Meet Senator Rand Paul.  On the one hand he can write his opinions on the opioid epidemic here where I almost agree with him.  On the other hand, he can say things like in this article where he comes off as a crank.

Governor Pat McCrory signed HB 972 into law in North Carolina.  This bill exempts dash cam and body cam videos exempt from the public record.  Not surprisingly, the ACLU of North Carolina is not happy with this development.

Ruben Kihuen is trying to win an election in Nevada against a Republican incumbent.  He posted pretty good fundraising numbers.

Progressive Zephy Teachout has raised a considerable sum of money to help her try to win a Congressional seat against her Republican opponent.

Barack Obama wrote an article for the Journal for the American Medical Association.  And consistent with the Obama of the last few years, he’s finally willing to say what’s on his mind.

“The first lesson is that any change is difficult, but it is especially difficult in the face of hyperpartisanship. Republicans reversed course and rejected their own ideas once they appeared in the text of a bill that I supported. For example, they supported a fully funded risk-corridor program and a public plan fallback in the Medicare drug benefit in 2003 but opposed them in the ACA. They supported the individual mandate in Massachusetts in 2006 but opposed it in the ACA. They supported the employer mandate in California in 2007 but opposed it in the ACA—and then opposed the administration’s decision to delay it. Moreover, through inadequate funding, opposition to routine technical corrections, excessive oversight, and relentless litigation, Republicans undermined ACA implementation efforts. We could have covered more ground more quickly with cooperation rather than obstruction. It is not obvious that this strategy has paid political dividends for Republicans, but it has clearly come at a cost for the country, most notably for the estimated 4 million Americans left uninsured because they live in GOP-led states that have yet to expand Medicaid.”