GOP Congresswoman Blamed Wildfires on Secret Jewish Space Laser  —  Axios has a small squib about “The Mischief Makers,” a handful of idiosyncratic congressional backbenchers who make trouble for their respective party leadership.  The leading Democratic mischief-maker is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez …

How Will the GameStop Game Stop?  —  Plus a little AMC.  —  Matt Levine is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering finance.  He was an editor of Dealbreaker, an investment banker at Goldman Sachs, a mergers and acquisitions lawyer at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, and a clerk for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit.

‘Betrayed’: Republicans urge Biden to change course on stimulus  —  When a bipartisan Senate coalition helped clinch a coronavirus relief bill last year after months of gridlock, it was supposed to be a model for governing in the Biden era.  But now Democrats' surprise takeover of the Senate threatens to leave the group behind.

Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan won't run for U.S. Senate next year  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. - Champaign County GOP Rep. Jim Jordan on Thursday announced that he won't run for the U.S. Senate seat that will be vacated by Republican Rob Portman's upcoming retirement, a decision that opens the field …

Cicely Tyson, Pioneering Hollywood Icon, Dies at 96 … Emmy- and Tony-winning actress Cicely Tyson, who distinguished herself in theater, film and television, died on Thursday afternoon.  She was 96.  —  “I have managed Miss Tyson's career for over 40 years, and each year was a privilege and blessing …

Statement Following Meeting With President Trump … Follow Kevin … 661-324-6914  —  PO Box 12667  —  Bakersfield, CA 93389  —  *By adding your name, you become a member of Team Kevin McCarthy.  By the choice of communication channels you either choose/agree to receive emails or text messages or both.

Op-Ed: I called Arizona for Biden on Fox News.  Here's what I learned  —  The New York Evening Express was no great shakes as a newspaper.  But in 1886, when the New York Times ran the obituary of one of the Express' former owners, Erastus Brooks, it had to give credit where it was due.

Republicans considering more than 100 bills to restrict voting rights  —  Restrictions come on the heels of an election in which federal and state officials called it ‘the most secure in US history’  —  After an election filled with misinformation and lies about fraud …

Covid-19 Live Updates: Vaccine Stocks Dwindle in the E.U.  —  President Biden took executive action to expand health care access by strengthening the Affordable Care Act and reopening enrollment.  He also moved to protect reproductive rights and expand abortion access.

Arizona GOP lawmaker introduces bill to give Legislature power to toss out election results  —  The Republican chair of Arizona's state House Ways and Means Committee introduced a bill Wednesday that would give the Legislature authority to override the secretary of state's certification of its electoral votes.

Trump officials moved most Bureau of Land Management staffers out of D.C. More than 87 percent quit instead.  —  The decision to relocate BLM headquarters to Colorado and redistribute jobs in the West prompted 287 employees to retire or find other jobs  —  The Trump administration's decision …

Star NY Times Reporter Accused of Using ‘N-Word,’ Making Other Racist Comments  —  The paper's top COVID reporter joined a group of students on a trip to Peru in 2019.  Participants alleged he repeatedly made racist comments. … Less than six months before he became the New York Times …

GOP senator stocks office with 13 former Trump staffers  —  As Trump administration alums face a tough job market after the Capitol riot, one new Republican Senate office has turned into a full-employment factory for Trump officials looking for their next gig.

N.Y. Severely Undercounted Virus Deaths in Nursing Homes, Report Says  —  The state attorney general, Letitia James, said the Cuomo administration likely omitted thousands of Covid-19 deaths of nursing home residents.  —  ALBANY, N.Y. — The New York State attorney general accused …

Rob Portman's Exit Interview  —  He worries about the Trump trial's precedent, but he's bullish to serene on the Republican future.  —  Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio isn't running for re-election in 2022.  This is not good.  He is a rightly respected figure.  He tries to advance serious legislation.

Biden to NYT: Drop dead  —  Welcome to POLITICO's 2021 Transition Playbook, your guide to the first 100 days of the Biden administration.  —  JOE BIDEN and Republicans are united on at least one thing: They can't stand The New York Times editorial board.  —  The august newspaper of record …

Noem refuses to say whether Biden victory was free and fair  —  PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem refused to acknowledge Thursday that Democrat Joe Biden defeated her close Republican ally Donald Trump in a free and fair election, instead using the opportunity to criticize Biden's actions since taking office.

Pentagon halts Trump appointments to advisory boards  —  The Pentagon has suspended the processing of a number of former President Donald Trump's last-minute appointees to defense advisory boards as the new administration looks to weed out loyalists to the former president.

“This Is War”: Inside the Secret Chat Where Far-Right Extremists Devised Their Post-Capitol Plans  —  Chats from a private Telegram group obtained by ProPublica show how a suspect tied to the Jan. 6 insurrection tried to organize a self-styled militia.  The hidden proliferation of such groups worries experts.

Health Workers, Stuck in the Snow, Administer Coronavirus Vaccine to Stranded Drivers  —  Public health workers in Josephine County, Ore., said they had walked from car to car, giving shots to drivers with vaccine doses that would expire in six hours.  —  The public health workers were driving …

Tucker Carlson and The Deep Lie  —  No, conservatives are not being “muzzled.”  —  9 hr ago  —  The Trump era has introduced us to the concepts of the “Deep State,” and “Fake News.”  —  But perhaps it's time to introduce something new: The Deep Lie.  —  The Deep Lie needs to be distinguished …

In Afghanistan, Follow the White High-Tops and You'll Find the Taliban  —  The sneakers have been worn by Afghan fighters over multiple generations, but they've become a gruesome marker of the Taliban's violent insurgency.  —  MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan — The unassuming white leather high-top sneakers …