Red Flag Warnings: In a harbinger for what may come in November, a Trump-backed candidate for Congress in Ohio’s traditionally Republican 12th^th district appears to have barely squeaked by. Officially the race between Troy Balderson and Democrat Danny O’Connor is too close to call. The difference is only one percent, but Donald Trump won the 12^th by 11 percent in 2016.

Some political analysts say that coming this close in a district in which the Democrats should have had no chance might signal a blue wave in November.

In a big win for organized labor, Missouri voters rejected the state’s “Right to Work” law that would ban compulsory union fees. Generally anyone who works on a union-organized job is required to pay union dues or they can’t work. Right to Work laws are considered to be designed to weaken the power of unions.

Den of Thieves: There don’t appear to be any heroes in the trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. His former right-hand man, Rick Gates, admitted in federal court in Virginia yesterday that he’d had an affair 10 years ago, occasionally jetting off to see a mistress in London. That on top of admitting he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from Manafort through pumped-up expense reports makes him out to be a slimy guy. The jury will have to believe him to find Manafort guilty of dodging taxes and a host of other crimes.

Defense lawyer Kevin Downing asked Gates, “After all the lies you’ve told and fraud you’ve committed, you expect this jury to believe you?” Gates responded, “Yes, I made a decision. I’m here to tell the truth.” He said, “Mr. Manafort had the same path,” suggesting that his former boss also could have admitted what he did and pleaded guilty. Gates said, “I’m here.”

The case against Manafort is the product of  the Special Counsel Russia investigation, but is only tangentially related. Some of Manafort’s financial dealings involved people with ties to the Kremlin, according to testimony.

Yesterday, as Gates detailed how he and Manafort broke the law to avoid paying taxes, the prosecution introduced a more routine memo from Manafort to Gates saying, “Yankees tickets never received. Tickets going to Trump next week.”

Cult Compound: Investigators have found the remains of a little boy at the site of a strange desert compound in New Mexico where 11 starving children were found in the custody of five adults.

The remains are suspected to be those of 4-year-old Abdul-Ghani Wahhaj, whose father Siraj, abducted him from Georgia eight months ago. The father was one of the adults at the compound.

Wahaj and the other adults, two of whom are his sisters, have been charged with abusing the children.

The three adult siblings and all of the children are believed to be the children and grandchildren of the prominent New York Imam, Siraj Wahhaj, whose son has the same name. The imam was the first Muslim to offer an opening prayer before the US House of Representatives, according to the Muslim Alliance in North America. He was also a character witness for convicted 1993 World Trade Center bombing mastermind Omar Abdel-Rahman.

Flameproof: A Russian company is selling bales of the cancer-causing mineral asbestos bearing a seal with the face of President Donald Trump and the words, “Approved by Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States.”

The Trump administration has loosened restrictions on the use of asbestos, which used to be commonly used for insulation and fire-proofing. It is largely banned because of its association with lung cancer and mesothelioma.

The Environmental Protection Agency recently announced that it would no longer consider secondary exposure to toxic chemicals in evaluating whether they are allowable. The EPA said it will “no longer consider the effect or presence of substances in the air, ground, or water in its risk assessments.”

That’s a loophole through which you can drive a truckload of asbestos.

Flunked Out: University of Southern California President Max Nikias resigned yesterday. Students had demanded his departure for fumbling a scandal in which a university doctor was accused of being a sexual molester.

Junk Share: The bicycle sharing company Ofo has given up on Dallas and left, but they didn’t take their 5,000 banana-yellow bicycles with them. A man came upon a giant tangled heap of bicycles at a metal recycling company. He took a picture that went viral, causing Dallas Mayor Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings

to comment, “Terrible.”

The Obit Page: Stan Mikita, one of the greatest players in the history of the National Hockey League, has died at age 78.

Mikita played in the days before helmets and real teeth. The Slovak-born Mikita, who retired in 1980, is still the highest scorer in the history of the Chicago Blackhawks. He scored 541 goals and 926 assists, which puts him 14^th in the NHL records.

Mikita is credited with discovering the curved blade on the hockey stick. During a game he accidentally caught his stick in one of the doors to the ice, bending it into a V shape. He was amazed at the power and control the stick gave him over the puck. Soon, he and Bobby Hull were steam-bending stick blades and taking accurate shots with the power of a rifle. Goalies had to start wearing masks.

The curved blade soon became universal in the game except in a small boys’ high school in Connecticut where the coach wouldn’t allow them.

List Price: Tesla car company founder Elon Musk announced on Twitter yesterday that he wants to take his company private, buying the whole thing for $72 billion. He said, “Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured.” He didn’t say whether that includes dealer preparation, title, taxes, and the nav package.

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