Politics

Politico reports: Gov. Rick Scott’s family fortune could be upwards of $500 million, a number much larger than he has reported in the past because Florida did not require the governor to include massive investments held by his wife, according to federal financial disclosure forms filed Friday. The forms were filed as part of Scott’s bid for the U.S. Senate, …

The Telegraph reports: It was the week that Emmanuel Macron, the slick young French president who once said that he hoped to rule above the political fray like the Roman god Jupiter, was brutally reminded that he is, after all, a mere mortal. His top aides were grilled on live television and the opposition shut down Parliament. And to cap …

The Verge reports: Venture capitalist Peter Thiel has returned to teach a class at Stanford University, according to a listing spotted by Stanford graduate Andrew Granato on Twitter. Thiel is currently listed as a co-instructor for “German 270: Sovereignty and the Limits of Globalization and Technology.” Thiel attended Stanford for both undergraduate and law school, and he previously taught a …

The Washington Post reports: On 111 days of his presidency, Trump has traveled to a golf course and spent several hours there. On a handful of occasions, he or the White House or his golf partners have revealed/admitted that he was playing golf. On most occasions, they haven’t — and the question of who joined him for his hours-long foray …

Well, this is a curious story. The Austin Statesman reports: The sprawling West Austin home of Congressman Mike McCaul used more city-supplied water than any other single-family residence in 2017, according to the Austin water utility. McCaul’s hillside home near Lake Austin was one of 22 residences calculated to have used more than one million gallons of city water in …

CNN reports: The swamp has never seemed so small. Special counsel Robert Mueller and Donald Trump Jr. were spotted — by POLITICO Playbook — at the notoriously dreaded Gate 35X at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Friday. Cue the Twitter jokes. “Avoiding an ex in a confined space like,” wrote CBS Politics reporter Katie Watson. “AWKWARRRRRRD,” CNN’s Brooke Baldwin …

USA Today reports: New York’s utility regulators moved Friday to revoke Charter Communication’s ability to operate in the state, arguing that the state’s top cable provider hasn’t lived up to the terms of its 2016 merger with Time Warner Cable. The Public Service Commission gave Charter 60 days submit a plan to hand over its New York operations to a …

The Hill reports: Defense Secretary James Mattis on Friday disputed a report that the U.S. is preparing a strike against Iran, calling it “fiction.” ABC News had previously reported, citing Australian officials, that the U.S. could launch missile strikes against Iran as soon as next month. “I have no idea where the Australian news people got that information,” Mattis told …

Talking Points Memo reports: Well before he was ordered to pre-trial detention, Paul Manafort may have been practicing his “Jailhouse Rock.” The former Trump campaign chairman spent more than $18,000 on karaoke equipment for his home in the Hamptons, according to invoices and other court documents filed Thursday in his Virginia case, which goes to trial next week. According to …

This really happened today: While trying to promote Congressman Jim Jordan’s campaign to replace Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) as Speaker of the House, Ken Cuccinelli — who is the president of the Senate Conservatives Fund PAC and frequently appears on CNN — accidentally reminded everyone that the lawmaker has been accused of allowing physical abuse to take place while he …

The Guardian reports: Vladimir Putin said on Friday that he has invited Donald Trump to Moscow, countering an offer to visit the United States as a possible sequel to last week’s controversial summit in Helsinki. Putin also addressed Trump’s invitation to Washington DC on Friday, saying he and the US president are ready for further summits, including at the White …

Last night Hillary Clinton received a standing ovation from the audience at a performance Hello Dolly at Broadway’s Shubert Theatre, complete with chants of her name and one audience member shouting, “You can still be 46!” Clinton was supposed to have seen the show back in April, but instead chose to be honored at the New York City LGBT Center, …

The Associated Press reports: The U.S. economy surged in the April-June quarter to an annual growth rate of 4.1 percent. That’s the fastest pace since 2014, driven by consumers who began spending their tax cuts and exporters who rushed to get their products delivered ahead of retaliatory tariffs. The Commerce Department reported Friday that the gross domestic product, the country’s …

The Huffington Post reports: The federal government has issued more than three dozen permits allowing hunters to import lion trophies from two African nations since 2016, according to copies of the applications obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.  Thirty-three Americans were issued permits to import 38 lion trophies between 2016 and 2018, at least half of whom have …

The Associated Press reports: Michael Avenatti, the attorney for porn actress Stormy Daniels, said Thursday that he now represents three additional women who he says had relationships with President Donald Trump and were paid “hush money” before the 2016 presidential election. Avenatti disclosed the information at a community forum in West Hollywood, California, but he would not provide additional information. …

The Daily Beast reports: The Russian intelligence agency behind the 2016 election cyberattacks targeted Sen. Claire McCaskill as she began her 2018 re-election campaign in earnest, a Daily Beast forensic analysis reveals. That makes the Missouri Democrat the first identified target of the Kremlin’s 2018 election interference. McCaskill, who has been highly critical of Russia over the years, is widely …

NBC News reports: New polls in three key Midwestern states show Republican Senate and gubernatorial candidates trailing their Democratic counterparts in hypothetical matchups — particularly GOP Gov. Scott Walker in Wisconsin, where only a third of voters say he deserves to be re-elected and where he trails his leading Democratic challenger by more than 10 points. According to new polling …

“For those of you at home, if I may, journalists are not the enemies of the people. It’s quite the opposite. Our profession is enshrined in the Constitution and the fourth estate holds the essential job of being your eyes and often ears and, when appropriate, your voice. It’s a cornerstone of our republic. Over 22 years at this network, …

ABC News reports: When FBI counterintelligence agents plowed through the emails of alleged Russian agent Maria Butina’s networking around Washington, they discovered her plan to arrange “friendship and dialogue dinners” with influential Americans. At one dinner, ABC News has learned, in February 2017 at the tony French eaterie, Bistro Bis, one guest who dined with the then-28 year old Russian …

Chris Johnson reports at the Washington Blade: A Republican lawmaker in the U.S. House has introduced legislation that appears to be aimed at barring U.S. embassies from flying the Pride flag in recognition of the LGBT community. With little fanfare last week, Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.) quietly introduced the measure, which seeks to “prohibit the flying of any flag other …