Support for Third U.S. Political Party at High Point  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans' desire for a third party has ticked up since last fall and now sits at a high in Gallup's trend.  Sixty-two percent of U.S. adults say the “parties do such a poor job representing the American people …

with an assist from Marina McNairy  —  🌨 Good morning from Salt Lake City.  We're expecting snow throughout the day, with a high of 37°.  —  🇺🇸 Today is President's Day, the day we celebrate George Washington's and Abraham Lincoln's birthday.

Pelosi announces plans for 9/11-style commission to examine Capitol riot  —  Calls to investigate attack followed Trump's acquittal in his second impeachment trial  —  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Monday that the US Congress will establish an outside, independent commission to review the …

Adam Kinzinger's Lonely Mission  —  Censured by his party and shunned by family members, Mr. Kinzinger, a six-term Illinois Congressman, is pressing Republicans to leave Donald Trump behind — and risking his career doing so.  —  WASHINGTON — As the Republican Party censures …

Frozen wind turbines hamper Texas power output, state's electric grid operator says  —  Nearly half of Texas' installed wind power generation capacity has been offline because of frozen wind turbines in West Texas, according to Texas grid operators.  —  Wind farms across the state generate up to a combined 25,100 megawatts of energy.

A GOP donor gave $2.5 million for a voter fraud investigation.  Now he wants his money back.  —  Like many Trump supporters, conservative donor Fred Eshelman awoke the day after the presidential election with the suspicion that something wasn't right.  His candidate's apparent lead in key battleground states had evaporated overnight.

The Capitol Riot Killed “Both Sides” Journalism  —  On January 6, terrorists—encouraged by former President Donald Trump and enabled by his Republican supporters in Congress—attacked the United States Capitol.  And as they came for the republic, they also came for something else: Beltway journalists.

The Strategic Silence of Mike Pence  —  Complicity, cowardice, or nihilism?  —  On January 6, a horde of pro-Trump rioters breached the United States Capitol with one bloodthirsty mission in mind: to stop Vice President Mike Pence from carrying out his constitutional obligation to certify Joe Biden's 2020 presidential victory.

The FBI Wants You To Make These Photos Of Capitol Insurrectionists Go Viral  —  Inside the bureau's evolving strategy to get photos of the Trump supporters who invaded the U.S. Capitol on your social media feed.  —  The search for the insurrectionists who stormed the U.S. Capitol last month isn't your typical FBI manhunt.

Ask Every Republican These Two Questions  —  Over and over again.  —  1 hr ago  —  Before we start: As of today we have four years to fortify American Democracy before the next authoritarian tide comes in.  —  This is the time to roll up our sleeves and work.  I hope you'll labor with us.

The U.S.' vaccine rollout is world-beating  —  That doesn't mean it's good enough.  But let's take a moment to appreciate it.  —  4 hr ago  —  The U.S. vaccine rollout is not going fast enough.  Currently, about 1.7 million shots are being put into arms per day:

Trump drives past jubilant supporters at impromptu rally in Florida  —  Trump marks Presidents Day by waiving to supporters near his south Florida residence  —  Trump acquitted after media blitz  —  Former President Trump marked President's Day by waiving to a throng of supporters gathered near his south Florida home.

Lincoln Project's fundraising page shut down as scandals mount  —  The Lincoln Project's fundraising page has been shut down, following a wave of scandals which continue to engulf the organization.  —  The donation page on the Lincoln Project website has listed as inactive since Saturday …

The Founders Were Wrong About Democracy  —  If there was one idea shared by just about every author of the Constitution, it was the one articulated by James Madison at the convention on June 26, 1787.  —  The mass of the people would be susceptible to “fickleness and passion,” he warned.

Republicans used to call Ronald Reagan the best president in US history.  Now it's Donald Trump.  —  Economist/YouGov Poll Politics & current affairs  —  Who has been the best president in US history?  Americans appear to be thinking mostly about the latest occupants of the White House …

Exclusive: GOP governor Kristi Noem, potential Trump successor, used state aircraft for tens of thousands of dollars in political travel  —  Newly unearthed flight logs show South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem used a state airplane to travel to right wing political events around the country …

Fox News Lie: Teachers' Unions Are ‘Power-Hungry Science Deniers Who Clearly Hate Kids’  —  First they went after Fauci, and then headed on to hit the teachers' unions for protecting their members' health.  —  Views:  —  Fox News is fighting for relevance in today's extreme right-wing media Hunger Games …

‘The last straw’: the US families ending love affair with grocery chain after Capitol riot  —  Families are boycotting Publix after a member of founding family donated $300,000 to the Donald Trump rally that preceded January's deadly Capitol attack  —  endy Mize's family grew up on Publix …

Lin Wood Doxed Georgia Officials to Hundreds of Thousands of QAnon Supporters  —  The pro-Trump lawyer asked an ‘Army of Patriots’ on Telegram to dig up dirt on officials who will decide whether he is disbarred or not.  —  DG  —  Pro-Trump lawyer and major QAnon booster Lin Wood …

The Taliban Close In on Afghan Cities, Pushing the Country to the Brink  —  The Taliban have positioned themselves around several major population centers, including the capital of Kandahar Province, as the Biden administration weighs whether to withdraw or to stay.

Gina Carano and Crowd-Sourced McCarthyism  —  Talking with the Star Wars actress about her cancellation and a meme.  —  1 hr ago  —  It used to be possible to follow the allegations and cancellations.  Remember when the cooking columnist Alison Roman lost her job at The New York Times because she criticized Chrissy Teigen?