Retired NYPD Cop Once Assigned to Secure City Hall Accused of Pipe Attack on Capitol Police  —  What to Know  — Thomas Webster surrendered Monday at the FBI's Hudson Valley office on charges filed in federal court in Washington, D.C. related to the deadly U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6

McConnell to support Garland for attorney general  —  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell will support Merrick Garland's nomination for attorney general, five years after blocking the judge's path to the Supreme Court.  —  “I do,” McConnell told POLITICO Tuesday afternoon when asked if he plans to back Garland.

Takeaways from the Senate hearing on the US Capitol attack  —  This is what we learned from Capitol riot hearing  —  (CNN)Former officials who were responsible for security at the US Capitol testified Tuesday at the first congressional hearing about the failure to prevent the deadly insurrection …

The Sunday Shows Are Hopelessly Broken  —  Jonathan Karl, the guest host of ABC's This Week, knew exactly what he was doing on Sunday when he asked Republican Representative Steve Scalise if the 2020 election was stolen.  This was, on its face, a simple and straightforward question.

California's coronavirus strain looks increasingly dangerous: ‘The devil is already here’  —  A coronavirus variant that emerged in mid-2020 and surged to become the dominant strain in California not only spreads more readily than its predecessors, but also evades antibodies generated …

Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Poet Who Nurtured the Beats, Dies at 101  —  An unapologetic proponent of “poetry as insurgent art,” he was also a publisher and the owner of the celebrated San Francisco bookstore City Lights.  —  Lawrence Ferlinghetti, a poet, publisher and political iconoclast …

Inside the new $65 million push from progressives to compete with conservative media  —  It's called the Project for Good Information, and it raises big questions about the future of the information wars.  —  A prominent Democratic strategist is planning a new $65 million effort …

Four ERCOT board members who live outside of Texas resign in the aftermath of the power outage, winter storm  —  Sally Talberg, board chair; Peter Cramton, vice chair; Terry Bulger, finance and audit chair; and Raymond Hepper, human resources and governance committee chair …

Al Jazeera to launch rightwing media platform targeting US conservatives  —  Rightly will be led by a former Fox News journalist and is aimed at Republicans who ‘feel left out of conservative media’  —  Al Jazeera, the Qatar-based news network that has previously sought to become …

House Democrats, Targeting Right-Wing Cable Outlets, Are Assaulting Core Press Freedoms  —  Democrats' justification for silencing their adversaries online and in media — “they are spreading fake news and inciting extremism” — is what despots everywhere say.  —  5 hr ago

Rudy Giuliani tried dodging getting served with $1B Dominion Voting Systems suit: source  —  Rudy Giuliani spent a week dodging service of a $1.3 billion lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems after publicly declaring he was ready for the legal fight, a source told the Daily News.

NRSC CHAIRMAN RICK SCOTT: REPUBLICAN CIVIL WAR HAS BEEN CANCELLED  —  MEMO  —  TO: REPUBLICAN VOTERS, ACTIVISTS, LEADERS, DONORS  —  FROM: SENATOR RICK SCOTT, NRSC CHAIRMAN  —  RE: REPUBLICAN CIVIL WAR HAS BEEN CANCELLED  —  DATE: FEBRUARY 23, 2021  —  The long running impeachment show is now over.

Covid-19 Live Updates: Studies Examine Variant Surging in California, and the News Isn't Good  —  The East Coast of the United States is still a hot spot as new coronavirus cases have declined across the country and the nation surpassed 500,000 deaths.  Around the world, new cases have declined …

Climbing the Bell Curve to the Cathedral  —  Notes on reactionary sea lions  —  Some folks aren't thrilled about my previous post, “Grey Lady Steel Man.”  It seemed to distress Curtis Yarvin (aka Mencius Moldbug) in particular.  He penned a defensive, typically catty ad hominem response in his inimitably hysterical prose style.

Elon Musk moved to Texas and embraced celebrity.  Can Tesla run on Autopilot?  —  Investors fear a world where Musk no longer leads the company.  But his attention is already going elsewhere.  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk says he is stretched too thin.  —  The chief executive …

We identified the 125 people and institutions most responsible for Donald Trump's rise to power and his norm-busting behavior that tested the boundaries of the US government and its institutions … - Insider compiled this database of the 125 people and institutions essential to Donald Trump's rise …

Trump's former treasury secretary expected to launch investment fund, seeking backing of Persian Gulf state funds  —  Steven Mnuchin has begun hiring staff for an investment fund likely to focus on the financial technology and entertainment sectors, people familiar with the plans said.

Biden shifts his operation to DNC ahead of 2022 midterm elections  —  President Biden has shifted the remnants of his campaign operation, including the donor and volunteer network that got him elected and several key staff members, over to the Democratic National Committee as part of a broader effort …

The opposition to confirming Neera Tanden is based on a lie  —  Opinion by  —  There are numerous reasons to mock the opposition to confirming Neera Tanden as the director of the Office of Management and Budget, which is supposedly rooted in anger over her harsh tweets about Republicans.

Illinois Becomes First State to Eliminate Cash Bail  —  Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a law that he said would end a system that disproportionately hurts the poor and favors wealthier defendants.  —  Illinois has become the first state to completely eliminate cash bail, a result of a push …

Britney Spears Was Never in Control Why did I ever believe a teen girl could hold all the power?  —  The New York Times's Framing Britney Spears documentary casts a spell.  I am thinking specifically of the stretch that chronicles Spears's rise as a teen idol, starting with the “Baby One More Time” video.

French Actor Gérard Depardieu Charged With Rape: Report  —  ALLEGATIONS  —  Gérard Depardieu, the prolific and highly decorated French actor whose most famous titles include Cyrano de Bergerac, The Last Metro, and Green Card, has been charged with rape, French news agency AFP reported Tuesday, citing a judicial source.

Retired NYPD Officer Arrested, Charged in Federal Court for Assaulting and Impeding MPD Officer during U.S. Capitol Breach  —  Assailant Attacked Law Enforcement with Pole Displaying Marine Corps Flag In Effort To Halt Certification of Presidential Election  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. …

We Have PTSD About COVID Reality  —  We don't have to undersell our COVID future now just because people oversold it in the past.  —  1 hr ago  —  1. 500,000  —  Half a million dead Americans.  Does that even register for people?  —  I want to show a couple tweets from a conservative gentleman …

Two charged with making threats to Michigan public officials, including Debbie Stabenow  —  U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin and Michigan Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Stephens were the targets of threatening communications related to the run-up to the Nov. 3, 2020 …

When Amazon Erased My Book  —  My book When Harry Became Sally: Responding to the Transgender Moment was released exactly three years ago.  It was attacked twice on the New York Times op-ed page.  The Washington Post ran a hit piece on it that was riddled with errors.  It was obvious the critics hadn't read the book.

Ted Cruz's latest Cancún spin shows the rot of GOP victimization runs deep  —  Mark it down.  Republicans have hit on a new way to spin away their own screw-ups and scandals: By claiming the media focus on their political travails is driven by the press' search for a new Republican victim …

It's Bigger than Fox News: Time for Mainstream Journalism to Reckon with Monetizing Disinformation and Eroding Truth  —  “Anti-Black racism is a national security threat.”  Those were the simple, direct words of disinformation specialist Mutale Nkonde, CEO of AI for the People, on a listserv of journalists and academics recently.

New Westchester DA Revamps Conviction Review Unit, Puts A Public Defender in Charge  —  Westchester County's new district attorney, Mimi Rocah, is following through on her campaign promise to revitalize her agency's conviction review unit.  This week, the county's top prosecutor announced …

‘Bad politics for them’: GOP sneers at Dem Covid bill  —  If there's any risk of political blowback for lining up against Covid aid that polls well with the public, most Republicans aren't seeing it.  —  Sen. John Thune said of the Covid relief bill: “If it's in its current contours …