Election legal challenges begin; Putin says he won’t use nuclear weapons; fine dining for dogs | Hot off the Wire podcast

With Election Day less than two weeks away, efforts are already underway in courtrooms across the country to sow doubt over the outcome. Since the start of this year, more than 100 election lawsuits have been filed, largely by Republicans.

An independent government watchdog says President Joe Biden’s chief of staff violated the law by retweeting a political message on his official Twitter account.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has denied having any intentions of using nuclear weapons in Ukraine but described the conflict there as part of alleged efforts by the West to secure its global domination.

A new U.S. defense strategy says China remains the greatest security challenge for the United States despite Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.6% annual rate from July through September, snapping two straight quarters of contraction and overcoming high inflation and interest rates just as voting begins in midterm elections in which the economy’s health has emerged as a paramount issue.

Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates topped 7% for the first time in more than two decades this week.

The European Central Bank has made another outsized interest rate hike aimed at squelching out-of-control inflation, moving at the fastest pace in the euro currency’s history.

Hawaii officials are warning residents of the Big Island to prepare for the possibility that the world’s largest active volcano may erupt given a recent spike in earthquakes at the summit of Mauna Loa.

Elon Musk is telling Twitter advertisers he is buying the platform to help humanity. He says he doesn’t want it to become a “free-for-all hellscape” where anything can be said with no consequences.

San Francisco is a foodie heaven with plenty of Michelin-starred restaurants. And San Franciscans love dogs. So it might come as no surprise that an entrepreneur has decided to combine the two passions, creating what’s believed to be the first restaurant exclusively for man’s best friend.