The United States has been considering eventually releasing more than 35 million barrels, Bloomberg reported. The release could be done along with other countries including India, Japan and South Korea. In a statement to Newsweek, however, a National Security Council spokesperson said that no decision had been made. “No decision has been made. I would note that we’ve been saying for weeks we are talking with other energy consumers to ensure global energy supply and prices do not imperil the global economic recovery....

“We are writing today with grave concern that you continue to book Rudy Giuliani on your air to spread false, debunked conspiracy theories on behalf of Donald Trump,” two top Biden campaign advisers—Anita Dunn and Kate Bedingfield—wrote in the letter. Giuliani is a “surrogate” for the president, who has demonstrated that he will “knowingly and willingly lie” in order to advance his own narrative and often contradicts himself “multiple times over the course of an answer,” the letter argues, before then listing some examples....

Restoration PAC conducted a poll of 600 likely voters from July 13 to 27 in Wisconsin and Michigan, two crucial swing states that Trump unexpectedly won in 2016. The polls show Biden ahead of Trump by 11 percentage points in Michigan, as 51.3 percent of likely voters said they would vote for the former vice president, compared with 40.3 percent who said they’d vote for Trump. In Wisconsin, Biden is leading the president by 12....

Raimondo, the former governor of Rhode Island, was confirmed to her Cabinet role in the Biden administration by an 84 to 15 Senate vote on Tuesday. In an interview with MSNBC broadcast Thursday morning, Raimondo raised concerns about China and reiterated that the Biden administration plans to take a tough stance against the East Asian nation. “First, we have to be honest which is to say China’s behavior is anti-competitive, coercive—their human rights abuses are horrific....

As president of Citizens for a Secure and Safe America, an organization of Syrian Americans dedicated to restoring Syria to the Syrian people, I know that President Biden’s foreign policy will be severely tested when it comes to Syria. President Biden must respond to the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II, pressuring Bashar al-Assad to step down and supporting a peaceful, democratic, Syrian-led political transition. The U.S. cannot accept the narrative sanctioned by pro-Assad countries, namely Russia and Iran, according to which the war in Syria is over and Assad has won....

The latest figure, released by news site and data aggregator Real Clear Politics (RCP), placed Biden’s lead over Trump at 6.4 points as of Thursday. The number averaged national election survey results collected between July 21 and August 5. One month earlier, RCP’s national averages pointed to a 9-point Biden lead, as Trump’s approval ratings dropped amid resurgences in coronavirus cases, soaring unemployment and the federal government’s response to the Black Lives Matter protests occurring across the country....

After less than five months of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the United States has spent $8 billion, which is more than we spent during the first five years in Afghanistan. Western officials, including NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, have been warning that Russia’s war in Ukraine will last for years. And President Biden is planning to keep the spigot open indefinitely. In June, Biden said the U.S. would provide support to Ukraine “as long as it takes” to win its war against Russia....

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin was amassing nearly 200,000 troops around neighboring Ukraine, and on February 24 he invaded, starting the first war in Europe since the 1990s. Five days later, Biden gave his first State of the Union address, in which he reiterated his intention to apply an array of punishing economic sanctions on Moscow, as well as his pledge not to send U.S. troops to Ukraine. The speech seemed to reflect the general public sentiment: outrage, but not so much outrage that it required the dispatch of American troops to yet another faraway conflict....

This comes shortly after another leak, when Afghan media revealed a U.S.-authored plan to “accelerate peace talks” to end the war in Afghanistan. What both of these revelations expose is that Washington still has not come to grips with the stone-cold fact that our Afghan war is unwinnable—and it remains unwilling to do what is necessary: end the war and bring the troops home by May 1, as agreed to in the February 2020 agreement the U....

While speaking in Albuquerque, New Mexico, about his administration’s plans to tackle student debt relief, Biden looked toward New Mexico Democratic Representative Teresa Leger Fernandez and asked if they were currently in her district. Fernandez, who represents New Mexico’s 3rd Congressional District, said “no” in response. Following her response, Biden laughed and continued to speak, saying that “the district we are in is pretty good too.” The president then looked toward Fernandez again and said, “I can tell you lack enthusiasm, congresswoman, and it’s contagious....

Speaking from the U.N. headquarters in New York City, Biden opened his speech by telling his counterparts, “Let us speak plainly: A permanent member of the United Nations Security Council invaded its neighbor, attempted to erase the sovereign state from the map.” “Russia has shamelessly violated the core tenets of the United Nations charter,” the president said. Although Biden offered stark criticisms of Russia, he also said Russia should refrain from using its veto power “except in rare, extraordinary situations to ensure the Council remains credible and effective....

Early-season losses to LSU and Oklahoma led to a five-loss season, and Herman enters his fourth year still trying to close the gap with five-time defending champion Oklahoma. That’s the trick with the Big 12 coach rankings. Lincoln Riley is a no-doubt choice at No. 1 and a top-five coach in our 1-130 rankings. The rest of the conference is trying to catch up. Herman, however, faces more pressure than the rest of those coaches because of the Texas brand....

Will that be a sign of things to come when the Sooners and Longhorns ultimately leave for the SEC? The Bears also are the Big 12 Preseason Media Poll pick to defend that conference championship under rising coach Dave Aranda. It’s a tough conference to predict in 2022. Sporting News bunched Baylor, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State together in our Preseason Top 25 in the Nos. 10-12 spots. Those are the preseason favorites again....

The crash occurred on Lap 35 when Matt Kenseth drifted low to avoid hitting Brad Keselowski and slammed into the car of Joey Logano, igniting a chain-reaction crash. MORE: Dale and Danica | Can she win? | Petty stands firm | Engine troubles Also involved were Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Danica Patrick. No one was injured and Stewart, who was returning from a 15-race absence, was able to climb from his car....

But don’t tell that to Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth or Joey Logano. There were five wrecks at Talladega Sunday, but the Big One included just 14 cars. They are often bigger — much bigger. And there were just two big crashes, the 14-car pileup and one that collected eight cars. There’s usually more. But that’s no consolation for Gordon, Kenseth, Logano, Brad Keselowski, Jimmie Johnson and others who wound up in the garage on Sunday....

Only last month, the presidents and chancellors from the 14-team league voted 11-3 to postpone all Fall sports until the spring. Not long after, the Pac-12 postponed its athletics schedules. However, the ACC, Big 12 and SEC went forward with Fall schedules, including football—with fans in the stadiums. The Big Ten on Wednesday unanimously voted to kickoff its season on the weekend of October 24. The teams will try to play eight conference games in eight weeks, culminating with a conference championship game on Dec....

Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany’s salary increased by nearly $800,000 in 2013, according to the tax returns obtained by the Detroit Free Press. MORE: Big Ten coach rankings | Social media gives student-athletes voice | Elliott trolls Michigan The increase boosted Delany’s salary to $2.1 million. He was actually credited with $3.4 on the return, but more than $830,000 of that has been reported as deferred compensation. Delany’s salary increase put him above the Big 12’s Bob Bowlsby ($1....

The Big Ten is 301-49-4 all time against the Mid-American conference, and there are five Big Ten vs. MAC matchups on Saturday. The Big Ten went 9-3 against the MAC last season, but Ohio beat Penn State, Central Michigan beat Iowa and Ball State beat Indiana. WEEK 1 PICKS How they rank 1. Ohio State 2. Michigan 3. Nebraska 4. Wisconsin 5. Northwestern 6. Michigan State 7. Penn State 8....

Longhorns’ coach Steve Sarkisian announced that star running back Bijan Robinson will miss the remainder of the season with a dislocated elbow. MORE: 5 incredible stats from Kansas’ upset over Texas Robinson has been one of Texas’s few bright spots in an otherwise underwhelming season. The sophomore has 1,127 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground in 10 games so far this season, to go along with 295 yards and four touchdowns in the air....