Covid-19 Live Updates: U.S. Breaks Record for Most Deaths in a Week  —  Trump officials passed when Pfizer offered to sell more vaccine doses months ago.  Britain is readying a mass vaccination drive.  —  RIGHT NOW The U.S. has recorded its most Covid-19 deaths in a week.  —  Here's what you need to know:

Biden picks retired general Lloyd Austin to run Pentagon  —  President-elect Joe Biden has selected Retired Gen. Lloyd Austin to serve as secretary of defense, according to three people with knowledge of the decision.  If confirmed, Austin would be the first Black person to lead the Pentagon.

Agents raid home of fired Florida data scientist who built COVID-19 dashboard  —  State police brandishing firearms raided the home of Rebekah Jones, the former Department of Health employee who built the state's much-praised COVID-19 dashboard before being fired over what she said was refusing to manipulate data.

Lou Dobbs Snaps at Stephen Miller Over White House Not Doing More on Trump Legal Fight: 'Why Don't You Answer Me?!'  —  Fox Business' Lou Dobbs snapped at White House advisor Stephen Miller as he raged over why Republicans and the White House aren't doing more on the president's legal fight in multiple states.

Trump asks Pennsylvania House speaker for help overturning election results, personally intervening in a third state  —  President Trump called the speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives twice during the past week to make the extraordinary request for help reversing his loss in the state …

Former Israeli space security chief says aliens exist, humanity not ready  —  This “Galactic Federation” has supposedly been in contact with Israel and the US for years, but are keeping themselves a secret to prevent hysteria until humanity is ready.  —  Has the State of Israel made contact with aliens?

Ivanka & Jared buy $30M lot on high-security Miami island  —  Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner have splashed out on a $30 million-plus dollar lot of land on Miami's uber-swanky and high-security Indian Creek Island — known as the “Billionaire's Bunker” — Page Six can exclusively reveal.

Scoop: Trump plots mass pardons, even to people not asking  —  President Trump isn't just accepting pardon requests but blindly discussing them “like Christmas gifts” to people who haven't even asked, sources with direct knowledge of the conversations told Axios.

MSNBC to Name Rashida Jones President, Succeeding Phil Griffin  —  Mr. Griffin, who has been with the cable news network for 25 years, will leave after the end of January  —  MSNBC is expected to name Rashida Jones as the network's president, people familiar with the matter said …

Former Alabama senator dies of Covid at age 78, and in his last words warns, ‘We messed up’ … A former Alabama state senator died of Covid-19 last week at age 78, officials said.  —  Former Sen. Larry Dixon, a Republican who also served as the executive director of the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners …

House conservatives urge Trump not to concede and press for floor fight over election loss  —  What Republicans are saying privately about the election  —  (CNN)President Donald Trump's staunchest defenders on Capitol Hill are urging him not to concede even after President-elect Joe Biden wins …

CREW obtains receipts for Pompeo's notorious “Madison Dinners” … Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spent more than $40,000 in taxpayer money on a series of “Madison Dinners” attended by major donors and figures in the Republican party, according to documents obtained by CREW.

McConnell says Senate will pass defense bill despite veto threat  —  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Monday that the Senate will take up and pass a mammoth defense bill despite a looming veto showdown with President Trump.  —  McConnell mentioned the National Defense …

What The Polls Say About Georgia's Senate Runoffs  —  Headed into the 2020 election, we knew that Election Day might turn into Election Week or even Election Month because of the huge increase in mail voting due to the coronavirus pandemic.  While it thankfully didn't take a month to find …

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals  —  On November 14, 2020, Judge Nicholas George Garaufis of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York issued an opinion regarding the July 28, 2020 memorandum signed by Acting Secretary Chad F. Wolf.  On December 4, 2020 …

Armed Mexicans Were Smuggled In to Guard Border Wall, Whistle-Blowers Say  —  In a complaint unsealed on Friday, whistle-blowers working on President Trump's wall said that contractors were illegally bringing in Mexican guards to protect construction sites.  —  WASHINGTON — Two whistle-blowers …

Why the discourse about Palestinian payments to prisoners' families is distorted and misleading  —  The war of narratives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has intensified as the Trump administration is poised to leave the scene.  As the New York Times recently reported, the Palestinian Authority …

ER doctor who criticized Trump's actions to be removed from Walter Reed schedule  —  Dr. James Phillips, the emergency room physician who publicly criticized President Trump's decision to drive with Secret Service agents to greet supporters while he was hospitalized with COVID-19 in October …

The Man Who Found Forrest Fenn's Treasure  —  The decade-long hunt captured the world's attention, but when it finally ended in June, everyone still wanted to know: Who had solved the mystery?  This week, as legal proceedings threaten his anonymity, a 32-year-old medical student is ready to go on the record.

Elevating Fringe Theories, Ron Johnson Questions Virus Science  —  The Wisconsin Republican has transformed his Senate panel into a forum for amplifying dubious theories and questionable treatments pushed by President Trump.  —  WASHINGTON — In choosing a slate of doctors to testify …

Welcome to Volts  —  Clean energy and politics, electrified  —  Hey there!  My name is David Roberts and this is Volts, a newsletter about clean energy and politics.  (I'm on Twitter as @drvolts and you can email me at [email protected])  —  Volts comes out twice a week, give or take.

The Marines And The Racist Porn Actor Who Tried To Start A ‘Modern Day SS’  —  Four neo-Nazis arrested on gun charges wanted to spark a race war, prosecutors said, and their potential targets included Black Lives Matter protesters.  —  In 2016, Liam Collins, then just a teenager living in New Jersey …

Cornell offers ‘person of color’ exemption for flu vaccine requirement  —  Students at Cornell University can use their status as a “person of color” to be exempt from the university's flu vaccine requirement.  —  “Students who identify as Black, Indigenous, or as a Person of Color (BIPOC) …

Maya Harris aided effort to boost husband's attorney general bid  —  The vice president-elect's sister, a major player in Kamala Harris' presidential run, has no formal role in the Biden transition.  —  Maya Harris, the sister of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, and her husband, Tony West, are pictured.

What Joe Biden reads and watches  —  With help from Renuka Rayasam and Myah Ward  —  HOW THE PRESIDENT-ELECT GETS HIS NEWS — In the Biden administration, the foreign policy establishment is expected to return to its usual position of influence for the occupant of the Oval Office.

No, President Trump can't pardon himself  —  In June 2018, in the throes of the special counsel's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and possible obstruction of justice by President Trump, the president claimed “the absolute right to PARDON myself,” citing “numerous legal scholars.”

This Is How Trump's Executions Are Spreading The Coronavirus  —  The government admitted in a buried footnote of a court filing that “some” key staffers contracted COVID-19 after the last execution.  —  In late November, as health officials urged the public to avoid travel amid a new wave …

Steakhouses, Hill bars and ski trips: GOP carries on amid the pandemic  —  It's not just the White House flouting pandemic rules to mark this town's schmooziest season.  —  Some corners of the GOP, including members of Congress, are refusing to let the coronavirus intrude on their holiday gatherings …