Politics

Axios reports: Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), a physician, told me during an “Axios on HBO” interview that he favors cognition tests for aging leaders of all three branches of government. Cassidy, a gastroenterologist, told me during our wide-ranging interview in Chalmette, La., that in your 80s, you begin a “rapid decline.” Noting he wasn’t talking about specific people, Cassidy said: …

The Associated Press reports: Removing the flipping obscenities from license plates on Maine’s roads and highways isn’t going to happen overnight, even though a law banning such profanities in a state where such regulation has been unusually lax goes into effect Monday. Currently, there are license plates with salty language including f-bombs, references to anatomy and sex acts, and general …

USA Today reports: Jussie Smollett will face a Chicago trial jury starting in late November, after a judge denied his latest motion to dismiss disorderly conduct charges arising from an alleged hoax hate crime he reported in 2019. During a mostly behind-closed-doors virtual hearing in Chicago Friday, Judge James Linn allowed one of the newest members of Smollett’s sprawling team …

The Des Moines Register reports: Retired U.S. Navy Adm. Mike Franken will run for the U.S. Senate, setting up what could become a competitive Democratic primary fight with former U.S. Rep. Abby Finkenauer. Though he has never held elected office, Franken enters the race with some statewide name recognition after competing in the 2020 Democratic Senate primary. Along with announcing …

The Tampa Bay Times reports: As part of his platform focused on equality for Floridians of color, Charlie Crist announced Thursday that he would legalize marijuana and expunge criminal records for those arrested on misdemeanors or third-degree felonies related to the drug if he were elected governor next year. At the Florida Capitol, Crist said revenue from state marijuana sales …

The Associated Press reports: Former President Bill Clinton was admitted to a Southern California hospital with an infection but is “on the mend,” his spokesman said. Clinton, 75, was admitted to the University of California Irvine Medical Center on Tuesday evening for a non-COVID-19-related infection, Angel Ureña said Thursday in a statement. “He is on the mend, in good spirits …

Politico reports: Nicholas Kristof, the two-time Pulitzer-winning New York Times columnist, is leaving the newspaper ahead of a likely run for Oregon governor. Kristof, who joined the Times in 1984 and has written a column there since 2001, has been on leave since June as he explored running in the Democratic primary to replace Oregon Gov. Kate Brown in 2022. …

The Louisville Courier-Journal reports: Eight-term U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, the Democratic chairman of the House Budget Committee, announced in a video Tuesday he will not run for reelection in his Louisville district next year. Yarmuth first ran for Congress in 2006, winning a narrow, upset victory over five-term incumbent GOP Rep. Anne Northrup, before defeating her in a rematch by …

NBC News reports: Former President Barack Obama will join a rally for Terry McAuliffe next week, another sign of the urgency national Democrats feel in Virginia’s gubernatorial race. McAuliffe announced Obama’s visit — scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 23, in Richmond — during an appearance Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “There’s going to be a lot of excitement,” McAuliffe said. “The …

The New Jersey Advance reports: In his bid for re-election, Gov. Phil Murphy just went full Jersey on his opponent. With his catchphrase “What a knucklehead,” Murphy retweeted an NJ Dems humorous ad on Monday that takes a swipe at Republican challenger Jack Ciattarelli. The tongue-in-cheek digital ad, stealing a bit from late-night talk shows, first shows “people of the …

The Associated Press reports: Pennsylvania’s high-profile attorney general, Josh Shapiro, will formally announce his candidacy for governor on Wednesday, entering the 2022 race months after making his intentions known and effectively clearing the field of potential rivals for the Democratic nomination. The 48-year-old Shapiro is a self-described progressive who led a nationally prominent investigation into sexual abuse of children by …

The New York Times reports: Chancellor Sebastian Kurz of Austria announced on Saturday that he would resign, days after prosecutors launched a criminal investigation into allegations he used federal money to pay off pollsters and journalists for favorable coverage. The move came amid intense pressure from all sides, with Mr. Kurz’s partners in the government, the Greens, threatening to quit …

Politico Europe reports: France is to use its upcoming presidency of the Council of the EU to launch a global campaign to abolish the death penalty, President Emmanuel Macron said Saturday. In a speech commemorating the 40th anniversary of the abolition of the death penalty in France, Macron said Paris would host a summit in 2022 to press for an …

CBS News reports: The U.S. Postal Service’s controversial slowdown of mail delivery that began October 1 is sparking a pushback from 20 attorneys general. On Thursday, the state officials — ranging from California to New York — sued the Postal Regulatory Commission, alleging that the federal oversight agency didn’t fully vet the broad-ranging plan before the USPS moved forward with …

Reuters reports: A Polish court ruling challenging the supremacy of EU law plunged the European Union into an existential crisis on Friday and raised the possibility of Poland leaving the 27-nation bloc. Politicians across Europe voiced dismay at the court’s move to undermine the legal pillar on which the EU stands, with one minister warning the eastern European country that …

Agence France-Presse reports: A poll in France suggested on Wednesday for the first time that far-right pundit Eric Zemmour would qualify for the second round of next year’s presidential election and eclipse traditional far-right leader Marine Le Pen. Some 17-18 percent of voters told Harris Interactive polling they would vote for Zemmour in the first round, compared with 15-16 percent …

NPR reports: The Senate has passed a bill to increase the federal debt ceiling, after weeks of tense cross-aisle negotiations regarding the looming threat of the country defaulting on its debt. The legislation was approved Thursday night along party lines, with a simple majority. An earlier procedural vote required Republicans to get to 60 votes. It got 61. House approval …

The New York Times reports: The journalists Maria Ressa of the Philippines and Dmitri A. Muratov of Russia were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which the Nobel Committee described as a precondition for democracy and lasting peace. The two were recognized for “their courageous fight for freedom of expression in …

The Tulsa World reports: State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister is running for governor — as a Democrat. The 57-year-old lifelong Republican told the Tulsa World in an exclusive interview that she is changing her party registration on Thursday in order to launch a bid to unseat Republican incumbent Kevin Stitt. “Gov. Stitt is running the state into the ground,” said Hofmeister. …

The New York Times reports: Mayor Bill de Blasio has begun to tell people privately that he plans to run for governor of New York next year, according to three people with direct knowledge of his conversations with fellow Democrats and donors. Mr. de Blasio, who has been a polarizing figure during his two terms in office, has also sounded …