Can Democrats exercise a mini-nuclear option against McConnell?  —  The standoff in the Senate continues: Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is demanding that Democrats agree in advance to keep the legislative filibuster in place and is refusing to allow Senate business to proceed until they do.

Biden tells CNN Trump's impeachment trial ‘has to happen’  —  (CNN)President Joe Biden on Monday offered his most extensive comments since taking office on former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, telling CNN, “I think it has to happen.”  —  Biden made the comment during a brief …

Apollo C.E.O. to Step Down After Firm Finds More Payments to Jeffrey Epstein  —  An inquiry's finding that Leon Black, the billionaire boss of Apollo Global Management, paid the convicted sex offender $150 million touched off an attempt to remove him.  —  The founders of Apollo Global Management …

As Trump Seeks to Remain a Political Force, New Targets Emerge  —  As Donald Trump surveys the political landscape, there is a sudden Senate opening in Ohio, an ally's bid for Arkansas governor, and some scores to settle elsewhere.  —  Former President Donald J. Trump …

Meet the Woman Behind Salon's Sloppy Tom Cotton Piece  —  Something funny happened when Sen. Tom Cotton's (R., Ark.) aides received a request for comment from intrepid Salon reporter Roger Sollenberger.  —  Cotton's team, which shared the email correspondence with the Washington Free Beacon …

Harris County judge dismisses vaccine theft charge against doctor, blasts DA for bringing the case  —  Dr. Hasan Gokal was fired by Harris County Public Health and charged with misdemeanor theft after he admitted taking leftover doses of COVID-19 vaccine and administering them to nine people.

Feds Arrest Man Who Wore His High School Varsity Jacket To The Capitol Siege  —  “We all stormed the us capital and tried to take over the government,” he wrote.  “We failed but f**k it.”  —  Federal authorities have charged a New York man in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol …

Dr. Anthony Fauci: The Highest Paid Employee In The Entire U.S. Federal Government  —  Dr. Anthony Fauci made $417,608 in 2019, the latest year for which federal salaries are available.  That made him not only the highest paid doctor in the federal government, but the highest paid out of all four million federal employees.

Iowa Senate leaders change virtual meeting policy after ‘pornographic’ Zoom incident  —  Republicans in the Iowa Senate said they have changed their policy for participants in virtual subcommittee meetings after an incident that was “pornographic in nature” during a Monday morning hearing.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Unlikely to Run for Fourth Term  —  The Democrat has raised little money and hasn't campaigned ahead of a June Democratic primary  —  In the past year, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. has raised only a few thousand dollars for his re-election.

Rupert Murdoch, Accepting Award, Condemns ‘Awful Woke Orthodoxy’  —  Mr. Murdoch of News Corp, who spoke in a video, has been relatively quiet publicly in recent years.  He called conformity on social media “a straitjacket on sensibility.”  —  The media mogul Rupert Murdoch denounced an …

Former Voice of America overseer hired two law firms to $4 million no-bid contracts.  —  The former head of Voice of America's parent agency hired two law firms to open-ended, no-bid contracts, including one specifying that top lawyers would earn $1,470 per hour, according to documents and people familiar with the matter.

Woman Accused of Stealing Laptop from Nancy Pelosi's Office May Lose Internet Access as Feds Allege Deepening Cover-Up  —  The woman alleged to have stolen a laptop from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office during the U.S. Capitol insurrection may have encouraged others to destroy evidence …

Biden to tap nurse as acting surgeon general  —  Susan Orsega would be among the first nurses to serve in the role of 'the nation's doctor'  —  The Biden administration has selected nurse Susan Orsega to serve as the nation's acting surgeon general, said two people with knowledge of her selection …

On the Ground … Making America California  —  The Biden administration seems determined to run the country on the ruinous model of the Golden State.  —  California  —  Politics and law  —  Economy, finance, and budgets  —  As the Biden administration settles in and begins to formulate its agenda …

Our Radicalized Republic  —  Four years ago, Lilliana Mason learned something she really, really hoped wasn't true.  A political scientist who studies Americans' attitudes about politics and each other, she had long known that the citizens of this country were growing increasingly resentful …

Scoop: Google won't donate to members of Congress who voted against election results  —  Google will not make contributions from its political action committee this cycle to any member of Congress who voted against certifying the results of the presidential election, following the deadly Capitol riot.

Pro-Trump lawyer Lin Wood fired by teen who faced off with Native American in viral video  —  BOSTON (Reuters) - A Kentucky teenager whose 2019 face-off with a Native American activist in Washington went viral has fired his lawyer, a man who played a key role in Donald Trump's attempts …

What If Deplorables Start “De-Platforming” Leftists From Receiving Skilled Trade Services?  —  If Monster Tech can aggressively de-platform businesses and individuals for expressing forbidden opinions, then maybe it's time for skilled tradesmen to respond in kind against the woke left.

This D.C. neighborhood has quietly become a national model for resisting gentrification  —  How one D.C. neighborhood quietly became a national model for resisting gentrification  —  On Monday afternoon, June 1, the city of Washington was on the brink of a nervous breakdown.

QAnon Thinks Trump Will Become President Again on March 4  —  QAnon has started to merge with even more extreme conspiracy theories, including the “sovereign citizen” movement.  —  DG  —  Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 19th president of the United States on March 4, 2021.

“Fight for Trump”: Video Evidence of Incitement at the Capitol  —  How direct is the connection between what President Donald Trump communicated to his supporters and their actions in laying siege to the U.S. Capitol?  Videos recorded by many individuals over the course of the day provide some answers.

100+ Politico Staffers Send Letter to Publisher Railing Against Publishing Ben Shapiro  —  The signees called out their top editor's response to internal critics, and reiterated that a firebrand like Shapiro does nothing to advance Politico's editorial values.  —  BEAST INSIDE

Corporate clients drop Trump-related lobbying shops  —  Some blue-chip corporate clients have cut the cord with lobbying firms that monetized their close relationships with Donald Trump and his administration, new disclosure filings show.  —  Why it matters: Every change in administration shuffles …

Dr. Fauci: Double-masking makes ‘common sense’ and is likely more effective  —  Dr. Fauci says it's ‘common sense’ to wear two masks instead of one  —  Could wearing two face masks at once during the pandemic provide more protection than just wearing one?  According to White House advisor …

National Park Service spent 4,000 hours working on Trump's RNC fireworks show  —  Nikhel Sus, Linnaea Honl-Stuenkel, and Walker Davis … National Park Service employees spent nearly 4,000 hours working on the Republican National Convention's massive pro-Trump fireworks show at the National Mall …

Scoop: Former OMB director to set up Pro-Trump think tanks  —  Russ Vought, who led Donald Trump's Office of Management and Budget, plans to announce two pro-Trump organizations Tuesday, aiming to provide the ideological ammunition to sustain Trump's political movement after his departure from the White House.

Trump establishes ‘Office of the Former President’ in Florida  —  Former President Trump on Monday established an official post-presidency office in Palm Beach County, Fla., setting up a vehicle for future public appearances and statements.  —  “The Office of the Former President” …

The Climate Crisis Is Worse Than You Can Imagine.  Here's What Happens If You Try.  —  A climate scientist spent years trying to get people to pay attention to the disaster ahead.  His wife is exhausted.  His older son thinks there's no future.  And nobody but him will use the outdoor toilet he built to shrink his carbon footprint.

Biden's Initial Approval Rating Is Higher Than Trump's Ever Was  —  Most voters give Biden positive marks for his job performance  — 56% of voters approve of Biden's job performance, compared with 46% who approved of Donald Trump's work at a similar point in 2017.

Ohio's U.S. Sen. Rob Portman won't run for re-election; Republican cites ‘partisan gridlock’  —  Republican Rob Portman will not seek a third term in the U.S. Senate in 2022, he told The Enquirer - a move that will unsettle politics in both Greater Cincinnati and Washington D.C.

U.S. Attorney Announces Extradition Of Kenyan National For Large-Scale Trafficking Of Rhinoceros Horns And Elephant Ivory And Heroin Distribution  —  Indictment Alleges Conspiracy to Smuggle at Least 190 Kilograms of Rhinoceros Horns and at Least 10 Tons of Elephant Ivory Valued at More Than $7 Million