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.

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 …

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 …

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.

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 …

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.

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.

Biden's first slate of judicial nominees aims to quickly boost diversity in federal courts  —  President Biden plans to announce his first slate of judicial nominees on Tuesday, elevating U.S. District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the influential appeals court in Washington to succeed Merrick Garland …

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.

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.

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.

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.

What is already known about this topic?  —  What is added by this report?  —  Prospective cohorts of 3,950 health care personnel, first responders, and other essential and frontline workers completed weekly SARS-CoV-2 testing for 13 consecutive weeks.  Under real-world conditions …

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.

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 …

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 …

Poll: Biden approval remains steady amid struggles with immigration, foreign affairs  —  President Biden is still enjoying a post-inauguration honeymoon more than two months into his first term in the White House, but there are signs that it may be coming to an end.

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 Biden administration makes a swath of ocean between New York and New Jersey an offshore wind zone.  —  The Biden administration on Monday announced it will designate an area between the South Shore of Long Island and the New Jersey coast as a priority offshore wind zone …

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 …

Column: Woke California pays homage this week to another American hero with a complex legacy  —  Let me tell you about an American hero whom the San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education might find, um, troublesome.  —  He opposed undocumented immigrants to the point of urging his followers to report them to la migra.

Boston Dynamics unveils Stretch: a new robot designed to move boxes in warehouses  —  Stretch can shift up to 800 boxes an hour, comparable to a human  —  Boston Dynamics is best known for its robot dog Spot, a machine designed to work in a range of environments, from offshore oil rigs to deep underground mines.

Judge tosses terrorism threat charge against 3 accused in alleged Whitmer plot  —  Three men accused in an alleged plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will not face false report or threat of terrorism charges, a Jackson County judge ruled Monday.  —  Judge Michael Klaeren of 12th District Court …

Utah Sen. Mitt Romney said he will not vote for new federal gun laws  —  The Utah senator argues that firearm policies should be developed at the state level.  —  (Brandon Bell |  The New York Times file photo) Sen. Mitt Romney walks through the Senate Reception Room at the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021.

Powerful group vetting Hong Kong candidates to have ‘fewer than 10 members’  —  Chairman of the body will act as tiebreaker in the event of a stalemate over possible hopefuls for the chief executive race, the legislature and the Election Committee that picks the city's leader China's top legislative body …