidate Amy Acton at a county fair, officials and witnesses said.  Authorities said he was carrying two pistols and a Taser.  —  Summary

American workers are getting the smallest slice of the pie on record  —  Since 2000, the value of the S&P 500 stock index has gained about 600%.  Over the same period, inflation-adjusted worker earnings have climbed just 12.5%.  —  It is now the least rewarding time to be a worker …

Why Did Trump Order Up 660 Million Pounds of Mystery Meat?  —  If you buy a T-shirt at Gap, it will have a label that tells you where it was made.  That's federal law.  —  The same is true for automobiles, appliances, television sets, every fresh or frozen fruit and vegetable sold at the supermarket.

Hunter Biden (and His Laptop) Enter the Cryptosphere With New Meme Coin  —  The personal computer that launched a thousand memes will debut this week as a digital token  —  The son of former President Joe Biden is launching a meme coin that takes aim at his family's nemesis, Donald Trump.

Trump officials strip military language criticizing Confederate memorial  —  A new sign at Arlington National Cemetery omits wording that said the 32-foot bronze statue “mythologized” the Confederacy and gave “sanitized” depictions of slavery.  —  Summary  —  The Trump administration …

Republicans blast out ‘free tickets’ offer to save Trump from Dallas convention embarrassment  —  The Texas spectacle later this week could prove to be a misstep for the president if he doesn't get the crowds he wants  —  The Republican National Committee is giving seats away.

Iran war drives $100 billion in extra energy costs for U.S. consumers  —  The war in Iran has now cost U.S. consumers $100 billion in higher energy prices, and the bill is rising another $1 million about every two minutes, per a real-time estimate from Brown University as of Monday morning.

America's expensive groceries are getting less safe to eat  —  Plenty of Americans feel like they're forking over a fortune for groceries—only to get hit with a recall notice that forces them to throw that expensive food out. … - The average American household pays more than $10,000 …

Newsom offers hugs in South Carolina  —  With help from Eli Okun, Ali Bianco and Irie Sentner  —  Good Monday morning, and happy Labor Day.  This is Will Steakin.  The Playbook Podcast and Playbook PM are off today for the holiday, but we'll be back in your feeds tomorrow.  Get in touch.

Neo-Nazis and the Impotence of Trumponomics  —  Crude economics doesn't explain what just happened  —  Neo-Nazis — no point in euphemisms — just won big in the rough equivalent of a state-level election in Germany.  America's leading neo-Nazi — again, no point in euphemisms …

Democrats try a novel path to defeat a battleground Republican: Moving to the left  —  Antiestablishment candidate Randy Villegas is testing the conventional wisdom about what it would take to unseat Rep. David G. Valadao in California.  —  Summary  —  For years, Democrats have been hell-bent …

Jewish voters have long backed Democrats.  Key midterm races are testing that support.  —  Progressive candidates' stances on Israel are causing some Jewish voters to question their support for the party in toss-up races that could determine control of Congress.

The federal government is falling apart  —  When a president is failing, it's not always easy to see that in your daily life.  I would argue that George W. Bush made a lot of bad decisions throughout his presidency, but most Americans didn't feel that in their personal lives until the 2008 financial crisis …

Amazon cargo plane crash victims were in vehicles that were hit, NTSB says  —  The National Transportation Safety Board provided an update Monday afternoon on its investigation into what caused an Amazon cargo plane to overshoot a runway at Miami International Airport and crash into two vehicles …

Zelensky to Axios: U.S. exploring Russia-Ukraine winter de-escalation steps  —  The U.S. is exploring whether Ukraine and Russia could take steps to de-escalate the war during the winter while restarting negotiations toward a broader peace agreement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Axios in an interview Monday.