Politics

Yahoo News reports: The FBI has obtained secret wiretaps collected by Spanish police of conversations involving Alexander Torshin [photo], a deputy governor of Russia’s Central Bank who has forged close ties with U.S. lawmakers and the National Rifle Association, that led to a meeting with Donald Trump Jr. during the gun lobby’s annual convention in Louisville, Ky., in May 2016, …

The Irish Times reports: Ireland has voted by a landslide margin to change the constitution so that abortion can be legalised, according to an exit poll conducted for The Irish Times by Ipsos/MRBI. The poll suggests that the margin of victory for the Yes side in the referendum will be 68 per cent to 32 per cent – a stunning …

The Washington Post reports: President Trump issued three executive orders Friday aimed at overhauling the federal bureaucracy by making it easier to fire poor performers, sharply curtailing the amount of time federal employees can be paid for union work and directing agencies to negotiate tougher union contracts. The orders could result in the biggest changes in a generation to civil …

Fast Company reports: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is blocking requests for copies of his office’s correspondence with the real estate company previously managed by Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law. Christie, whose eight-year administration spent almost $1 million battling to keep public records secret, issued a letter in his last week in Trenton that declared any requests involving his …

CNN Money reports: Get ready for sticker shock at the gas station if you’re one of the estimated 41.5 million Americans hitting the roads this Memorial Day weekend. Gone are the days of $2-a-gallon gasoline. A spike in crude oil prices has lifted the national average price of gas by 31% over the past year, according to AAA. The rebound …

The BBC reports: Turnout in the Republic of Ireland’s referendum on abortion laws is higher, so far, than in recent votes. Voting will continue until 22:00 local time on Friday. The turnout at mid afternoon on Friday was higher than at the same stage of the country’s referendum on same-sex marriage and its most recent general election. Polls opened at …

CNN reports: Julian Assange’s nearly six-year refuge at the Ecuadorian embassy in London is in danger, opening the WikiLeaks founder to arrest by British authorities and potential extradition to the US, multiple sources with knowledge tell CNN. While Assange has in the past claimed his position in the embassy was under threat, sources say his current situation is “unusually bad” …

The New York Times reports: When Jared Kushner hosted a high-profile summit meeting on federal prison reform at the White House last Friday, some in attendance noticed that the man who was ostensibly in charge of the federal prison system, Mark S. Inch, a retired Army major general, was nowhere in sight. Only Mr. Kushner and a few others knew …

The Associated Press reports: In a forceful rebuke to President Donald Trump and other Washington Republicans, former Vice President Joe Biden told fellow Democrats in New York on Thursday that the GOP has abandoned traditional American values in the name of “phony populism” and “fake nationalism.” Speaking at the party’s New York state convention on Long Island, Biden urged his …

Talking Points Memo reports: Special Counsel Robert Mueller stressed that his investigation into Russian election meddling was ongoing and consisted of “multiple lines of non-public inquiry,” in a court filing Wednesday evening in a lawsuit brought by media companies seeking the release of certain records related to the probe. “Many aspects of the investigation are factually and legally interconnected: they …

“I ran Michigan. Hillary Clinton was not in our state. She did not bring a message to the voters of our state that resonated and President Trump did. He talked about trade. He talked about jobs. He talked about wages. Look where our country is already under our leadership. He won this election because he cared about average working class …

The Washington Post reports: North Korea claimed to have destroyed its nuclear testing site Thursday afternoon, setting off a series of explosions over several hours, apparently to collapse the underground tunnels in which it had detonated six nuclear bombs over the past 11 years. The fact that the Kim regime went ahead with the destruction of the Punggye-ri nuclear testing …

Via Mediaite: “The NFL has made a decision on something that means a lot to you and a lot of other Americans,” Fox & Friends host Brian Kilmeade asked. “What’s your reaction Mr. President?” “Well I think that’s good,” Trump said. “I don’t think people should be staying in locker rooms. But still I think it’s good.” “You have to …

The Albuquerque Journal reports: Shortly after she was arrested on an aggravated drunken driving charge early Sunday, state Rep. Monica Youngblood told an Albuquerque officer through tears that she stands up for police when others criticize them. And she made it clear to the officer that she is a legislator — one who tries to help the police, she said. …

The New York Daily News reports: Gov. Cuomo, facing a tough primary challenge on the left from actress Cynthia Nixon, on Wednesday easily snared his party’s nomination for a third term at the state Democratic convention. With Cuomo winning more than 95% of the vote, Nixon failed to get anywhere near the 25% she needed to guarantee her a spot …

CNN reports: President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, had his White House security clearance restored Wednesday, a person familiar with the matter said, after months of uncertainty stemming in part from his role in the ongoing investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller. Kushner was stripped of his interim clearance in February amid an overhaul of procedures governing …

CNBC reports: President Donald Trump cannot block users on his Twitter feed, a New York federal judge ruled Wednesday. The judge, Naomi Reice Buchwald, ruled that Trump is violating the U.S. Constitution by preventing Americans from viewing his tweets. The suit was filed in July 2017 by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University. “This case requires us to …

The Associated Press reports: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday the Trump administration will not tolerate Russian interference in the 2018 congressional midterm elections. Pompeo told the House Foreign Affairs Committee that the administration will take “appropriate countermeasures” to fight what he called “continued efforts” by Russia to meddle in November’s vote. He did not elaborate on the Russian …

Politico reports: Former FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday pushed back against allegations by President Donald Trump and his allies that the bureau may have been “spying” on his campaign through an informant during the 2016 elections, warning that attacks on the U.S. law enforcement agency “will do lasting damage to our country.” “Facts matter. The FBI’s use of Confidential …

The Daily Mail reports: While he is one of Hollywood’s greatest actors, Robert De Niro also prides himself on being a co-founder of the Nobu restaurant and hotel chain. The Taxi Driver legend, 74, spoke exclusively to MailOnline about life as a superstar, restaurateur and hotelier when he joined fellow founders Nobu Matsuhisa and Meir Teper in launching the new …