A Russian woman who was working for a Russian oligarch-funded project intended to conduct "information warfare against the United States" was charged Friday by the Justice Department, reports CBS News. She is the first person to be charged in relation to interference in the 2018 elections.

The woman, Elena Alekseevna Khusyaynova, allegedly spread content online that sought to fan the flames of "political intensity through supporting radical groups" and inciting racial tension. The project, dubbed "Project Lakhta," leveraged social media to spread divisive messages. A close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin's, oligarch Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin, is allegedly behind two companies that ran the ongoing project to export political discord.

Separately, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said that U.S. intelligence officials haven't seen any evidence that foreign countries are working to interfere in any specific race in the upcoming midterm elections, The Daily Beast reports. Russia, China, and Iran "may seek to influence voter perceptions," he said, but no specific races have been targeted. Read more at about Project Lakhta at CBS News. Summer Meza

The Trump administration wants to do away with the Office of Personnel Management, and will furlough 150 workers if Congress tries to intervene, The Washington Post reports.

The agency manages the government's civilian workforce. The Trump administration says it is a troubled department that needs to be dismantled, and wants Congress to kill the department by June 30. An internal briefing document obtained by the Post shows that if Congress balks, employees will be sent home without pay on Oct. 1, and after 30 days, could be laid off. More than 5,500 people work in the department, and the Post reports that dozens of workers have retired or quit in recent months because they're not sure what will happen come October.

The Government Accountability Office, a federal watchdog, released a report this week concluding that if the agency is shuttered, it would increase, not ease, a retirement claims backlog. The Trump administration wants to divide the agency among three other departments, and acting OPM Director Margaret Weichert told the Post "a legislative solution would be the most straightforward answer, but we've made it very clear we can't wait without action." Weichert, three officials told the Post, has told staffers that she is "planning to play chicken with Congress." Catherine Garcia

There appeared to be progress on multiple fronts to avoid a military confrontation with Iran on Wednesday, but the Trump administration's plan remains unclear.

House Democrats voted to pass a $1 trillion appropriations bill, which includes a repeal of the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force — Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), the only member of Congress to vote against AUMF in 2001, added the repeal last month.

However, no Republicans voted for the bill and it appears unlikely it will get past the Senate.

The AUMF was passed days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, granting the president authority to use military force against those responsible for the attacks and those who harbored them, generally considered to be al Qaeda and Afghanistan, respectively.

But lawmakers recently raised concerns that the Trump administration was potentially prepared to invoke AUMF to launch a war with Iran, after statements by officials tying Iran to al Qaeda, which raised skepticism in Congress.

On the other hand, President Trump is reportedly less hawkish on Iran than his advisers and he has privately pushed them to ease up their talk. Trump even called the attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, which the U.S. alleges were orchestrated by Tehran, "very minor." State Department Special Representative Brian Hook, meanwhile, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee in a hearing on Wednesday that there is "no talk of offensive action" and the priority remains putting economic pressure on Iran, The Daily Beast reports. Tim O'Donnell

President Trump's tariff threat didn't hurt the USMCA after all.

On Wednesday, Mexico's senate overwhelmingly voted to ratify the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement. The deal is an update of North American Free Trade Agreement the three countries squabbled over last fall, and comes despite Trump threatening tariffs on Mexico a few weeks ago.

Mexico's Senate voted 114-4 to approve the deal, with three lawmakers abstaining from the vote. Some of those voting for the deal were cautious, seeing as Trump has been notoriously unpredictable when dealing with his southern neighbor, but said the bill was essential in guaranteeing Mexico's economic viability, Politico reports. Despite largely voicing opposition to Trump, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador also pushed for the deal, essentially ensuring its passage in a Senate held by his party. The deal contains many of the same provisions as NAFTA, but calls for more automotive manufacturing within the three countries, per The Washington Post.

The approval came despite Trump threatening in late May to impose tariffs on Mexico unless it curbed the flow of migrants into the U.S. Several GOP lawmakers broke with Trump over the tariff threat, with some saying it would jeopardize the USMCA's passage. Trump later called off the threat after successful discussions with Mexican authorities. Kathryn Krawczyk

NXIVM founder Keith Raniere has been found guilty on all counts.

Raniere, who prosecutors said ran a "sex cult" within his purported self-help group, on Wednesday was found guilty on seven counts, including racketeering conspiracy, forced labor conspiracy, and sex trafficking conspiracy, CNN reports. He was also found guilty of possession of child pornography, NBC News reports.

These charges come in connection with a sorority known as DOS, which operated within Raniere's group NXIVM. In the sorority, prosecutors say women were allegedly branded with Raniere's initials and required to hand over compromising material, including nude photos of themselves, and told it would be released if they tried to leave, The New York Times reports. Women in DOS were referred to as "masters" and "slaves," with prosecutors saying victims were "exploited, both sexually and for their labor." The group gained nationwide attention after a Times investigation published in Oct. 2017.

Former followers testified during Raniere's six-week trial in Brooklyn, with one saying she was sexually assaulted by Raniere after being instructed to seduce him, The Daily Beast reports. Raniere pleaded not guilty, and his lawyer during trial said that all of the relationships Raniere had with members of the organization were consensual, BuzzFeed News reports.

Smallville actress Allison Mack previously pleaded guilty to racketeering charges over her role in the alleged sex cult, saying that she "believed Keith Raniere's intentions were to help people, and I was wrong." Raniere will be sentenced on Sept. 25 and faces life in prison. Brendan Morrow

These 2020 Democrats want to make it clear they love their wives.

On Wednesday, The New York Times published a sweeping interactive article featuring most of the Democratic presidential candidates answering 18 different questions. To start, the contenders answered "who is your hero?" — and barely any of them produced a somewhat original response.

Of the 21 contenders who agreed to the Times' interview (Joe Biden notably sat it out), two-thirds of them said their heroes were some family member. Four of them said it was their wife. Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) decided it was Baker Mayfield, the Cleveland Browns' quarterback.

For those who initially responded with a touching personal hero, the Times then probed further, asking for a "political hero" as well. A solid five of them said Abraham Lincoln, while three said Teddy Roosevelt and two said Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Notably, only Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) listed women as their political heroes, naming Harriet Tubman and Shirley Chisholm, respectively. Statistically, there's a solid chance Washington Gov. Jay Inslee's hero, "the American voter," could be a woman as well. Kathryn Krawczyk

The NBA is really going all in on legalized sports betting.

The league, in conjunction with the NBA Players' Association and United Kingdom-based Highlight Games Limited, announced on Wednesday that it will create a virtual sports-gambling game called NBA Last 90, because people apparently want to spend their money betting on games that are not real. The league will reportedly splice together clips from its archives of old games to create the final 90 seconds of a simulated matchup between two NBA teams.

It'd work like this, Bloomberg reports: Fans will watch 90 seconds of clips between two teams from previous matchups between the squads. The clips will then be strung together as if it were a new game, and those watching can put money down on who will "win." A random number generator, like those used in slot machines, will determine the outcomes of the simulations, ESPN reports.

The NBA has heartily embraced legalized sports betting, Bloomberg reports, and has even been lobbying statehouses across the countries. As for the virtual aspect, it's new to the U.S. sports betting landscape, but is reportedly popular in Europe, which is what stoked the NBA's interest in the first place. Tim O'Donnell