Politics

Mediaite reports: Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) is calling on the governor of New York to pardon Donald Trump after the former president was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments. Phillips, who unsuccessfully challenged President Joe Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination this cycle, tweeted at Governor Kathy Hochul (D) on Friday night to …

CNN reports: Marian Robinson, the mother of former first lady Michelle Obama, has died, according to a statement from the Obama and Robinson families. She was 86. “As a sister, aunt, cousin, neighbor, and friend to so many, she was beloved beyond words by countless others whose lives were improved by her presence,” the statement from Barack and Michelle Obama, …

Reuters reports: Jerusalem on Thursday held its annual gay pride parade under heavy security and with a subdued vibe, given the solemn mood in Israel after months of war. LGBTQ+ supporters marched the streets of Jerusalem carrying rainbow flags, Israeli flags and yellow ribbons, a symbol for hostages still held in Gaza. Absent were the vibrant cheers and music that …

Axios reports: X and cable news network NewsNation are planning to host live town halls with former President Trump and independent presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy Jr., two sources familiar with the plans told Axios. The pair have agreed in principle to separate live interviews as part of a new video series, titled “The People’s Town Hall,” per the sources, …

NBC News reports: West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who has spent his entire decadeslong political career as a Democrat, said Friday he is leaving the party and registering as an independent, raising speculation about whether he may run for another Senate term or for governor this fall. “To stay true to myself and remain committed to put country before party, …

“It is fundamental to our American system of justice that the government prosecutes cases because of alleged criminal conduct regardless of who the defendant happens to be. In this case the opposite has happened. The district attorney, who campaigned on a promise to prosecute Donald Trump, brought these charges precisely because of who the defendant was rather than because of …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Supreme Court gave a boost on Thursday to the National Rifle Association in its free speech dispute with a New York state official it accused of coercing banks and insurers to avoid doing business with the influential gun rights advocacy group. The justices, in a 9-0 decision authored by liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor, threw out a …

“What if I told you there’s a magical place. where they can print money and you never have to pay your bills? A place where spending money you don’t have is good, term limits are bad and border security doesn’t matter? “It’s a place where they don’t care about crime or inflation. And where you can invent your own truth. …

“Nikki Haley is disgusting. She’s a disgusting human being to do that. That’s genocidal language and it’s the language that has the American people turning against our government. Why do we continue to support not just the consistent attacks in Gaza, but the forever wars? There are people in our country, their entire lives, me included, it seems like we’re …

“We are talking right now with NewsNation, with your network, and Elon Musk has offered us a platform on X, and Elon is now talking also with NewsNation to do a joint platform and a joint debate, kind of an alternative debate. So you know, that’s something we’re looking at. I obviously would like to be on the debate– I …

CNN reports: Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday alleging President Joe Biden’s campaign, former President Donald Trump’s campaign and CNN violated federal campaign laws in scheduling the network’s June 27 presidential debate. The complaint alleges CNN “colluded” with the Biden and Trump campaigns in scheduling the debate and setting debate qualification …

CBS News reports: Justice Samuel Alito is flatly rejecting calls to recuse himself in two cases before the Supreme Court involving Donald Trump because of two flags that flew outside his homes. In letters Wednesday to House and Senate Democrats, Alito said he had nothing to do with the flying of the flags, and that nothing about the incidents merited …

Reuters reports: Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva removed his ambassador to Israel from his post and sent him to serve as his special representative in Geneva amid a diplomatic spat between the two countries, the official gazette showed on Wednesday. Meyer’s recall had followed Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz summoning Meyer to tell him Lula was persona non …

Rolling Stone reports: Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s husband is currently representing Fox Corporation, the parent company of Fox News, in a defamation lawsuit, according to court records reviewed by Rolling Stone. The lawsuit relates to reports by one of Fox’s local stations. Jesse Barrett is a trial lawyer and managing partner at SouthBank Legal. He heads the firm’s …

Bloomberg News reports: Keir Starmer’s opposition Labour Party extended its poll lead over the Conservatives even as Rishi Sunak’s party unveiled a series of pledges intended to build momentum early in UK election campaigning, YouGov said. Labour was 27 points ahead of the Tories in the survey by YouGov, which was commissioned by Sky News and conducted from May 27 …

The Hill reports: Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan (R) was projected to narrowly win his primary runoff on Tuesday, according to Decision Desk HQ, defeating a conservative challenger backed by former President Trump. Phelan’s reelection bid was thrust into the national spotlight after he presided over the impeachment trial of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Trump endorsed conservative activist David …

Reuters reports: South Korea accused North Korea on Wednesday of sending a large number of balloons across their heavily fortified border to drop objects including trash and excrement, calling the act base and dangerous. The military’s explosives ordnance unit and chemical and biological warfare response team were deployed to inspect and collect the objects, and an alert was issued warning …

The Associated Press reports: Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas narrowly won his primary Tuesday against a gun-rights activist who pushed the border congressman into a bruising runoff that threatened to unseat a U.S. House incumbent. Gonzales defeated Brandon Herrera, a gun enthusiast who calls himself “The AK Guy” on social media and attacked him over positions that angered the …

The Washington Post reports: The police in Fairfax County, Va., received an unusual phone call on Feb. 15, 2021. A young couple claimed they were being harassed by the wife of a Supreme Court justice. The couple placed the call after a series of encounters with Martha-Ann Alito, wife of Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., that had gone from uneasy …

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: A Republican member of the Fulton County elections board refuses to certify primary election results unless given access to detailed voting data, a move that Democrats worry could jeopardize certification of November’s general election results. Julie Adams, who joined the Fulton County Board of Registration & Elections in February, sued the board and the county’s elections …