Politics

When President Trump delivers his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, one phrase is unlikely to show up: "rocket man."

A lot has changed since Trump used that derisive nickname for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his address at the U.N. last year — remarks where he also said the United States would "totally destroy" North Korea if necessary.

By now, you’ve heard about Christine Blasey Ford’s allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. She’ll testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday.

Updated at 4:30 p.m. ET

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein remained in his job on Monday afternoon after a visit to the White House that sparked a flurry of reports suggesting he might resign or be fired.

A person close to Rosenstein said he was expecting to be fired after the New York Times story on Friday about his early tenure in office. The deputy attorney general oversees the special counsel's Russia investigation, which has made Rosenstein's job security part of the long-running political battle over the probe.

Updated at 8:32 p.m. ET

Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh says he isn't considering withdrawing following more allegations of sexual misconduct from decades ago, and he proclaimed his innocence in a new TV interview Monday evening.

"I'm not going to let false accusations drive us out of this process," Kavanaugh told Fox News' Martha MacCallum in an interview alongside his wife, Ashley.

Editor's note: NPR is examining the role of women in the 2018 midterm elections all week. To follow upcoming coverage and look back at how the role of women in the 2014 midterms was covered, click here.

Updated at 11:18 p.m. ET

Days before the Senate is set to hear from a woman who alleges that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh attempted to sexually assault her while in high school, Kavanaugh is denying fresh accusations from a college classmate who also alleges he acted inappropriately toward her.

Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her more than 30 years ago, will testify Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Attorneys for Ford reached an agreement with committee staff on Sunday after days of negotiations over the conditions and details of her appearance. The terms of their agreement provide that Kavanaugh will also appear before the committee, but he will not be in the room while Ford is speaking or being questioned.

Dennis Hof sits on a red and black velvet couch under TV screens that flash pictures of scantily clad women. Behind him, the doorbell is ringing and women in lingerie line up. Men walk in, select one of the women, sit with them at the bar and eventually head down a long hallway into bedrooms.

"We call it a meet and greet. So a customer comes up and the bell goes off and we let the girls know there's a new client in the house come out and meet him," he says, sipping on iced coffee and explaining the ways of his brothel.

California election officials are launching a new effort to fight the kind of disinformation campaigns that plagued the 2016 elections — an effort that comes with thorny legal and political questions.

The state's new Office of Elections Cybersecurity will focus on combating social media campaigns that try to confuse voters or discourage them from casting ballots.

During the 2016 election, in addition to hacking email accounts and attacking voting systems, Russian agents used social media to plant disinformation intended to drive down voter turnout.

Updated at 3:00 p.m. ET

It is still unclear exactly how and under what conditions Christine Blasey Ford will testify Thursday on Capitol Hill. Ford has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of a sexual assault when they were in high school.

Updated at 9:05 p.m. ET

Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who has accused Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assaulting her in high school, has agreed to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, her attorneys said Saturday.

Bipartisan negotiators have tentatively agreed to work toward a Thursday hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee with Kavanaugh and Ford, but talks continue on a final agreement, according to multiple congressional sources.

Editor's Note: This story contains descriptions of alleged sexual assault.

Guiding her cart down an aisle of a Virginia grocery store, Leigh Michel attracts more attention than the average shopper.

"Do you know where the dog food is?" one man asks her. This kind of attention makes her uneasy.

"No, I don't," Michel answers. "Sorry."

The man assumes Michel would know the answer because her service dog, an English black Labrador named Lizzy, is walking at her side.