Impatient Trump tells Dr. Oz to 'declare victory'

By Marita Vlachou

Thursday, May 19

SUDDENLY PENNSYLVANIA REPUBLICANS ARE OK WITH COUNTING MAIL-IN BALLOTS When Pennsylvania's GOP Senate contest is finally decided, it will come down to a thing Republicans love to hate — mail-in voting, which is still being counted and could prove decisive for either Trump-backed Mehmet Oz or hedge fund billionaire David McCormick. The race was still too close to call, with Oz holding a slight lead. Donald Trump thinks he should declare victory anyway. Oz also had the support of Fox News host Sean Hannity. [HuffPost]

BIDEN INVOKES DEFENSE PROTECTION ACT TO COMBAT FORMULA SHORTAGE President Joe Biden is invoking the Defense Production Act to combat an ongoing shortage of baby formula, requiring companies to give supplies to formula manufacturers before any other customer. [HuffPost]

GEORGE BUSH CALLS IRAQ INVASION 'UNJUSTIFIED' IN CRINGEY SLIP-UP Former President George W. Bush made a major slip-up when he deplored the "wholly unjustified" invasion of Iraq during a speech. He made the error while referencing Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "The decision of one man to launch a wholly unjustified and brutal invasion of Iraq," Bush said before correcting his error. "I mean, of Ukraine ... I'm 75." [HuffPost]

RED CROSS REGISTERS HUNDREDS OF UKRAINIAN PRISONERS OF WAR FROM MARIUPOL The international Red Cross said it has registered "hundreds" of Ukrainian prisoners of war who left the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol. Meanwhile, in Washington, the Senate unanimously confirmed Bridget Brink as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, filling the post as officials plan to return American diplomats to Kyiv. [AP ]

Why you absolutely need to report your positive at-home COVID test.
A third of U.S. should be considering masks as cases rise again.
North Korea's suspected COVID-19 outbreak nears 2 million.
TikToks every cat owner can relate to.
I have involuntary tics. This is what it's like when you can't control your body.
What to do if you suspect your teen is getting radicalized online.

Get the latest coronavirus updates on our dedicated page.

'OUTRAGEOUS': TOP DEMOCRAT UNDER FIRE FOR UNDERMINING INCUMBENT IN HIS OWN PARTY The first duty of any politician chairing a campaign committee is to protect their party's incumbents. It does not mean directly challenging one of those members in a primary. But that is exactly what New York Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, who now chairs House Democrats' campaign arm, apparently decided to do. [HuffPost]

SENATE CONFIRMS FIRST-EVER NATIVE AMERICAN FEDERAL JUDGE IN CALIFORNIA The Senate voted to confirm Sunshine Suzanne Sykes to a lifetime seat on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, making her the state's first-ever Native American federal judge and just the fifth Indigenous woman in U.S. history to serve on a federal court. [HuffPost]

FORMER NYC MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO EXPLORING RUN FOR U.S. HOUSE Former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says he's considering a run for Congress after a legal battle over the state's political maps opened up a seat in Brooklyn. [AP]

ELON MUSK SAYS HE WILL VOTE REPUBLICAN Tesla CEO Elon Musk says he will vote Republican from now on, saying Democrats "have become the party of division & hate, so I can no longer support them." The GOP Twitter account welcomed the world's richest person with open arms. [HuffPost]

MONKEYPOX REPORTED IN MASSACHUSETTS Massachusetts reported a rare case of monkeypox in a man who recently traveled to Canada, and health officials are looking into whether it is connected to small outbreaks in Europe. [AP]