POLITICS

(Alan Wooten, The Center Square) One day shy of a full two weeks sooner than any other state in the nation, North Carolina county boards of elections on Friday will begin sending absentee ballots to any voter having made a request. The nation’s ninth largest state at 11.2 million is...

(Bethany Blankley, The Center Square) Several new polls show that Gov. Greg Abbott and state Sen. James Talarico are leading in their respective races for governor and U.S. Senate. A new University of Virginia’s Center for Politics rating also downgraded both races, indicating neither are no longer considered solidly Republican....

(Brett Rowland, The Center Square) Most American voters say the country is on the wrong track heading into the midterm elections, and the independent voters who often decide close races are among the most dissatisfied, a new national poll finds. The Center Square Voters' Voice Poll found 60% of registered...

(Headline USA) Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan, apologized to the state's Jewish Democratic Caucus on Saturday for comments he made after an attack on a synagogue in March, which he tied to Israel's actions in the Middle East. “My comments may have been misconstrued to justify...

(José Niño, Headline USA) A fresh analysis of federal visa records suggests that H-1B sponsorship has evolved into something resembling a self-sustaining side hustle, according to a report from the Center for Immigration Studies.  The scheme works as follows: An H-1B holder forms a company, sponsors their own visa through...

(Kyle Anzalone, Antiwar.com) US and Taiwanese officials are alarmed at the status of the US military and its ability to fight a future conflict with China.  According to three sources speaking with The Washington Post, officials at Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACCOM) have expressed frustration with the dwindling military resources available to...

(Kyle Anzalone, Antiwar.com) Update: US officials told multiple outlets that President Donald Trump dispatched CIA Director John Ratcliffe to Russia to warn Moscow not to attack any NATO countries. Earlier this week, an adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that “unknown actors” could attack UK facilities producing weapons...

(Kyle Anzalone, Antiwar.com) Staffers have begun returning to US diplomatic facilities across the Middle East. US embassies in the region have been at a minimal operational level for several months due to the ongoing war against Iran.  On Tuesday, the New York Times reported obtaining an internal State Department memo...

(Chris Woodward, The Center Square) California Attorney General Rob Bonta co-led a lawsuit Wednesday to block a new federal rule governing mail-in ballots. But a former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer who's now working at a think tank says the suit is unnecessary. Prompted by President Donald Trump’s Executive Order...

(Andrew Rice, The Center Square) An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent accused of shooting into a Minnesota home was released from a jail in Texas Thursday after a federal judge refused to extradite him to Minnesota. ICE officer Christian Castro was in custody in Cameron County, Texas. Castro was arrested...

(Madeline Shannon, The Center Square) Republican lawmakers, independent journalist Nick Shirley and a large crowd of activists spoke out against a bill Gov. Gavin Newsom recently signed into law that some said would impede the work of journalists reporting on immigration services providers. Assembly Bill 2624, authored by Assemblymember Mia...

(José Niño, Headline USA) Former Border Patrol commander at large Gregory Bovino used a recent sitdown with Tucker Carlson to repeat a claim he has made for months, that the United States currently harbors 107 million people living here illegally. Bovino, who oversaw border operations from October 2025 until his...