Biden's Judicial Nominees Have Diverse Backgrounds  —  The president's first choices for district and appeals court openings reflected his campaign promise to choose judges from outside of traditional backgrounds.  —  WASHINGTON — President Biden began a drive to reshape the federal courts …

Capitol riot suspect wore ‘I Was There’ shirt when arrested  —  Garret Miller didn't speak to the law enforcement officers who arrested him on charges he stormed the U.S. Capitol in January, but the T-shirt he was wearing at his Dallas home that day sent a clear and possibly incriminating message.

Biden's white privilege  —  Welcome to POLITICO's 2021 Transition Playbook, your guide to the first 100 days of the Biden administration  —  JOE BIDEN has talked more explicitly about racism in America in his opening weeks than any president in recent memory.  —  He pledged to defeat “white supremacy” in his Inaugural address.

Ghislaine Maxwell Charged With Sex Trafficking of 14-Year-Old Girl  —  A new indictment accuses Ms. Maxwell of paying a victim of her longtime associate Jeffrey Epstein.  —  Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, was charged on Monday for the first time with sex-trafficking …

New accounts detail how New York health officials were told to prioritize coronavirus testing of people connected to Andrew Cuomo  —  New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's relatives and other well-connected New Yorkers were among those given preferential treatment at state coronavirus testing centers.

The facts about Georgia's ban on food, water giveaways to voters  —  Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a sweeping elections bill into law.  It includes some controversial provisions about absentee and in-person voting.  —  One provision of the new law includes a ban on giving away water or food …

Buttigieg says no gas or mileage tax in Biden's infrastructure plan  —  (CNN)Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Monday that neither a gas tax nor a mileage tax would be part of President Joe Biden's sweeping infrastructure plan to be detailed on Wednesday.

Mafia fugitive caught after posting YouTube cooking video  —  Marc Feren Claude Biart was betrayed by failing to hide his distinctive tattoos in the clip  —  A mafia fugitive has been caught in the Caribbean after appearing on YouTube cooking videos in which he hid his face but inadvertently showed his distinctive tattoos.

Scoop: Substack is raising $65 million amid newsletter boom  —  Substack is raising $65 million in new venture capital funding that would value the company at around $650 million, Axios has learned.  Existing investor Andreessen Horowitz is leading the round.

Dominion Builds Legal Behemoth to Drain Trumpland of Billions  —  Dominion Voting Systems is adding a new team of lawyers as they prepare for their current lawsuits—and another potential round.  —  With billions of dollars in lawsuits now in the balance, Dominion Voting Systems …

Kentucky lawmakers override veto of McConnell-backed Senate vacancy plan  —  The Republican-run Kentucky legislature on Monday easily overrode Gov. Andy Beshear's veto of a notable bill that restricts his ability to fill any vacancies that arise if one of the state's U.S. senators dies or leaves office early.

Former Parler CEO says Dan Bongino owns no shares, got hustled by Rebekah Mercer  —  Fox News contributor Dan Bongino claims to be a Parler investor — but former CEO John Matze says he was duped  —  Pro-Trump pundit, conservative media tycoon and self-proclaimed Parler investor Dan Bongino …

Washington Post reverses prohibition on reporter from writing about sexual assault  —  The Washington Post on Monday reversed a policy preventing a reporter from covering sexual misconduct issues that she said was imposed because of her outspokenness over being a victim of sexual assault.

Hong Kong political overhaul shrinks direct voting, empowers Election Committee  —  National People's Congress Standing Committee votes 167- to endorse proposal that will slash number of directly elected seats in Legislative Council, create vetting body to determine who can stand …

With an Eye on 2024, a Rarely Bashful Pompeo Grows More Combative  —  Criticized for partisan activity even when he was the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo is taking aim at the Biden administration and talking like a candidate.  —  WASHINGTON — As secretary of state during the Trump administration …

Trump targets Fauci, Birx in lengthy diatribe  —  Former President Trump on Monday went on a tirade against Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx, two of his former top medical advisers on the COVID-19 pandemic, excoriating their decisionmaking during his administration on the day after CNN aired previews …

The GOP is facing a sickness deeper than the coronavirus  —  It is the sign of a sickness deeper than covid-19 that the defiance of public health guidance has become a political selling point in the Republican Party.  —  Consider the case of South Dakota Gov. Kristi L. Noem.

All Trump's Codependents  —  Some of the former president's biggest critics are finding it hard to quit him.  —  “My predecessor.  Oh God, I miss him.”  —  So spoke Joe Biden Thursday in his first press conference as president.  In February Mr. Biden had said he was …

Nearly half of Americans changed sports viewing habits because of social justice  —  In the wake of last summer's social justice protests, which consumed sports for much of the second half of 2020, nearly half of all Americans changed their sports viewing habits, according to a new YouGov / Yahoo News poll.

The Antiscience Movement Is Escalating, Going Global and Killing Thousands  —  Rejection of mainstream science and medicine has become a key feature of the political right in the U.S. and increasingly around the world  —  Antiscience has emerged as a dominant and highly lethal force …

Two weeks after shooting spree, Georgia Senate backs bill to loosen gun restrictions  —  Two weeks after eight people where gunned down in three Atlanta-area spas, the Georgia Senate on Monday approved legislation to loosen the state's gun laws.  —  “This is a Second Amendment protection bill …

Florida Republicans considering new election bill that would effectively ban giving voters water  —  Florida Republicans are considering a bill that would effectively make it a crime to give voters food or drink, including water, within 150 feet of polling places.

Corporations, Vocal About Racial Justice, Go Quiet on Voting Rights  —  “They are complicit in their silence,” one activist said, as bills that would disproportionately affect Black citizens across the country stir public debate.  —  As Black Lives Matter protesters filled the streets last summer …

Japan's Kyoto cherry blossoms peak on earliest date in 1,200 years, a sign of climate change  —  Amid an exceptionally warm March in Japan, the cherry blossoms in Kyoto peaked Friday, the earliest in more than 1,200 years of records.  The record bloom fits into a long-term pattern toward …

Trooper who arrested Ga. lawmaker says he was wary of a Jan. 6-type of attack  —  A Georgia State Patrol lieutenant said memories of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol were on his mind when he arrested a Democratic legislator after she knocked repeatedly on the door …

KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor: March 2021  —  The KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor is an ongoing research project tracking the public's attitudes and experiences with COVID-19 vaccinations.  Using a combination of surveys and qualitative research, this project tracks the dynamic nature of public opinion …

Inside the Koch-Backed Effort to Block the Largest Election-Reform Bill in Half a Century  —  On a leaked conference call, leaders of dark-money groups and an aide to Mitch McConnell expressed frustration with the popularity of the legislation—even among Republican voters.

The Week In School Reopenings: 6 Key Updates On Students' Return To Classrooms  —  For the first time, the percentage of students in both virtual-only and hybrid learning models went down as schools transition to full-time in-person instruction, a response to the Centers for Disease Control …

How a Supermoon Helped Free the Giant Container Ship From the Suez Canal  —  Stronger tidal effect made it easier to partially float the Ever Given but also gave engineers a hard deadline  —  SUEZ, Egypt—To get the giant container ship blocking the Suez Canal unstuck, engineers needed the stars to align.

The WHO covid report is fatally flawed, and a real investigation has yet to take place  —  Determining the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus should have nothing to do with politics.  It is a forensic question, one that requires thorough investigation of all possible theories …

Proud Boys organizer charged in Capitol attack says he aided FBI ‘antifa’ inquiries  —  Joseph Biggs' claims are likely to sharpen concerns that law enforcement has tolerated violence by the Proud Boys.  —  Proud Boys members Joseph Biggs, left, and Ethan Nordean, right, walk toward the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Lex of Arabia: how Greensill and Cameron tried to woo MBS  —  Financier boasted of desert trip with former prime minister and Saudi crown prince  —  Lex Greensill had penetrated the British establishment, forging close links with the country's highest-ranking civil servants and ministers …

As Covid-19 Vaccinations Ramp Up, Hesitancy Wanes  —  Survey shows decline in reluctance, driven by increasing willingness in Southern states and more broadly among Black Americans  —  17%  —  17%  —  17%  —  17%  —  A shrinking percentage of Americans are expressing reluctance …

Freedom Caucus frets over how far to push its rebellion  —  A group of House ultra-conservatives who rose to power by making life hell for GOP leaders is now facing cracks in its once-united front — which some worry could foreshadow an even wider rift if Republicans win back the majority next year.