Sen. Shirkey baselessly claims U.S. Capitol riot was ‘staged’ by Trump haters, recording shows  — Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey.  —  Michigan state Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey suggested the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was a “hoax” perpetuated by opponents of former President Donald Trump.

Trump was quite displeased with his impeachment defense team  —  For former President Donald Trump, the opening day of his second impeachment trial did not go as planned or to his liking.  —  Cocooned at his Mar-a-Lago estate, Trump watched as his defense attorneys responded …

'I'm Not a Cat,' Says Lawyer Having Zoom Difficulties  —  The video was immediately shared widely and brought joy to many.  The lawyer, Rod Ponton, said he was happy people got a much-needed laugh.  —  It was a civil forfeiture case hearing like any other hearing, except for the lawyer cat.

Exclusive: Ukraine Releases ‘Shock’ Call With Giuliani As Trump's Second Impeachment Trial Begins  —  “Let these investigations go forward,” Rudy Giuliani told the presidential headquarters in Kyiv, Ukraine, his voice turning impatient.  “Get someone to investigate this.”

Two men cried in the Senate Tuesday.  One of them made a devastating case against Trump  —  Democrats begin impeachment trial with stunning riot video  —  Jill Filipovic (@JillFilipovic) is a journalist based in New York and author of the book “OK Boomer, Let's Talk: How My Generation Got Left Behind.”

Trump hid his calls with Putin.  Now, Biden has access to them.  —  What was said between the two leaders is a great mystery, one that advisers to the current president say is imperative to find out.  —  Then-President Donald Trump shakes hands with Russian President Vladimir Putin, left …

Is This Beverly Hills Cop Playing Sublime's ‘Santeria’ to Avoid Being Live-streamed?  —  Police officers in Beverly Hills have been playing music while being filmed, seemingly in an effort to trigger Instagram's copyright filters.  —  DT  —  Last Friday, a man entered the Beverly Hills police department …

‘Woke’ American Ideas Are a Threat, French Leaders Say  —  Politicians and prominent intellectuals say social theories from the United States on race, gender and post-colonialism are a threat to French identity and the French republic.  —  PARIS — The threat is said to be existential.

What happened with New York Times reporter Donald McNeil?  —  The Constitution protects people from being prosecuted twice for the same offense.  But those “double jeopardy” protections hold no sway in private workplaces like the New York Times, as now-former reporter Donald G. McNeil Jr. discovered …

Colin Kaepernick forms a SPAC  —  Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick on Tuesday disclosed that he has formed a blank-check company that will seek to raise $250 million in an IPO.  —  Why it matters: Kaepernick hasn't played pro football since 2016, but has remained a cultural lightening rod …

Fox's effort to clean up its post-election misinformation is not terribly convincing  —  In the days after the presidential election, an entire ecosystem emerged to bolster President Donald Trump's false claims that rampant fraud had mired the election results.

Majority favor conviction as impeachment trial begins, but many Republicans urge loyalty to Trump — CBS News poll  —  As former President Trump's second impeachment trial begins, a 56%-majority of Americans would like the Senate to vote to convict him, and the same percentage say he encouraged violence …

Coronavirus Likely Came From Animal, Not Leaked From Laboratory, WHO Says  —  Preliminary assessment follows visit by team of experts to Wuhan, China, in search for origin of pandemic  —  WUHAN, China—The virus that causes Covid-19 most likely jumped from one species to another before entering …

The Great Firewall Cracked, Briefly.  A People Shined Through.  —  China's censors finally blocked Clubhouse, but not before users were able to bypass the caricatures painted by government-controlled media and freely discuss their hopes and fears.  —  For years, the Chinese government …

Suspect In Custody After Multiple People Shot At Allina Health Clinic In Buffalo  —  MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO/AP) — A suspect is in custody and multiple people are injured following a shooting at an Allina Health Clinic in Buffalo Tuesday morning.  —  According to the Wright County Sheriff's Office …

The Comedy Industry Has a Big Alt-Right Problem  —  In the dark recesses of the internet lurks a man who goes by ToxicCisWhiteMaleFat.  He makes his home on onaforums.net, a community named after the shock jock duo Opie & Anthony—a safe space to say what cannot be said offline.

Mark Cuban's Mavericks won't play national anthem anymore  —  Haven't heard about any national anthem protests at Dallas Mavericks games?  There's a good reason for that: The team isn't and won't be playing it anymore.  —  Mark Cuban told The Athletic it was his decision to eliminate …

Republicans came within 90,000 votes of controlling all of Washington  —  The 2020 election was bad for Republicans, full stop.  For the first time since 1932, a president came into office with both chambers of Congress under his party's control, and lost both of them and reelection.