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:

Presidential Transition Live Updates: ‘Safe Harbor’ Day Arrives, the Deadline to Resolve State Election Challenges  —  Today is the deadline for all state-level election challenges to be completed.  President-elect Joe Biden will tap a retired four-star Army general to be the first Black secretary of defense.

In new lawsuit, Texas contests election results in Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania  —  Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to block the battleground states from casting “unlawful and constitutionally tainted votes” in the Electoral College.

Scoop: West Wing fears COVID spread after Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis attends WH party  —  President Trump's lawyer Jenna Ellis has informed associates she has coronavirus, multiple sources tell Axios, stirring West Wing fears after she attended a senior staff Christmas party on Friday.

Florida police raid home of former state Covid-19 data scientist  —  (CNN)Florida police raided the home of a former state coronavirus data scientist on Monday, escalating a feud between the state government and a data expert who has accused officials of trying to cover up the extent of the pandemic.

Exclusive: Suspected Chinese spy targeted California politicians  —  A suspected Chinese intelligence operative developed extensive ties with local and national politicians, including a U.S. congressman, in what U.S. officials believe was a political intelligence operation run …

Christopher Krebs sues Trump campaign, lawyer Joe diGenova for defamation  —  The former top U.S. cybersecurity official responsible for securing November's presidential election sued the Trump campaign and one of its lawyers for defamation Tuesday, asserting that they conspired to falsely claim …

Trump blows a hole in the GOP on his way out  —  Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the presidential election have met with defeat in every swing state and in nearly every court where his cases have been heard.  But Trump's campaign to pressure GOP elected officials to support his baseless claims …

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 …

The $124 billion Supreme Court case that could throw the housing market into turmoil, explained  —  Collins v. Mnuchin is an early test of just how much chaos the Supreme Court's new majority is willing to impose on the government.  —  SHARE All sharing options

Huawei tested AI software that could recognize Uighur minorities and alert police, report says  —  An internal report claims the face-scanning system could trigger a ‘Uighur alarm,’ sparking concerns that the software could help fuel China's crackdown on the mostly Muslim minority group

Is This a Coup?  Introducing The Counter  —  I present my own essay on the dangers of the moment and a strong counterargument against it  —  One of the best ways to think through and sharpen—or abandon—an argument is to confront the best case against it.  So I'm launching a feature of this newsletter: “The Counter.”

Ivanka and Jared buy $30M lot on high-security Miami island  —  Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner have splurged on a $30 million-plus 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.

Republican Sen. Pat Toomey calls Trump's campaign to overturn Pennsylvania election ‘completely unacceptable’  —  Sen. Pat Toomey said Tuesday that it's “completely unacceptable” for President Donald Trump to pressure state lawmakers to overturn Pennsylvania's election result …

Howard Stern: Trump's COVID-19 handling is ‘treasonous’  —  Shock jock Howard Stern notched up his war of words on President Trump — a former regular on his show — by accusing the lame duck leader of criminal behavior against his country.  —  The charge came Monday when a man identifying himself …

Saudi Court Jails Saudi-American Doctor Despite U.S. Pressure  —  American officials have said privately that the charges against the doctor, Walid Fitaihi, were politically motivated.  —  BEIRUT, Lebanon — A Saudi court sentenced a prominent Saudi-American doctor to six years in prison …

Senate stimulus negotiations at risk of collapsing over whether companies can be sued for outbreaks  —  Democrats want protection for workers but Republicans warn of lawsuit frenzy, and debate is weighing on negotiations  —  The economic relief package attracting bipartisan interest in Congress …

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 …