Now begins McConnell's project to shrink Trump's GOP influence  —  One of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's many admirable traits is that he is uninterested in being admired.  He uses his demeanor to disguise the fact that he has normal feelings and so might welcome public approbation for his decisions.

Postcard From Peru: Why the Morality Plays Inside The Times Won't Stop  —  Other news organizations have their own personnel dramas.  But none attract the spotlight like The Times.  —  In 2012, when The New York Times was panicked about its financial future, this newspaper went into the travel business.

Is the GOP's extremist wing now too big to fail?  —  SE Cupp: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene among Trump's awful legacies  —  (CNN)Congressional Republicans have crystallized an ominous question by rejecting consequences for Donald Trump over the January 6 riot in his impeachment trial …

'What's the Point?'  Young People's Despair Deepens as Covid-19 Crisis Drags On  —  Experts paint a grim picture of the struggle with lockdown isolation — a “mental health pandemic” that should be treated as seriously as containing the coronavirus.  —  Life seemed promising last year …

Trump impeachment lawyer Michael van der Veen's home vandalized  —  The word “traitor” was spray-painted on the front of the attorney's driveway.  —  Catch up on the developing stories making headlines.  —  Tyger Williams /The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP

First They Guarded Roger Stone.  Then They Joined the Capitol Attack.  —  Oath Keepers guarding Roger Stone on Jan. 5 ...  Roger  —  Stone  —  ... and participating in the  —  Oath Keeper  —  Oath Keeper  —  Oath  —  Keeper  —  Oath  —  Keeper

94 Percent Drop in Symptomatic COVID Cases Seen Among Vaccinated, Biggest Israeli Study Shows  —  The Pfizer COVID vaccine, the study found, was equally effective for all age groups, including people aged 70 and older  —  The Pfizer coronavirus vaccine has produced a 94 percent drop …

Slate Star Clusterfuck  —  On journalism, ideas, “ideas”, free speech, and tech.  —  2 hr ago  —  A while ago, I did a Q&A with a venture capitalist who had formerly worked in media.  The conversation took place on Clubhouse, the explosively growing audio-driven social network.

The New York Times Retracts the Sicknick Story  —  Like so many fake news stories about Donald Trump and his supporters, millions of Americans believe the Sicknick story as truth; even a correction won't change their minds.  —  In a quiet but stunning correction, the New York Times backed away …

Eric Metaxas Believes America Is Creeping Toward Nazi Germany  —  The pro-Trump radio host explains how he thinks about the Capitol siege and President Joe Biden's America.  —  The PR pitch was brazen: Eric Metaxas, it declared, is “America's #1 Bad Christian.”

Biden calls on Congress to ‘enact commonsense gun law reforms’ on third anniversary of Parkland shooting  —  On This Day In History: Parkland Shooting (Feb. 14, 2018)  —  Washington (CNN)President Joe Biden on Sunday called on Congress to institute “commonsense gun law reforms,” …

CBS' Margaret Brennan: We Invited on Two Dozen Senate Republicans After Trump Acquitted — ‘No One Accepted’  —  CBS' Margaret Brennan ended Sunday's Face the Nation with a note to viewers about Republicans they tried to book on the program.  —  The Donald Trump impeachment trial ended Saturday …

Ex-FBI lawyer suspended by DC bar for forging wiretap email against ex-Trump campaign adviser Carter Page  —  The following is an excerpt from an article in The Epoch Times:  —  Ex-FBI attorney Kevin Clinesmith, who was recently sentenced to 12 months of probation, has been temporarily suspended from practicing law in Washington.

Obscure Musicology Journal Sparks Battles Over Race and Free Speech  —  A scholar's address about racism and music theory was met with a vituperative, personal response by a small journal.  It faced calls to cease publishing.  —  A periodical devoted to the study of a long-dead European music theorist …

Indianapolis Museum of Art Apologizes for Insensitive Job Posting  —  The museum wrote that it was seeking a director who would work to maintain its “core, white art audience,” in addition to attracting a more diverse one.  —  INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields …

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot on What She Learned From Battling the Teachers' Union  —  In an interview, Ms. Lightfoot talked about how she hoped to rebuild trust in the system and eventually reopen high schools.  —  After a bitter fight, the Chicago Public Schools reached a deal …

Trump's Defense Was an Insult to the Impeachment Proceedings and an Assault on Reason  —  Donald Trump's second impeachment trial was an artifact of his Presidency.  It was a battle of meaning against noise, against nothing-means-anything-and-everything- is-the-same nihilism—and nihilism won.

The swift death of the media darlings known as the Lincoln Project  —  As quickly as it rose to its perch as a media darling, the Lincoln Project (LP) is crashing down swiftly to its fitting end.  And it has no one to blame but itself.  —  The beginning of the end came a few weeks ago.

Republicans who acquitted Trump put their careers over duty, honor and the Constitution  —  Trump's acquittal proved with final certainty that Republicans are driven only by ambition, comfort and self-interest — and the Constitution be damned.  —  The second Senate trial of Donald Trump is over.

The Problem With Mandatory Patriotism in Sports  —  Amid renewed attention to inequity in American life, pro leagues shouldn't strong-arm teams into playing “The Star-Spangled Banner.”  —  Contributing writer at The Atlantic  —  Playing the “The Star-Spangled Banner” …

CDC head: ‘I think we need a lot more resources in order to get the schools safe’  —  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky said on Sunday that despite new guidance from the agency for reopening schools, “I think we need a lot more resources in order to get the schools safe.”

China's Crackdown on Muslims Extends to a Resort Island  —  The Utsuls of Hainan island were once celebrated by the government for their links to the larger Muslim world.  Not anymore.  —  SANYA, China — The call to prayer still echoes through the alleys of Sanya's nearly 1,000-year-old Muslim neighborhood …