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A Wisconsin Supreme Court race holds high stakes for abortion rights and the 2024 election

By Tierney Sneed and Fredreka Schouten, CNN What’s typically an under-the-radar judicial election in Wisconsin has turned into a high-stakes and expensive fight for control of the state’s Supreme Court — with the future of abortion, voting rights and redistricting in this battleground state hanging in the balance. Millions of dollars in advertising have been

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US conducts helicopter raid in Syria capturing ISIS official

By Gregory Clary and Michael Callahan, CNN The US military and Syrian Democratic Forces conducted a helicopter raid in eastern Syria early Saturday, capturing an ISIS official, according to a statement from US Central Command. Batar, “an ISIS Syria Province Official involved in planning attacks on SDF-guarded detention centers and manufacturing improvised explosive devices,” was

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Exclusive: Attorney for Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend says prosecutors didn’t have credible evidence to charge

By Paula Reid and Jeremy Herb, CNN A defense attorney who represented the former girlfriend of Rep. Matt Gaetz says that prosecutors made the right decision not to charge the Florida Republican after a yearslong federal sex trafficking investigation. Attorney Tim Jansen told CNN on Saturday that Justice Department prosecutors were aggressive with his client.

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Rep. Angie Craig’s office releases threatening calls it received after congresswoman assaulted

By Mary Kay Mallonee, CNN Rep. Angie Craig’s office released audio Friday of threatening, vulgar phone calls it said it received after the Minnesota Democrat was physically assaulted in her apartment building in Washington, DC, earlier this month. One of the callers said, “Finally this piece of sh*t gets accosted. … You deserved it.” Another

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Exclusive: Treasury official to say US monitoring and countering Russian intelligence services as part of sanctions crackdown

By Sam Fossum and Jeremy Diamond, CNN Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo plans next week to put Russia and its intelligence services on notice: the US is monitoring their efforts to circumvent US sanctions and is cracking down. “As we look forward, one of the centerpieces of our strategy will be to counter attempts to

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Biden administration releases data breaking down student loan relief applications by congressional district

By Maegan Vazquez, CNN The Department of Education released a breakdown of federal student loan forgiveness applications by congressional district on Friday, providing a new window into the demographics of borrowers seeking relief across both Republican and Democratic-represented districts. The new data is being released as the fate of President Joe Biden’s debt relief plan

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GOP operative gets 1.5 years in prison for facilitating illegal Russian donation to Trump 2016 campaign

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN A Republican strategist was sentenced Friday to 1.5 years in prison for facilitating an illegal contribution from a Russian businessman to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in 2016. Jessie Benton, who worked for the pro-Trump super PAC and was a longtime aide to former GOP Rep. Ron Paul, was convicted by a

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Biden administration restores Obama-era mercury rules for power plants, eyes more regulations in coming months

By Ella Nilsen, CNN The Biden administration on Friday finalized a decision to reestablish Obama-era rules that require coal and oil-fired power plants to reduce toxic pollutants, including mercury and acid gas, that come out of their smokestacks. Mercury is a neurotoxin with several health impacts, including harmful effects on children’s brain development. And while

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GOP Sen. Rick Scott revises plan to exempt Medicare and Social Security from sunset provision

By Steve Contorno, CNN Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida has revised his much-maligned proposal to sunset all federal programs in five years, after absorbing weeks of criticism from Democrats and even his own party, by adding an exemption for Medicare and Social Security. The updated version of Scott’s “Rescue America” plan now says: “All

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Biden’s former executive assistant agrees to interview with House panel in documents investigation

By Paula Reid and Zachary Cohen, CNN Kathy Chung, President Joe Biden’s former executive assistant, has agreed to sit for an interview with the House Oversight Committee as part of its investigation into classified documents found at Biden’s home and office, CNN has learned. The Republican-led committee sent a letter to Chung last month demanding

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Mayorkas goes on the offensive as GOP scrutiny builds, says it’s up to Congress to fix immigration system

By Priscilla Alvarez, CNN Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas pointed the finger back at Congress to fix the country’s broken immigration system and maintained that he will not resign from his post in an new interview with CNN’s Chris Wallace. House Republicans, who have been fierce critics of President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, have been

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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s fate is again in the hands of the Supreme Court

By Joan Biskupic, CNN Senior Supreme Court Analyst The Supreme Court may decide as soon as Friday whether to tackle a new case that could further constrain the power of US regulators to delve into American businesses and individual lives. In recent rulings, this conservative-dominated high court has been diminishing regulatory control for consumer protection,

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Ukraine is burning through ammunition faster than the US and NATO can produce it. Inside the Pentagon’s plan to close the gap

By Haley Britzky and Oren Liebermann, CNN Inside a sprawling factory just off the President Biden Expressway in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, the future arsenal of Ukraine’s war effort is being forged, one red hot artillery shell at a time. Running full-tilt, as it was on a recent January morning, the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant churns

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Ukraine is burning through ammunition faster than the US and NATO can produce it. Inside the Pentagon’s plan to close the gap

By Haley Britzky and Oren Liebermann, CNN Inside a sprawling factory just off the President Biden Expressway in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, the future arsenal of Ukraine’s war effort is being forged, one red hot artillery shell at a time. Running full-tilt, as it was on a recent January morning, the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant churns

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DOJ prosecutors in DC take over corruption probe into Texas attorney general

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN Justice Department prosecutors in Washington, DC, have taken over the corruption investigation into Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. State prosecutor Kent Schaffer, who is separately investigating Paxton, told CNN in an interview that the Justice Department notified him of the change. The yearslong corruption investigation had, until now, been under the

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Amateur balloonist group from Illinois says small balloon last reported over Alaska ‘missing in action’

By Kristin Fisher, CNN An Illinois-based club of amateur balloonists says one of its small balloons is “missing in action” after last reporting its location over Alaska on Saturday, the same day the US military shot down an unidentified object in the same region. While the Northern Illinois Bottlecap Balloon Brigade (NIBBB) has not blamed

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Kentucky Supreme Court ruling allows state’s near-total abortion bans to remain in place for now

By Kiely Westhoff, CNN The Supreme Court of Kentucky ruled Thursday that a lower court wrongfully stopped the enforcement of two state abortion laws, according to court documents. The two measures are Kentucky’s so-called trigger law banning the procedure and a separate “heartbeat” law restricting abortions at around six weeks of pregnancy. Siding with Republican

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Appeals court to hear dispute over Rep. Scott Perry’s phone in January 6 special counsel probe

By Katelyn Polantz, CNN Reporter, Crime and Justice A federal appeals court will hear a dispute over Justice Department investigators accessing Rep. Scott Perry’s cell phone in a case that could affect special counsel Jack Smith’s ability to get information from him and other members of Congress. The case, currently before the DC Circuit Court

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Labor Secretary Marty Walsh confirms he’s leaving Biden administration next month

By Maegan Vazquez and Jack Forrest, CNN Labor Secretary Marty Walsh confirmed Thursday he will leave his position in the Biden administration in March and assume the role of executive director for the National Hockey League Players’ Association, the sports union announced. Walsh’s exit marks the first Cabinet secretary departure of Joe Biden’s presidency. “Earlier

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US military says it will grant service members up to 3 weeks leave to travel for abortions

By Haley Britzky and Oren Liebermann, CNN The US Defense Department released a series of new policies on Thursday to provide additional support to service members and dependents who must travel out of state to receive an abortion, including allowing up to three weeks of administrative leave. “This policy reflects our continued commitment to taking

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Nikki Haley’s first days in GOP 2024 race preview the Trump balancing act awaiting other contenders

By Eric Bradner, CNN Nikki Haley’s entrance into the 2024 Republican presidential race is offering the first demonstration of the difficult task awaiting other potential GOP candidates, as she seeks to stand out in what could become a crowded field — without directly attacking former President Donald Trump or alienating his supporters. Since announcing her

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Fetterman checked himself into hospital ‘to receive treatment for clinical depression,’ office says

By Clare Foran and Jessica Dean, CNN Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania checked himself into Walter Reed National Military Medical Center “to receive treatment for clinical depression,” his chief of staff announced on Thursday. “On Monday, John was evaluated by Dr. Brian P. Monahan, the Attending Physician of the United States Congress. Yesterday, Dr.

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Takeaways from the partial release of a Georgia grand jury report on Trump and 2020 election

By Devan Cole, Marshall Cohen, Katelyn Polantz and Tierney Sneed, CNN Portions of the highly anticipated report from a special grand jury in Georgia that investigated Donald Trump’s actions in the state after the 2020 election were released Thursday, revealing two findings of its monthslong probe but leaving many key questions unaddressed. Fulton County Superior

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Takeaways from the partial release of a Georgia grand jury report on Trump and 2020 election

By Devan Cole, Marshall Cohen, Katelyn Polantz and Tierney Sneed, CNN Portions of the highly anticipated report from a special grand jury in Georgia that investigated Donald Trump’s actions in the state after the 2020 election were released Thursday, revealing two findings of its monthslong probe but leaving many key questions unaddressed. Fulton County Superior

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Trump’s former national security adviser Robert O’Brien appears before federal grand jury

By Casey Gannon, Hannah Rabinowitz and Zachary Cohen, CNN Former national security adviser Robert O’Brien is appearing Thursday before a grand jury in the federal courthouse in Washington, DC, where several Trump-related investigations are being conducted. O’Brien had been subpoenaed by special counsel Jack Smith as part of investigations both into classified documents found at

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US deputy attorney general: ‘I don’t use TikTok, and I would not advise anyone to do so’

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN US Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco on Thursday announced a joint Justice Department and Commerce Department “strike force” aimed at preventing US adversaries from attaining American technology. The Disruptive Technology Strike Force will use intelligence and data analytics, Monaco said in a speech at the policy institute Chatham House in London,

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What to know about the release of parts of a Georgia grand jury report on Trump and the 2020 election

By Jason Morris, Sara Murray and Devan Cole, CNN Portions of a highly anticipated report by the Atlanta-area special grand jury that investigated Donald Trump’s actions in Georgia after the 2020 election will be released Thursday, giving the public its clearest look yet into the two-year probe into Trump and his associates’ efforts to reverse

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Federal regulators to Santos: Appoint a campaign treasurer or stop raising and spending money

By Fredreka Schouten, CNN The Federal Election Commission is warning embattled Rep. George Santos that he needs to name a campaign treasurer if he plans to continue raising and spending money. The commission “has received no information regarding a new treasurer” since the New York Republican’s longtime treasurer Nancy Marks informed the agency of her

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Exclusive: Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows subpoenaed by special counsel in Jan. 6 investigation

By Kaitlan Collins, CNN Donald Trump‘s former chief of staff Mark Meadows has been subpoenaed by the special counsel investigating the former president and his role in the January 6, 2021, insurrection, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. Special counsel Jack Smith’s office is seeking documents and testimony related to January 6, and

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First on CNN: FBI searched University of Delaware for Biden documents, source says

By Paula Reid The FBI has conducted two searches at the University of Delaware in connection with the investigation into President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents, a source familiar with the investigation told CNN. The previously undisclosed searches were conducted in recent weeks, with the consent and cooperation of the president’s legal team, the

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Nikki Haley’s first days in GOP 2024 race preview the Trump balancing act awaiting other contenders

By Eric Bradner, CNN Nikki Haley’s entrance into the 2024 Republican presidential race is offering the first demonstration of the difficult task awaiting other potential GOP candidates, as she seeks to stand out in what could become a crowded field — without directly attacking former President Donald Trump or alienating his supporters. Since announcing her

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House Judiciary chairman subpoenas big tech executives for company communications with executive branch

By Annie Grayer and Alayna Treene, CNN House Judiciary Republicans have subpoenaed the chief executive officers of Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta and Microsoft for information about their companies’ communications with the executive branch over how their content is moderated. The move by committee Chairman Jim Jordan is a notable escalation as part of the House

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Congress needs to act soon to avoid catastrophic US debt default, CBO report warns

By Tami Luhby and Katie Lobosco, CNN The federal government will be unable to fully pay its obligations sometime between July and September if Congress doesn’t address the debt limit before then, the Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday. That’s when the agency expects the Treasury Department will exhaust its ability to borrow additional funds using

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Biden could deliver remarks this week addressing downed objects, sources say

By Jeremy Diamond, Phil Mattingly and Maegan Vazquez, CNN President Joe Biden could deliver remarks this week addressing the downing of the Chinese spy balloon and other unidentified high-altitude objects over North American airspace, two sources familiar with the matter said. White House officials are actively weighing a potential address by the president, the source

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First on CNN: DOJ officially decides not to charge Matt Gaetz in sex-trafficking probe

By Paula Reid and Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN The Justice Department has informed lawyers for Rep. Matt Gaetz and multiple witnesses that it will not bring charges against the Florida Republican after a yearslong federal sex-trafficking investigation. Senior officials reached out to lawyers for multiple witnesses on Wednesday, a source familiar with the matter told CNN,

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Top Republicans plot Santos’ ouster as embattled freshman weighs reelection

By Melanie Zanona, Manu Raju and Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN Embattled Rep. George Santos is contemplating a nightmare scenario for House Republicans: Trying to stick it out in Congress, even if he is indicted on criminal charges. After previously signaling to Republicans he wouldn’t seek reelection, Santos has recently been telling people he is considering running

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New Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine ‘more aspirational than realistic,’ say Western officials

By Jim Sciutto, Chief National Security Correspondent As Russia begins a new offensive in eastern Ukraine, the US and its allies are skeptical Moscow has amassed the manpower and resources to make significant gains, US, UK and Ukrainian officials tell CNN. “It’s likely more aspirational than realistic,” said a senior US military official. Russia has

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New Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine ‘more aspirational than realistic,’ say Western officials

By Jim Sciutto, Chief National Security Correspondent As Russia begins a new offensive in eastern Ukraine, the US and its allies are skeptical Moscow has amassed the manpower and resources to make significant gains, US, UK and Ukrainian officials tell CNN. “It’s likely more aspirational than realistic,” said a senior US military official. Russia has

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Nikki Haley kicked off 2024 presidential campaign with calls for a new generation of leadership

By Kate Sullivan, CNN Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley argued Wednesday the nation was ready to move past the “division and distractions” that she said marked today’s politics and called for a new generation of leadership as she kicked off her 2024 presidential campaign in Charleston. The former twice-elected governor of South Carolina, who

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White House to announce Tesla will open part of its charging network in effort to expand EV access

By Donald Judd, CNN The Biden administration is announcing new steps Wednesday to expand the nation’s electric vehicle infrastructure, including a new partnership with Tesla that would see the electric vehicle manufacturer open a portion of its charging network to non-Tesla EVs for the first time. According to a fact sheet shared with CNN, Wednesday’s

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National Archives agrees to give personal tours to activists who say staff asked them to hide anti-abortion attire

By Devan Cole, CNN The National Archives will give “personal tours” to two activists who sued the federal records agency, resolving a days-old lawsuit the pair brought after staff at the museum told them cover up anti-abortion attire during a recent visit. A federal lawsuit filed last Wednesday said that the activists were visiting the

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Justice Department tells court there’s evidence of a crime in bid to force more answers from Trump attorney

By Kaitlan Collins, Katelyn Polantz and Kristen Holmes, CNN Federal prosecutors investigating former President Donald Trump‘s handling of classified documents are asking a court to force his attorney Evan Corcoran to provide additional testimony, two sources familiar with the Justice Department’s motion told CNN. To overcome the shield of attorney-client privilege, prosecutors alleged in writing

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US jury convicts Russian businessman in $90-million hacking and insider trading scheme

By Sean Lyngaas, CNN A federal jury in Boston has convicted a prominent Russian businessman for his alleged role in a $90-million insider trading scheme that involved hacking into companies and viewing financial data before it became public. Vladislav Klyushin, whose cybersecurity firm reportedly contracted with the Kremlin, was convicted after a 10-day trial of

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Report says Russian government is operating network of camps where it has held thousands of Ukrainian children since start of war

By Jennifer Hansler, CNN The Russian government is operating an expansive network of dozens of camps where it has held thousands of Ukrainian children since the start of the war against Ukraine last year, according to a new report released Tuesday. The report contains disturbing new details about the extent of Moscow’s efforts to relocate,

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Biden on Michigan State shooting: ‘We have to do something to stop gun violence from ripping apart our communities’

By Donald Judd and Maegan Vazquez, CNN President Joe Biden on Tuesday called on lawmakers to take steps to address gun violence in the wake of a deadly mass shooting at Michigan State University, pledging federal support to assist in the ongoing investigation. Three students were killed and five others are in critical condition after

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Biden on Michigan State shooting: ‘We have to do something to stop gun violence from ripping apart our communities’

By Donald Judd and Maegan Vazquez, CNN President Joe Biden on Tuesday called on lawmakers to take steps to address gun violence in the wake of a deadly mass shooting at Michigan State University, pledging federal support to assist in the ongoing investigation. Three students were killed and five others are in critical condition after

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