Democrats embrace $15-an-hour minimum wage

Obama on Dallas: ‘Vicious, despicable, calculated attack on law enforcement’
President Barack Obama on Friday called the shootings of police officers in Dallas “a vicious, despicable and calculated attack on law enforcement.”

House Democrats join protests over police shootings
A handful of African-American House Democrats on Thursday joined protests outside the Capitol as demonstrators gathered in the wake of two deadly police shootings of black men.

Gingrich: If asked, I would be Trump’s VP
Newt Gingrich said Thursday that if asked, he would feel “compelled to serve the country” as Donald Trump’s running mate.

State Department reopens probe into Clinton emails
The State Department is reopening its investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state.

Pelosi to Republicans on sit-in consequences: ‘Make my day’
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has just three words for congressional Republicans looking to discipline Democrats for participating in last month’s sit-in for gun control legislation: “Make my day.”

New Clinton ads depict Trump as lightweight
A pair of new ads from the Hillary Clinton campaign highlight Donald Trump’s past statements in depicting the Republican nominee as a lightweight unfit for office.

Gingrich defends Trump’s Star of David tweet
Newt Gingrich on Thursday defended Donald Trump’s controversial tweet about Hillary Clinton featuring the Star of David over a field of money, telling CNN there was nothing anti-Semitic about the image and that the recent uproar was an “absurd” and “demagogic” attack orchestrated by the media.

GOP gun bill in limbo, as Ryan threatens punishment for Democrats’ sit-in
A high-profile gun bill pushed by House Republicans leaders remains in limbo because a key bloc of conservatives opposes it and GOP leaders can’t muster the votes to pass it.

Who is James Comey: 7 things to know about the FBI director
FBI Director James Comey’s announcement two days ago that he would not to recommend charges against Hillary Clinton following an investigation into her use of a personal email system earned him an invite to Capitol Hill on Thursday, where he testified for nearly five hours before the Republican-led House Oversight Committee.

White House says Obama ‘deeply disturbed’ by recent shootings
The White House on Thursday called on community leaders to do more to strengthen the bonds of the trust between law enforcement officials and the communities they are sworn to protect in the aftermath of two shooting deaths of black men by police officers.

FBI Director Comey: Petraeus case worse than Clinton’s emails
Republicans have long insisted that former CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus’ mishandling of classified information was far less egregious misconduct than Hillary Clinton’s private email use while leading the State Department.

High interest, low satisfaction in the 2016 campaign
Voters are more tuned into the race for president than usual, but this year’s increased interest may stem more from frustration than hope.

Trump meets with Cruz, Priebus
Donald Trump met Thursday with former GOP presidential rival Sen. Ted Cruz and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus in Washington, a source told CNN.

Clinton narrowing VP choice, waiting for Trump
Hillary Clinton is spending a rare day away from the campaign trail and the fundraising circuit, arriving at her Washington home on Thursday to pour through reams of research about potential running mates before she begins a final series of interviews and appearances with her top vice presidential choices.

Sanders on deaths of Sterling, Castile: ‘IT. MUST. STOP’
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has yet to formally drop out of the Democratic presidential race, sent a series of tweets Thursday condemning the back-to-back shootings of African-American men by police officers.

Trump meets with more than 200 House Republicans
For congressional Republicans hoping to see a more composed, presidential Donald Trump as he made his first visit to Capitol Hill to unite the party, the last 24 hours have not been reassuring.

Comey defends FBI probe into Clinton emails
FBI Director James Comey vigorously defended the agency’s investigation of Hillary Clinton’s private email server Thursday after a top Republican argued that average Americans who behaved similarly would be led off in handcuffs.

How to (and how not to) pick a VP
Pundits often act like picking a V.P. is like balancing an equation, but a look at recent history shows that may not be quite so simple.

The race to replace Mike Pence is already underway
Donald Trump hasn’t yet picked Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate — but already, Pence’s home-state Republicans are jockeying for his job.

Indiana GOP to Trump: Take Mike Pence, please
The prospect of Donald Trump tapping Indiana Gov. Mike Pence to serve as his running mate has both national Republicans and local party members salivating — but for different reasons.

Senator could play king-maker role at RNC
As competing factions’ maneuvering around the Republican National Convention comes down to the wire, eyes are starting to focus on one senator to determine whether the gathering is good or bad for Donald Trump.

NYT reporter: Clinton’s reluctance compounded email controversy
Hillary Clinton’s initial reluctance to confront the controversy surrounding her use of private email as secretary of state has compounded the political fallout, according to a reporter who has covered the presumptive Democratic nominee for decades.

U.S. jets diverted to Iraq, abandoning Syrian rebels
U.S. support jets assisting Syrian rebels diverted to Iraq to strike suspected ISIS militants last week, according to a senior U.S. official, leaving the rebels without badly needed air cover.

Ryan formally asks DNI to block Clinton’s access to classified info
House Speaker Paul Ryan sent a letter to Director of National Intelligence James Clapper Wednesday requesting he deny any classified info to Hillary Clinton for the rest of the 2016 campaign.

Obama heads to NATO summit at ‘inflection point’
President Barack Obama departs for a high-stakes NATO summit in Poland Thursday, marking what’s likely to be his final presidential trip to Europe as the continent faces a moment of historic uncertainty.

Live updates: Donald Trump, James Comey head to Capitol Hill

The Atlantic City summer that nearly ruined Trump
Trump says he left Atlantic City as a rich man. But records obtained by CNN reveal that he struggled and maneuvered his way through near financial collapse.

CNN’s Reality Check Team looks at Clinton’s attacks on Trump’s business record
Hillary Clinton traveled to Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Wednesday to take aim at Donald Trump’s business record, and CNN’s Reality Check Team put her statements and assertions to the test.

Clinton: The shooting of Alton Sterling a ‘tragedy’, calls for justice
Hillary Clinton called the shooting of Alton Sterling a “tragedy,” in a statement on Wednesday night, and said she was “glad the Department of Justice has agreed to a full and thorough review of this shooting.”

Orlando DNC meetings could lead to Clinton-Sanders joint event
The outcome of the weekend Democratic platform meeting in Orlando will help determine whether Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders appear together in New Hampshire next week, people familiar with the talks say.

Father and son fight FAA over weaponized drone
A Connecticut judge heard arguments on Wednesday over whether the constitutional rights of two men who equipped a drone with weapons and posted videos to YouTube will be violated if a federal agency were to investigate them.

Chris Murphy: Trump shouldn’t have access to classified information
Sen. Chris Murphy said Wednesday it was Donald Trump — not Hillary Clinton — who Americans should worry will divulge classified information.

Hill Republicans move to bar Clinton from getting classified info
FBI Director James Comey’s scathing criticism of Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information gave new ammunition to congressional Republicans already critical of the Democratic nominee’s private email use, and is now prompting an effort to ban her from any future top secret briefings.

Rubio won’t attend the Republican convention
Marco Rubio, former rival to presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump, will skip the Republican National Convention.

Trump on six-pointed star tweet: ‘Should have left it up’
Donald Trump on Wednesday said his staff “shouldn’t have” deleted a tweet from his account that immediately drew criticism for evoking anti-Semitic imagery.

Trump camp may lack numbers to stop delegate revolt, for now
Donald Trump’s campaign still lacks a sufficient number of supportive delegates to guarantee that any revolt at the Republican National Convention could be put down, a key committee delegate says.

How GOP hopes to keep Clinton email scandal alive
Republicans aren’t about to let Hillary Clinton’s email scandal die.

Republicans cite conflicts and plan to skip Trump Hill meetings
Donald Trump is coming to Capitol Hill to rally the GOP troops roughly two weeks before he’s slated to accept his party’s nomination for president at the GOP convention in Cleveland, but the crowd might be a little thin.