Inspector General's Report Cites Elaine Chao for Using Office to Help Family  —  The Justice Department under the Trump administration declined to open a criminal investigation into the actions by Ms. Chao when she was transportation secretary.  —  WASHINGTON — While serving …

Did the Pentagon wait for Trump's approval before defending the Capitol?  —  Three hours and 19 minutes.  —  That's how long it took from the first, desperate pleas for help from the Capitol Police to the Trump Pentagon on Jan. 6 until the D.C. National Guard finally received permission to help put down the bloody insurrection.

White House weighs minimum wage negotiations with Republicans  —  The White House is weighing whether to engage in talks with Republicans on a minimum wage hike once Congress passes its Covid relief bill, two sources with knowledge of their strategic thinking say.

David Brooks's Side Hustle Was Funded By Facebook And Jeff Bezos's Father  —  New York Times columnist David Brooks is drawing a second salary for his work on an Aspen Institute project funded by Facebook and other large donors — a fact he has not disclosed in his columns.

Why are QAnon believers obsessed with 4 March?  —  Their hero is no longer president, but some followers of the fringe QAnon conspiracy theory have latched onto obscure, irrelevant laws in an attempt to keep the faith.  —  It's been six weeks since the inauguration of President Joe Biden …

POLITICO Playbook: Schumer and his flip phone get their moment  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  A busy Wednesday night in the House:  —  H.R. 1 ... “House passes sweeping bill on election, government reforms,” by Sarah Ferris: “Nearly every Democrat voted for the bill, which includes a slew of ballot access …

Trump Weighs 2024 White House Run Without Mike Pence, Allies Say  — Pence drew Trump's ire by not rejecting Biden electoral votes  — Former president has said he's considering another run in 2024  —  Donald Trump is telling allies he's strongly considering another run for president in 2024 …

3 out of 4 Abbott medical advisers say they were not consulted before he lifted Texas mask mandate  —  Texas' top health official said Wednesday he did not speak with Gov. Greg Abbott before the governor announced Tuesday he would end his statewide mask order and “open Texas 100%.”

Maybe It's a Good Thing Andrew Cuomo Is Still Governor  —  Gov. Andrew Cuomo stands accused by three different women of sexual harassment.  And yet, oddly enough, he is still serving as governor.  And that, friends, may be a good thing.  —  In Monday's New York Times …

U.S. suspends federal agent who joined crowd outside Capitol during rampage, lawyer says  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has suspended an agent who was outside the Capitol when a mob of Donald Trump supporters stormed the building, his lawyer said …

Moderate Democrats Strip Stimulus Checks From 12 Million Voters for No Reason  —  For weeks, a handful of moderate Democrats in the Senate have been fighting to prevent $1,400 COVID-relief checks from reaching their own upper-middle-class constituents.  It has never been all that clear to the public …

House Democrats pass sweeping elections bill as GOP legislatures push to restrict voting  —  The House late Wednesday night passed expansive legislation to create uniform national voting standards, overhaul campaign finance laws and outlaw partisan redistricting, advancing a centerpiece …

Brexit: Northern Ireland loyalist armies renounce Good Friday Agreement  —  Loyalist Communities Council warns of ‘strength of feeling’ over border checks but says protests about Northern Ireland Protocol should stay peaceful  —  A body that claims to represent loyalist paramilitary organisations …

In Trump probe, Manhattan district attorney puts pressure on his longtime chief financial officer  —  The Manhattan district attorney is delving deeply into the personal and financial affairs of the chief financial officer for former president Donald Trump's company, probing the extent …

Republicans Won Blue-Collar Votes.  They're Not Offering Much in Return.  —  Party leaders want to capitalize on Donald Trump's appeal to the white working class.  But in recent weeks, they've offered very little to advance working people's economic interests.

Apple Threatens North Dakota, Suffers Crushing Loss in Arizona: “A Lot of It is Just Fear”  —  Facebook, Apple, Google do not obey the law.  Lawmakers know it.  —  4 hr ago  —  Welcome to BIG, a newsletter about the politics of monopoly and finance.  If you'd like to sign up, you can do so here.

Republicans, please save your party  —  President Trump's address last weekend to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), in which he publicly identified his opponents, had all the charm and grace of another speech given in 1979, by Saddam Hussein, in Baghdad.

Biden's bungling anti-Trumpism starts to fray  —  “Orange man bad” is the leitmotif of Biden administration messaging and policymaking.  If you want to know what President Biden is doing, check what President Donald Trump did, and it'll either be the opposite or be presented that way.

The danger of a fourth wave  —  The U.S. may be on the verge of another surge in coronavirus cases, despite weeks of good news.  —  The big picture: Nationwide, progress against the virus has stalled.  And some states are ditching their most important public safety measures even as their outbreaks are getting worse.

Jeffrey Epstein's New York Townhouse to Sell for Roughly $50 Million  —  The late financier and convicted sex offender's Upper East Side home originally asked $88 million.  —  The New York City townhouse of the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is in contract to sell …

Rantz: Man calls 911 on self to ‘goad’ cops into George Floyd incident, reports Black man with gun  —  Arlington Police were called to a bus stop near a middle school after a report of a young Black man brandishing a handgun.  That man, Tamon Leverette, later said that “he was stopped and frisked” …

US decision not to punish crown prince puts us in grave danger, Saudi exiles say  —  Dissidents decry lack of sanctions for Mohammed bin Salman over Khashoggi killing and warn of ‘permanent impunity’ for Saudi heir  —  Exiled dissidents who have been warned about threats against them by Saudi Arabia …

‘She wished that she had spoken up more’: Why a Madison woman's obituary asks people to donate to Ron Johnson's 2022 opponent  —  Carol Lindeen raised her children to avoid certain topics — like politics, religion and money — in mixed company.  —  “If you were at a social gathering …

CDC delays guidelines for vaccinated people  —  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will not be releasing its guidance for vaccinated Americans on Thursday as originally planned, according to two senior administration officials with knowledge of the situation.

Club for Growth endorses Mandel in Ohio GOP Senate primary  —  Mandel, a 43-year-old Marine veteran was the first Republican to enter the race.  —  The endorsement could be a big boost for former state Treasurer Josh Mandel in what is expected to become an expensive and crowded primary.