Top 8 today

Top eight stories for today including Republicans face an uphill battle in their quest to win control of the U.S. Senate; NATO officially invited Sweden and Finland to join the military alliance; Ohio abortion providers sued to block the state’s six-week ban, and more.

National

Don’t be so sure that Republicans will win the Senate

Expectations that Republicans will win control of the U.S. Senate in November, like the apocryphal reports of Mark Twain’s death, may have been greatly exaggerated.

Senate candidate JD Vance, left, greets former President Donald Trump at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in Delaware, Ohio, on April 23, 2022, ahead of the state primary on May 3. (AP Photo/Joe Maiorana)

High court expands state power over tribes

Limiting a watershed ruling on tribal authority, the Supreme Court on Wednesday reinstated a state court conviction related to the abuse of a child who is part Cherokee by her stepfather who has no Native American heritage.

Oklahoma and Indian Territories, 1890. (Credit: Library of Congress via Courthouse News)

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer to retire Thursday

Justice Stephen Breyer sent a letter to the White House on Wednesday announcing his retirement from the Supreme Court will be effective Thursday at noon.

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer speaks during a Feb. 17, 2022, hosted by the Law Library of Congress for the 2022 Supreme Court Fellows Program. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool, File)

Giuliani crony Lev Parnas sentenced to nearly 2 years in prison

Lev Parnas, a former associate of Rudy Giuliani while the latter was the personal attorney for then-President Donald Trump, was sentenced to 20 months in prison on Wednesday.

Lev Parnas, left, and his lawyer Joseph Bondy leave federal court following closing arguments in his trial on Oct. 21, 2021, in New York. (Stefan Jeremiah/AP)

Regional

New York wields new nuisance law against manufacturers of ghost guns

The New York attorney general and New York City doubled down Wednesday on the quest to outlaw “ghost guns,” bringing municipal and federal litigation against gun manufacturers and distributors that sell weapons by the part.

A display of ghost guns, firearms without serial numbers, that have been linked to a rise in violent crime across the U.S. (Haven Daley/AP)

Gun-wielding Senate hopeful accuses Missouri congresswoman of inciting threats

Mark and Patricia McCloskey, the Missouri couple who parlayed their armed resistance to a group of Black Lives Matter protesters into a U.S. Senate run, have sued Congresswoman Cori Bush and state Representative Rasheen Aldridge for their roles in the 2020 protest.

Armed homeowners Mark and Patricia McCloskey stand in front their house in St. Louis on June 28, 2020, to confront protesters marching to the mayor’s home. (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP, File)

Clinics urge Ohio Supreme Court to block six-week abortion ban

Ohio abortion providers fighting to block enforcement of legislation passed in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade sued the Republican attorney general in the state’s high court, claiming the law “has now decimated abortion access” in the Buckeye State.

A Planned Parenthood facility that provides abortion services in Mobile, Alabama appeared closed on June 24, 2022, the day the United State Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade. (CN / Gabriel Tynes)

International

NATO invites Sweden and Finland to join alliance

NATO will start its process of incorporating Sweden and Finland into the military alliance after it officially invited both countries to join, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at a press conference in Madrid on Wednesday.

Heads of state pose for a group photo following the official welcome for the NATO summit in Madrid, Spain, on Wednesday, June 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

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