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Tim Walz’s political evolution took him from moderate Democrat to progressive champion

By Arit John and Gregory Krieg, CNN (CNN) — In 2023, Tim Walz declared time for bargaining, light cajoling and compromise was over. After four years of divided government, Minnesota voters had handed Democrats control of the state House, Senate and, for Walz, reelection to the governor’s mansion. After the “enormous headwinds and complicated politics”

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Prosecutors claim Hunter Biden once agreed to lobby US on behalf of Romanian businessman

By Marshall Cohen, CNN (CNN) — Federal prosecutors alleged in a new court filing Wednesday that Hunter Biden agreed to lobby US officials on behalf of a Romanian businessman facing criminal investigations back home. The new accusation came from special counsel David Weiss, who is prosecuting Hunter Biden for alleged tax evasion. The case, scheduled for

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Oklahoma seeks Supreme Court order that Biden administration stop blocking health grants amid abortion referral dispute

By Tierney Sneed, CNN (CNN) — Oklahoma is asking the Supreme Court to stop the Biden administration from denying federal family planning funding to the state amid a dispute over abortion counseling. As a condition of receiving $4.5 million in family planning grants under Title X, the US Department of Health and Human Services is requiring that Oklahoma’s programs provide the

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Attorneys say Austin violated military rules in halting deal for alleged 9/11 conspirators

By Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — Defense counsel for the alleged 9/11 conspirators at Guantanamo Bay claimed Wednesday that a move by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to revoke a previously-agreed-upon plea deal violated military regulations and exposed the system as “corrupt.” “We have had an unprecedented act by a government official to pull back what

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Senate investigation into Coast Guard finds that sexual misconduct is a ‘pervasive problem’ throughout the service

By Melanie Hicken and Blake Ellis, CNN (CNN) — Senators investigating misconduct within the US Coast Guard have heard from more than 80 whistleblowers whose stories detailed “systemic sexual assault and harassment, including a culture of silencing, retaliation, and failed accountability,” according to a report released Wednesday. The 48-page majority staff report is from the

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Georgia State Election Board passes new rule allowing county boards to demand more information before certifying an election

By Jason Morris and Nick Valencia, CNN (CNN) — Georgia’s State Election Board passed a new rule ahead of the November election that will give county election boards the authority to demand more information, including the ability to conduct inquiries, before certifying election results. The rule change comes 91 days ahead of the presidential election –

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Maryland assault weapons ban upheld by appeals court as sparring over Supreme Court precedent continues

By Tierney Sneed, CNN (CNN) — A federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld Maryland’s ban on assault weapons, with impassioned majority and dissenting opinions that sparred over how recent Supreme Court gun rights precedents should apply to the case. The challenge to Maryland’s law is one of dozens of gun rights lawsuits that have required

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Pakistani national with ties to Iran charged in connection to a foiled assassination plot potentially targeting Trump

By Evan Perez and Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — The Justice Department has charged a Pakistani man who has alleged ties to the Iranian government with seeking to carry out political assassinations, a case that prompted the US government to increase security for former President Donald Trump and other officials, according to court documents unsealed Tuesday. FBI investigators believe

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Harris decides on Tim Walz as running mate

CNN By John King, Jeff Zeleny, Jamie Gangel, MJ Lee, Daniel Strauss, Gregory Krieg, Kristen Holmes and Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — Vice President Kamala Harris has chosen Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota as her running mate, elevating the former teacher and Army National Guard veteran to join the Democratic ticket and help lead the

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Seven US personnel injured in Monday rocket attack at Al Asad airbase in Iraq, including two evacuated for further care

By Haley Britzky, CNN (CNN) — Seven US personnel were injured when two rockets hit Al Asad Airbase in Iraq on Monday, a defense official said on Tuesday. “Five US servicemembers and two US contractors were injured in the attack. Five injured personnel are receiving care at Al Asad Airbase and two have been evacuated for

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Freed American says she’s ‘finally being treated as a human being’ after Russian detention

By Piper Hudspeth Blackburn and Liam Reilly, CNN (CNN) — Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva said she’s “finally being treated as a human being” following her release from Russian detention in a historic prisoner exchange between Washington and the Kremlin last week. “I’ve been waking up from that nightmare,” Kurmasheva told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “The

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Arizona AG drops election subversion charges against former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis in exchange for testimony

By Zachary Cohen and Holmes Lybrand, CNN (CNN) — Former Donald Trump 2020 campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in the Arizona election subversion case, the state’s attorney general announced Monday, and charges against her will be dropped. Ellis is expected to cooperate with prosecutors and testify against other defendants in the criminal case as part of

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Supreme Court rejects Missouri lawsuit to block Trump’s sentencing and gag order in New York hush money case

By John Fritze, CNN (CNN) — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an effort by Missouri’s Republican attorney general to lift a gag order and delay the sentencing of former President Donald Trump following his conviction in the New York hush money case. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey attempted to file the longshot suit against New York in early

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Usha Vance defends husband’s ‘childless cat ladies’ comment as a ‘quip’ in first solo interview

CNN By Aaron Pellish, CNN (CNN) — Usha Vance, the wife of Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance, defended her husband’s previous comments deriding childless adults and downplayed his labeling of some Democratic politicians as “childless cat ladies,” calling it a “quip.” In a sit-down interview with Fox News that aired Monday, Usha Vance, a

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Election officials urge Elon Musk to stop his AI chatbot from spreading false 2024 election information

By Zachary Cohen and Marshall Cohen, CNN (CNN) — A bipartisan group of secretaries of state blasted Elon Musk and his X platform Monday for providing “false information” about Vice President Kamala Harris’ supposed ineligibility to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot in several battleground states. The group flagged issues that emerged last month with

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Usha Vance defends husband’s ‘childless cat ladies’ comment as a ‘quip’ in first solo interview

By Aaron Pellish, CNN (CNN) — Usha Vance, the wife of Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance, defended her husband’s previous comments deriding childless adults and downplayed his labeling of some Democratic politicians as “childless cat ladies,” calling it a “quip.” In a sit-down interview with Fox News that aired Monday, Usha Vance, a trial

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Inside the legal plans by foes of Donald Trump and Project 2025 to fight his second-term agenda

By Tierney Sneed, CNN (CNN) — If Donald Trump is elected, he’ll take office next year having learned the lessons of four years of legal battles in his first term, during which inexperienced personnel, slapdash policymaking and his own indifference to how the federal government worked made his agenda especially vulnerable to legal challenges. The

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Harris’ whirlwind running mate search enters final hours as she prepares to take new Democratic ticket on the road

By Arit John and Jeff Zeleny, CNN (CNN) — Vice President Kamala Harris is making the biggest decision of her two-week-old presidential campaign as she chooses a running mate and prepares to introduce the new Democratic ticket to voters in several key battleground states this week. Harris is focusing on Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and

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How two topsy-turvy weeks upended Trump’s 2024 campaign

CNN By Eric Bradner, Alayna Treene and Kristen Holmes, CNN (CNN) — A 17-day stretch with few parallels in American history has upended what looked to Donald Trump’s campaign like a clear path to victory when the former president stepped on the Republican convention stage in Milwaukee. In that moment, a unified Republican Party had rallied around Trump after he

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Republicans for Harris launches, aiming for Biden-like appeal to anti-Trump voters

By Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN (CNN) — The group known as Republicans for Biden is officially relaunching Sunday as Republicans for Harris, and aides on the revamped Democratic campaign are hoping that a much different candidate will be able to deliver on what had been a key part of Joe Biden’s electoral promise. The rollout will include outreach from Republicans to Republicans, targeted ads and themed events

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Judge overseeing election subversion case against Trump in DC rejects another effort to dismiss case

By Holmes Lybrand, CNN (CNN) — A day after getting the election subversion case against Donald Trump back, the presiding federal judge rejected another effort by the former president to have the case dismissed. Earlier this summer, the Supreme Court granted Trump sweeping immunity for official acts as president, and the case, brought by special counsel Jack

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Texas woman who traveled to DC arrested for allegedly making threats against Trump

By Adrienne Winston, CNN (CNN) — The Metropolitan Police Department said it arrested a Texas woman who traveled to Washington, DC, for allegedly making threats against former President Donald Trump and carrying a gun without a license. Police were first alerted to woman Friday afternoon by the US Secret Service, according to a police report obtained by CNN.

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Freed American’s family to miss Taylor Swift concert for the very best reason

By Jennifer Hansler, CNN (CNN) — Miriam Butorin was supposed to attend Taylor Swift’s concert on Friday for her 13th birthday. She is missing it, but for the very best reason. Miriam’s mother, Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, was released Thursday from Russian detention in a historic prisoner swap. The release of the 47-year-old journalist for the US-backed

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Kamala Harris has earned enough votes to win the Democratic presidential nomination, party chair announces

CNN By Ethan Cohen and Arit John, CNN (CNN) — Vice President Kamala Harris has won enough votes from Democratic delegates to win the party’s nomination for president, Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison announced Friday. Harris will become the first Black woman and first Asian American to lead a major-party ticket. The announcement came during a

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Kamala Harris has earned enough votes to win the Democratic presidential nomination, party chair announces

By Ethan Cohen and Arit John, CNN (CNN) — Vice President Kamala Harris has won enough votes from Democratic delegates to win the party’s nomination for president, Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison announced Friday. Harris will become the first Black woman and first Asian American to lead a major-party ticket. The announcement came during a virtual

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Judge Chutkan could jumpstart Trump election interference case now that it’s back in her court

By Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN (CNN) — A federal judge in Washington, DC, on Friday regained control of the criminal case against former President Donald Trump for his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, leaving the historic case’s fate in her hands less than 100 days before the November election. The case was returned to Judge Tanya Chutkan

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‘There was no excitement. Now, there’s tons’: How Harris’ candidacy has energized plans for the DNC

By Priscilla Alvarez, Elizabeth Wagmeister and Kayla Tausche, CNN (CNN) — In the moments after President Joe Biden pulled out of the 2024 race, a scramble unfolded as officials raced to reframe the Democratic National Convention around a new candidate: Vice President Kamala Harris. Officials quickly moved to tailor the Chicago convention to Harris with

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JD Vance’s Republican colleagues defend Trump’s running mate saying Ohio senator is a voice for next generation of GOP voters

By Lauren Fox and Jeremy Herb, CNN (CNN) — JD Vance’s Republican colleagues in the Senate say they’re largely sticking with the Ohio freshman – despite newly resurfaced comments facing criticism – warning that Vance represents where Republican see their voters moving. In the weeks since becoming Donald Trump’s chosen running mate, Vance has found himself caught in the middle of

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Tears, hugs and a salute as three freed Americans back on US soil after historic prisoner swap with Russia

CNN By Simone McCarthy, CNN (CNN) — Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former US Marine Paul Whelan and Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva have landed in the United States, following the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War. The returnees were greeted with tears and embraces by their joyous families at Joint Base Andrews in

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Tears, hugs and a salute as three freed Americans back on US soil after historic prisoner swap with Russia

CNN By Simone McCarthy, CNN (CNN) — Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former US Marine Paul Whelan and Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva have landed in the United States, following the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War. The returnees were greeted with tears and embraces by their joyous families at Joint Base Andrews in

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Tears, hugs and a salute as three freed Americans back on US soil after historic prisoner swap with Russia

By Simone McCarthy, CNN (CNN) — Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former US Marine Paul Whelan and Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva have landed in the United States, following the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War. The returnees were greeted with tears and embraces by their joyous families at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland,

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Appeals court narrows Voting Rights Act’s scope for redistricting cases in the South

By Tierney Sneed, CNN (CNN) — The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals narrowed the scope of the Voting Rights Act for redistricting cases in a large swath of the South, ruling against the Justice Department and voters of color who had challenged Galveston, Texas’s county commission map for how it been redrawn to dismantle a district where minorities made up

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Fact check: Trump, who approved multiple prisoner exchanges, falsely claims he gave up ‘nothing’ to get Americans back

By Daniel Dale, CNN Washington (CNN) — In May, former President Donald Trump declared that he was the only person who could obtain the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich from a Russian prison. After President Joe Biden proved the claim wrong on Thursday by securing the release of Gershkovich and others in a multi-country

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Panel recommends Trump ally Jeffrey Clark’s law license be suspended over his role in efforts to overturn 2020 election

By Katelyn Polantz, CNN (CNN) — Jeffrey Clark, the Trump-era Justice Department official who advocated for the department to contact Georgia and cast doubt on Donald Trump’s 2020 election loss, should face a two-year suspension from practicing law, a disciplinary committee in Washington, DC, said Thursday. As an environmental lawyer at the Justice Department, Clark

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Vance defends Trump over former president’s false claims about Harris’ racial identity

By Eric Bradner and Kit Maher, CNN (CNN) — Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance on Thursday defended Donald Trump’s false comments about Kamala Harris’ racial identity, saying that it was “totally reasonable” for his ticket mate to describe the vice president as someone who “pretends to be somebody different, depending on the audience she’s talking to.”

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Vance defends Trump over former president’s false claims about Harris’ racial identity

CNN By Eric Bradner and Kit Maher, CNN (CNN) — Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance on Thursday defended Donald Trump’s false comments about Kamala Harris’ racial identity, saying that it was “totally reasonable” for his ticket mate to describe the vice president as someone who “pretends to be somebody different, depending on the audience she’s talking

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Vance defends Trump over former president’s false claims about Harris’ racial identity

CNN By Eric Bradner and Kit Maher, CNN (CNN) — Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance on Thursday defended Donald Trump’s false comments about Kamala Harris’ racial identity, saying that it was “totally reasonable” for his ticket mate to describe the vice president as someone who “pretends to be somebody different, depending on the audience she’s talking

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