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.

Trump sends a message to Senate Republicans ahead of his trial  —  A top political aide to former President Donald Trump spent the weekend quietly reassuring Republican senators that the former president has no plans to start a third party — and instead will keep his imprint on the GOP.

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 …

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.

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler pepper sprays unmasked man who confronted him with video camera  —  Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler blasted with pepper spray an unmasked man who confronted him and former Mayor Sam Adams with a video camera as the two left a pub Sunday night, the two men told police.

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.

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.

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 …

After Capitol riot, a call to protect veterans from disinformation  —  A prominent veterans advocate wants the Biden administration and Congress to help retired servicemembers protect themselves from online disinformation following the deadly Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.

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 …

From Navy SEAL to Part of the Angry Mob Outside the Capitol  —  The presence in Washington of a longtime member of the Navy SEALs who was trained to identify misinformation reflects the partisan politics that helped lead to the assault.  —  In the weeks since Adam Newbold …

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.

Let America be America  —  It feels like having a weight lifted off my soul.  —  I'm describing my emotions as Joe Biden was inaugurated as president last week, marking the end of Donald Trump's time in the White House.  —  I'm not alone.  —  Dr. Anthony Fauci described his emotion as a “liberating feeling.”

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 …

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.

Biden's politically correct assault on girls sports  —  President Biden has signed an executive order forcing schools that accept public funding to allow biological boys to compete in girls sports.  His Department of Education is also expected to flip sides on two transgender sports battles …

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 …

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 …

Robert Kraft's sex videos from police sting should be destroyed, judge orders  —  Sex videos of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft are set to be destroyed under a court order.  —  It's been two years since the 79-year-old billionaire was among more than two dozen people secretly videotaped …

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” …

MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell has been banned from Twitter  —  (CNN Business)Mike Lindell, the CEO of MyPillow, was banned from Twitter Monday night, according to a Twitter spokesperson.  —  Twitter made its decision based on a new policy it enacted after the Capitol insurrection whereby people …

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.

Lawmakers say North Korean diplomat defected to South Korea  —  SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A North Korean diplomat who served as the country's acting ambassador to Kuwait has defected to South Korea, according to South Korean lawmakers who were briefed by Seoul's spy agency.

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.

Majority Support Trump Impeachment  —  Belief that voter fraud led to Biden win persists among 1 in 3  —  West Long Branch, NJ - A clear majority of Americans support the second impeachment of former president Donald Trump.  A majority also wants the Senate to convict him and bar …

Former DNC head Perez ‘taking a look at’ Maryland governor bid  —  Perez was a former elected official in suburban Montgomery County before joining the Obama Administration as labor secretary.  —  Tom Perez, on monitor and at podium, addresses the final night of the virtual 2020 Democratic …

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.

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.

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 …

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 …

A genocide, by any other name  —  How are we to describe the abominations being carried out in Xinjiang by the Chinese Communist Party?  What word is apt for the concentration camps, the mass sterilizations, the deportations, and the slave gangs?  Repression?  Ethnic cleansing?  Extermination?