Politics

Roll Call reports: Rep. Maxine Waters of California warned her supporters not to be baited into a confrontation with a a far-right militia group planning a protest at her South-Central Los Angeles office Thursday. The Oath Keepers, which claims 35,000 members who often dress in military gear and carry military-grade rifles at protests and events across the country, issued a …

CNBC reports: President Donald Trump said Thursday that the European Union’s antitrust ruling against Google is proof that it is taking “advantage of the U.S.” On Wednesday, the EU hit Google with a $5 billion fine, alleging the company had violated antitrust laws by bundling its apps like Chrome and Google Play with its Android operating system. Google has 90 …

NBC News reports: Former White House press secretary Sean Spicer said that he does not believe special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation is a witch hunt, contradicting a claim often repeated by President Donald Trump. “As of now, I see no evidence that is it,” Spicer said during an exclusive interview on “Today” when asked if Mueller’s probe is a …

TIME Magazine reports: Israel’s parliament approved a controversial piece of legislation on Thursday that defines the country as the nation-state of the Jewish people but which critics warn sidelines minorities. The government says the bill, passed in the early morning hours, will merely enshrine into law Israel’s existing character. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called its passage a “historic moment in …

The Washington Post reports: Two days after President Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladi­mir Putin, Russian officials offered a string of assertions about what the two leaders had achieved. “Important verbal agreements” were reached at the Helsinki meeting, Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, told reporters in Moscow Wednesday, including preservation of the New Start and INF agreements, …

The Associated Press reports: Is there a backdoor to getting at President Donald Trump’s tax returns? At least one Democratic activist says yes, and it’s through a New York state investigation into Trump’s charity. State attorney general candidate Zephyr Teachout held a news conference in front of Trump Tower on Wednesday calling on the governor to grant authority to state …

Rolling Stone reports: On Tuesday, Jordan’s public-relations crisis became a legal nightmare. Attorneys filed a massive class-action lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Ohio on behalf of an as-yet-unnamed former OSU wrestler. The law firm Sauder Schelkopf is seeking to represent all the students and athletes “treated” by Strauss in his two decades at the school, from the late ‘70s …

The Los Angeles Times reports: The California Supreme Court decided Wednesday to remove a measure aimed at dividing California into three states from the November ballot. In a brief order, the court said it acted “because significant questions have been raised regarding the proposition’s validity and because we conclude that the potential harm in permitting the measure to remain on …

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports: A Democratic Party site selection committee will visit Milwaukee next month as the city tries to become the host of the 2020 Democratic National Convention. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said Tuesday he received a call from Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez to notify the city of the visit. The date of the visit has not …

Charlotte’s NBC News affiliate reports: The RNC site selection committee has voted in favor of Charlotte hosting the 2020 RNC convention, sources tell NBC Charlotte. The entire RNC delegation will confirm their pick this Friday in Austin, Texas. On Monday, the Charlotte City Council voted 6-5 to accept contracts to host the Republican National Convention in 2020. When Charlotte formally …

NPR reports: A Russian woman charged this week with serving as a foreign agent was in regular contact with Russian intelligence, the Justice Department says, and she attempted to offer sex in exchange for a position with an organization she targeted. Prosecutors included that information in court documents as part of their request that Maria Butina be detained ahead of …

The Hill reports: Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) said Wednesday that he “doesn’t care” if President Trump misspeaks — including about Russia. “He’s doing things that are a direct affront to Russia. I don’t care if he misspeaks or if he says the wrong thing,” Hunter said on “Fox & Friends.” “He has a different technique, that’s why I voted for …

Julia Davis writes for the Washington Post: Russian state media are hard at work, praising Putin’s strategy that is finally paying off. That is not surprising, as the state media in Russia are fully controlled by the government. Positions conveyed by the Kremlin’s bullhorns reflect only what is considered permissible by the state. On Russian state television, criticism of Putin …

CNBC reports: Former FBI director and long-time Republican supporter James Comey is urging American voters to support Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections. Comey’s tweet comes as tensions continue to boil over in Washington, following President Donald Trump’s extraordinary press briefing alongside his Russian counterpart in Helsinki on Monday. Speaking next to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump repeatedly rejected the …

The New York Daily News reports: Special counsel Robert Mueller is seeking immunity for five potential witnesses in the upcoming trial of President Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort. Mueller’s office told a federal judge in Virginia on Tuesday that it was seeking to compel the witnesses to testify under condition of immunity. Prosecutors have not identified the witnesses and …

The New York Times reports: Dean G. Skelos, once one of the most powerful political figures in New York State, was found guilty of bribery, extortion and conspiracy on Tuesday, marking the fourth time in five months that a major federal case targeting corruption in Albany has ended in a conviction. The jury in Federal District Court in Manhattan deliberated …

The Associated Press reports: During every previous All-Star Game in Washington, the president was part of the story. That might not be the case this year. Trump’s anticipated absence Tuesday night would allow Nationals Park to perform its usual role for elected officials and other political figures: as a bipartisan oasis where differences are set aside while everyone frets about …

From the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal: Details from the private Trump-Putin talks in Helsinki will spill out in coming days, but Monday’s joint press conference was a personal and national embarrassment. On stage with the dictator whose election meddling has done so much harm to his Presidency, Mr. Trump couldn’t even bring himself to say he believed …

CNN reports: House Speaker Paul Ryan, answering questions at the House GOP’s weekly press conference, said that while he did not believe President Trump’s actions alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin arose to treason as alleged by former CIA chief John Brennan (“I do not,” he said), said he clearly believes “Russia did meddle with our elections.” “Russia is trying to …

The Associated Press reports: Former U.S. President Barack Obama in his first high-profile speech since leaving office is calling today’s times “strange and uncertain.” Obama opened his speech in South Africa by saying that “each day’s news cycle is bringing more head-spinning and disturbing headlines.” He is speaking in South Africa to mark the 100th anniversary of  Nelson Mandela’s birth. …