FlyDubai Flight to Tel Aviv Issues Distress Signal Before Landing in Saudi Arabia  —  Passengers intervened and “prevented a disaster” after one pilot stabbed another during a flight from Dubai, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.  The motive for the attack was not clear.  —  Here's the latest.

Hegseth confirms that the US military will cut 20% of its generals and admirals  —  Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed Wednesday that the U.S. military will cut 20% of its generals and admirals as he delivered what he is calling his “State of the Force” address.

Eric Schmitt was warned about the Jack Smith texts.  He used them anyway.  —  As they prepared for the testimony of former special counsel Jack Smith, Republican staff on the Senate Judiciary Committee gave Sen. Eric Schmitt a warning: The texts they had obtained from the Justice Department …

Supreme Court Allows Execution of Tennessee Woman to Proceed  —  Christa Pike tortured and murdered a classmate in 1995.  She had been set to die on Wednesday, the first woman executed in the state in 200 years, until a lower court paused the execution.  —  The Supreme Court on Wednesday …

Pete Hegseth appoints Elon Musk to US taskforce on future of warfare  —  A year after his explosive tenure at Doge, the SpaceX CEO is back in the Trump administration's good graces  —  Pete Hegseth announced on Wednesday that Elon Musk will co-lead a government project to study the future of warfare …

FCC's Carr brushes off concerns about Trump's taxpayer-paid election ads  —  With five weeks remaining in the midterm election cycle, Donald Trump and his White House team have unveiled three propagandistic campaign ads, which are being financed entirely by American taxpayers and which appear …

Ron Johnson blocks vote to stop Trump's funding cancellations  —  Sen. Ron Johnson blocked the Senate from passing a bill Wednesday to restore $810 million in federal funding President Donald Trump nixed Friday without Congress' consent and stop him from using the controversial budget tactic again.

How Zuckerberg shaped Trump's AI industry pledge  —  The Scoop  —  The idea for what became President Donald Trump's Tuesday pact with the AI industry came from a conversation between Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and House Speaker Mike Johnson at last week's state dinner, a source familiar with the matter told Semafor.

G.O.P. Nominee in Texas Privately Said Trump's Convention Hurt Him  —  Ken Paxton, one of the party's top Senate candidates and a Trump loyalist, said that “everybody's numbers dropped” after the event, according to audio obtained by The Times.  —  Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for Senate in Texas …

Justice Department files ethics complaint against Minnesota federal judges  —  The Justice Department has filed a formal complaint against nearly all of the federal district court judges in Minnesota, alleging that they violated the judicial ethics code by speaking out about the impact …

EXCLUSIVE: Senator Accuses DOJ and FBI of Withholding Secret Epstein Banker Interview, Demands Release of All FBI 302s  —  Add MeidasTouch as a preferred Google sourceUse your Google account to add this to your settings  —  Senator Ron Wyden is accusing the Justice Department and the FBI …

Decline in tourism hits US economy  —  Overseas visitors to the US are on track to drop by almost two million year-on-year, with even the FIFA Men's World Cup failing to arrest the decline in tourism.  —  The slide is hurting the US economy, and as Axios put it, is partly “self-inflicted …

Judge Questions Secrecy Around Trump Administration's Memo on Boat Strikes  —  The judge also ordered the Justice Department to privately show the court the contested document, which blesses the disputed killings at sea.  —  A federal judge dealt a blow on Wednesday to the Trump administration's efforts …

GOP senator urges ICE to dial back enforcement sweeps  —  Republican Sen. Jim Justice said the Trump administration should reconsider its approach to immigration enforcement Tuesday, joining the chorus of criticism of a recent crackdown that has roiled rural communities ahead of the midterms.

Blackburn sues Jack Smith for obtaining her phone records  —  A close Capitol Hill ally of President Donald Trump is suing the Justice Department and former special counsel Jack Smith for obtaining her phone logs in the course of his investigation into Trump's bid to subvert the 2020 election.

White House removes CNN from press pool for Trump's upcoming trip to Texas and Oklahoma  —  CNN was previously scheduled to fly on Air Force One and also provide on-the-ground coverage of Trump's trip.  —  The White House on Wednesday removed CNN from the press pool that's set to cover …

Congressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election  —  The weeklong staff trip, including stops at a Ferrari factory and Champagne, was to be led by an aide to House Speaker Mike Johnson and was canceled after NBC News asked about the itinerary.

In Texas, Something Seismic Is Happening—and It's All Trump's Fault  —  James Talarico may or may not win the Senate race in Texas.  But here's something we can say right now: Given how close Talarico is coming in this red state after running such an overtly pro-immigrant campaign …

White House begins mailing $500 ObamaCare ‘refund’ checks  —  The White House began mailing $500 refund checks Wednesday to just about 1 million Americans who the administration says were overcharged for their ObamaCare insurance.  —  Treasury Department checks will begin …

OpenAI Executive Backs Out of Second $25 Million Donation to A.I. Super PAC  —  Greg Brockman, OpenAI's president and co-founder, said internally that the super PAC, Leading the Future, had become a “distraction” for the A.I. company.  —  The OpenAI co-founder and president Greg Brockman and his wife …

How Meta Uses A.I. Data Centers to Avoid Billions in Federal Taxes … Mark Zuckerberg says Meta's A.I. push is a tremendous success.  “Our investments in A.I. are accelerating every major part of our core business,” he has told investors.  “Every sign that we're seeing in our own work …

America leaves Iraq, again  —  This story appeared in Today, Explained, a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day.  Subscribe here.  —  The last US troops in Iraq formally withdrew today, 23 years after the United States first invaded Iraq …

Democratic Senators Challenge Trump Officials on Pentagon's Venezuela Oil Deal  —  Ranking Senate Democrats on the foreign relations, energy, banking and armed services committees question deal crafted by top Trump officials  —  Senate Democrats are challenging the legality and prudence …

Hackers stole millions of US military personnel records during months-long data breach  —  The U.S. government is reportedly alerting millions of current and former U.S. military service members and staff that their personal information was stolen during a months-long breach …

Senate approves Trump's pick to lead the Labor Department  —  The Senate confirmed President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Department of Labor on Wednesday just before heading home to campaign for the midterm elections.  Keith Sonderling, who was confirmed 47-41, has been the acting secretary since April …

Pentagon excludes key allies from NATO meeting  —  The Trump administration is excluding several major allies from a gathering of NATO members next month — after threatening to deploy a “naughty and nice list” against governments that have run afoul of the president's priorities.

Newsom signs newsroom subsidy bill, warning of Trump's ‘assault on the free press’  —  Nationally watched bill will cut deductions for salaries over $1 million to fund tax credits to hire journalists  —  Saying that a free press is essential to holding government accountable …

Troy Jackson apologizes for comments on Jewish Mainers' views of Gaza war  —  The Senate nominee's bid to unseat incumbent Susan Collins (R-Maine) is critical to Democrats' hopes for reclaiming control of the chamber.  —  Just now  —  Troy Jackson, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Maine …