Top Items:
Michael Gold / New York Times:
Graham Breaks With Trump Over Russia Sanctions Law Her Brother Championed — Senator Darline Graham, appointed to fill the Senate seat of her late brother, Lindsey, gently disagreed with the president's decision to exempt Russia from the sanctions legislation.
Discussion:
Mediaite and Associated Press
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Ben Berkowitz / Axios:
Trump waives new Russia sanctions in the “national interests” — President Trump waived new sanctions on Russia late Friday night, saying it was in the “national interests” to hold off on the sweeping levies under the Graham Act that he signed just last month.
Ben Berkowitz / Axios:
Trump's Russia waiver draws instant bipartisan backlash … - Now he may have to deal with even broader outrage over sanctions Congress approved just a month ago. … - The act would have imposed broad sanctions not only on Russia, but on other countries buying its oil.
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Straight Arrow, Political.org, Politico, The Hill, Mediaite, Wall Street Journal, France 24, The Japan Times, Washington Post, The Kyiv Independent and KIFI-TV
Alan Rappeport / New York Times:
Trump Offers Putin Economic Relief in Hopes That Russia Will Return the Favor — The Trump administration is ignoring the will of Congress and waiving new Russia sanctions amid fears that high energy prices will cost Republicans in next month's elections. — For years, critics …
Discussion:
Bloomberg, The Guardian, Daily Mail, Townhall, Washington Examiner, Daily Kos, Taipei Times, The Hill, Political.org and Semafor
Steven Zeitchik / The Hollywood Reporter:
TikTok “Permanently Bans” the ‘Musk’ Film Account, Raising Suppression Fears (Exclusive) — Move comes just as Alex Gibney doc film expands to nearly 500 screens. Distributor Bleecker Street says it is appealing. — TikTok has banned the entire Musk film account, citing political content that violates its policies.
Discussion:
TechCrunch, The Wrap, Mashable, Variety, Washington Post, The Verge and New Republic, more at Mediagazer »
Associated Press:
Protests erupt across France against rising living costs and in support of students — Cars were set on fire and shops were looted in Paris on Saturday as police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse violent protesters who joined nationwide demonstrations against rising living costs …
Discussion:
Euronews, France 24, KIFI-TV, Associated Press, Political.org, Al Jazeera and Politico
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Jack Burgess / BBC:
Violent clashes, looting and buildings ablaze in France as over 1,000 arrested after protests
Discussion:
France 24, Associated Press and Al Jazeera
Tyler Speicher / Fox News:
Violence erupts at France protests as Macron warns unrest is being exploited
Violence erupts at France protests as Macron warns unrest is being exploited
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, RedState, Legal Insurrection, The Gateway Pundit, Reuters, Political.org, Associated Press, RTÉ and France 24
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Zelensky says Musk-owned satellite system still restricted in Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's use of the Elon Musk-owned SpaceX satellite system remains partially restricted, despite earlier signs this week that it had been fully restored.
Discussion:
Telegraph, The Kyiv Independent, Washington Examiner, Bloomberg, NewsMax.com, The Parnas Perspective, Diplomatic,, The Hill, Mediaite, Reuters and MS NOW
Suryatapa Chakraborty / The Hill:
Trump: California officials will ‘go to jail’ if state ignores DOJ voter roll suit — President Trump reupped the Justice Department's (DOJ) warning that California officials could face criminal charges if they include the mail-in ballots of the over 200,000 people the federal government identified …
Discussion:
Breitbart, Democracy Docket, Trump's Truth, Wonkette, The Post Millennial and The Gateway Pundit
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Rich Calder / New York Post:
Democratic governors' group pours $4.3 million to boost Hochul in re-election bid, releases new anti-Blakeman ads — A Democratic Governors Association-backed Super PAC is pouring more than $4 million into boosting Gov. Kathy Hochul's re-election bid as she desperately tries …
Discussion:
NewsMax.com and City & State New York
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Marie J. French / Politico:
Hochul's GOP rival turns energy cost warnings against her
Brynn Tannehill / Public Notice:
Who wants to visit an authoritarian America? — Public Notice is proudly celebrating 5 years and counting of independent journalism. This special Saturday edition is possible thanks for paid subscribers. Become one ⬇️ — ✈️ Subscribe to PN ✈️
Washington Post:
Rep. Ilhan Omar's lawyers say authorities ignored judge's restrictions on home search — In a letter obtained by The Washington Post, attorneys for the Minnesota Democrat condemned a Justice Department inquiry into her immigration history as a politically motivated attack. — SummaryLoading...
Discussion:
The Guardian, MS NOW, Associated Press, Political.org, KIFI-TV, New York Times and Wall Street Journal
Mike Allen / Axios:
Exclusive: Musk tells Isaacson “AI and robots” will need to fix deficit — Elon Musk tells biographer Walter Isaacson in a new podcast interview that the fizzled DOGE experiment, which the SpaceX and Tesla CEO once headed, proved there's “no way we were gonna solve the deficit from within the government.”
Discussion:
Mediaite
New York Times:
U.S. Floats Another Lifeline to Russia: Allowing It to Sell More Gas to Europe — The Trump administration is pitching the idea as part of a peace deal with Ukraine, but Europe is wary and critics say Russia would be strengthened. — A key element in the Trump administration's broad plan …
Discussion:
Reuters
Meredith Lee Hill / Politico:
Retiring GOP congressmember will ‘absolutely not’ vote for successor in at-risk seat — Retiring Nevada Republican Rep. Mark Amodei said he won't vote for the Trump-endorsed GOP candidate vying to replace him amid a string of stolen valor and other accusations — and warned …
Patricia Mazzei / New York Times:
Bernie Sanders Visits Florida to Campaign With Angie Nixon — Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont has made a point of investing in Republican-leaning states. He rallied in Tampa for Ms. Nixon, the underdog Democratic nominee for Florida Senate. — Senator Bernie Sanders looked …
Yash Roy / Bloomberg:
US Interest Costs Hit Record $1 Trillion, Risking Debt Snowball — The US government's debt interest burden reached a record high for fiscal 2026, eating up a growing share of federal revenue and risking a snowballing of borrowing that could leave the country more vulnerable to economic shocks.
Miami Herald:
Dolly Parton's nephew, former lawmaker struck arms deal in Haiti. Millions are missing — A private security firm founded by two people close to late country music legend Dolly Parton is at the center of an unusually complex arms deal in Haiti that several sources with knowledge of the matter …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
Ava Berger / NPR:
No Kings turns its focus to voting this weekend. Here's what we know — No Kings, the coalition known for organizing anti-Trump protests, is trying a different democratic tactic: increasing voter turnout. — On Saturday, grassroot groups across the country will hold over 3,000 “No Kings: Vote Early” marches and other events.
Discussion:
MeidasTouch, abc7NY, Newsweek, archive.is, Associated Press, Ohio Capital Journal, WAGA-TV, Mercury News, The Portland Press Herald, Daily Montanan, PoliticusUSA, The Hill, Los Angeles Times, The Contrarian, Newsbusters, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Guardian, Washington Examiner, CT Mirror and New York Times
Elizabeth Elkind / Fox News:
Ilhan Omar should be jailed, deported if citizenship fraud proven, Top House Republican says — Omar is under federal investigation over whether she lied on paperwork to obtain US citizenship, which she denies — EXCLUSIVE: The highest-ranking House lawmaker from Rep. Ilhan Omar's home state …
Discussion:
Breitbart, Joe.My.God., Political.org and twitchy.com
CBS News:
In Kentucky midterm campaign stop, Trump says he “can do stuff that is unbelievable” — President Trump touted his power in his second go-around in the White House Saturday while rallying in Kentucky to bolster Republican turnout as his party struggles in the midterms, saying, “I can do stuff that is unbelievable.”
Discussion:
RedState, The Independent, New York Post, Political.org, NewsMax.com, PoliticusUSA, WTOP News, Washington Examiner, The Gateway Pundit and Fox News
Maya Davis / Wall Street Journal:
The Senate Race Republicans Never Expected to Sweat — With Trump's help, Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall scrambles to fend off a surprisingly strong Democratic challenger — Sen. Roger Marshall was in no rush to leave Washington. As some colleagues insisted the chamber recess early in August …
Discussion:
Politico, The 19th and Columbia Journalism Review
Suryatapa Chakraborty / The Hill:
Final Trump arch plans submitted to city omit proposed military complex — Final site plans for President Trump's proposed, 250-foot-tall triumphal arch do not mention the military features he previously said he would add to the project, according to documentation the Interior Department submitted …
Discussion:
The Washington Sun, NewsMax.com and Washington Post
New York Times:
When a Social Media Mob Came for Cornell's Jane Doe — After a former student named seven men in a lawsuit saying they had sexually assaulted her, a movement gained steam online to reveal her identity. — The online campaign to unmask Jane Doe began with pleas on X.
Discussion:
No More Mister Nice Blog and New Yorker
David Spector / New York Post:
Netanyahu fires back at Obama after he accuses Israel of stealing land, defends Palestinian terror — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired back at former President Obama after he claimed Israel had stolen Palestinian land. — “The Jewish people are not foreign occupiers in the land …
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, The Daily Wire, Israpundit and VINnews

