AP-NORC poll: Biden approval buoyed by his pandemic response  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is plunging into the next phase of his administration with the steady approval of a majority of Americans, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: FDA Authorizes Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine for Emergency Use in Adolescents in Another Important Action in Fight Against Pandemic  —  For Immediate Release:  —  Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded the emergency use authorization (EUA) …

Meet Kevin McCarthy, political hollow man  —  Opinion by  —  I hereby nominate House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) for the James Buchanan prize, awarded for monumental smallness in a time demanding leadership.  The 15th president, you might recall, was a politician who tried …

The Texas Republican Asking His Party To Just Stop  —  Will Hurd is the kind of politician who loves to find the middle ground.  He spent six years as a Republican congressman from one of the most competitive districts in the country, a sprawling expanse that traces the southwest border of Texas along the Rio Grande.

Kathryn Garcia for Mayor  —  The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed by expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values.  It is separate from the newsroom.  —  The mix of optimism and anxiety that New Yorkers feel as the coronavirus is beaten …

HHS Announces Prohibition on Sex Discrimination Includes Discrimination on the Basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity  —  HHS Office for Civil Rights to Enforce Prohibitions on Sex Discrimination in Line with Supreme Court Decision  —  Washington D.C. - Today …

Russian spy unit suspected of directed-energy attacks on U.S. personnel  —  U.S. officials suspect that a notorious Russian spy agency may be behind alleged attacks that are causing mysterious health issues among U.S. government personnel across the world, according to three current …

U.S. military ship fires 30 warning shots after encounter with Iranian vessels  —  WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A U.S. Coast Guard ship fired about 30 warning shots after 13 vessels from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) came close to it and other American Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the Pentagon said on Monday.

Violence Shakes Israel, With Rocket Fire and Police Battling Palestinians  —  Gaza officials say nine people were killed.  The exchange followed clashes between the Israeli police and Palestinian protesters at Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem after a week of increasing tensions.

‘We May Not Have a Full Two Years’: Democrats' Plans Hinge on Good Health  —  In a narrowly divided Congress, an illness or a death could upend the balance of power and threaten an ambitious agenda.  —  On March 21, 1950, an Illinois congressman named Ralph Church suddenly slumped in his seat while testifying before a House committee.

Where in the World is Q?  Clues from Image Metadata  —  The hunt to identify the person or group behind the QAnon conspiracy theory continues.  Known only as “Q,” this individual or collective is responsible for the many posts, or “drops,” that appeared on internet imageboards between October 2017 and December 2020.

J. Lo and Ben Affleck were spotted together in Montana, which is set to gain a new House seat in redistricting  — Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck, engaged in the early 2000s, were spotted together in Montana.  — Montana is gaining a seat in Congress after the 2020 census due to its population growth.

DOJ Pick Susan Hennessey's Long, Sordid History of Partisan Conspiracy-Mongering  —  Susan Hennessey, the Biden administration's pick to serve as senior counsel for the National Security Division at the Justice Department, made a name for herself during the Trump years by pushing …

Leonardo DiCaprio unrecognizable in first photos of new Scorsese film  —  Apple has released the first-ever photos from Martin Scorsese's highly anticipated Western, “Killers of the Flower Moon.”  —  The pics depict Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone as Ernest and Mollie Burkhart …

Paris Teenager's New Gig: Would-Be Queen of Italy.  A Nation Shrugs.  —  The son of Italy's last king has tapped his teen granddaughter to eventually lead the House of Savoy, pretenders to Italy's defunct throne.  “Totally illegitimate,” says a rival clan.

Colorado Springs mass shooting leaves 7 dead, including suspect, at birthday party: police  — Olivia Prentzel, Erin Prater & Breeanna Jent The Gazette  —  A gunman killed six members of an extended family Sunday at a birthday party at a mobile home in Colorado Springs before turning the gun on himself …

A Conversation with U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell  —  Renee Shaw talks with Sen. Mitch McConnell, Kentucky's Republican senior senator and minority leader in the U.S. Senate, about vaccine hesitancy, President Biden's proposed jobs and infrastructure plans, police reform, the teaching of systemic racism and more.

After Black driver is handcuffed and arrested, Va. prosecutor says she never should have been pulled over  —  Virginia State Police trooper spotted car with taillights out, later pulled driver out of car and attempted DWI arrest, but driver tested 0.0 blood-alcohol content

EXCLUSIVE: How corporate PACs are plotting to “move beyond” January 6  —  Following the attack on the United States Capitol on January 6, dozens of corporations announced they were suspending PAC donations to the 147 Republicans who voted to overturn the election.  Many more announced they were suspending all PAC activity.

Pollard: Israel should expel US diplomats  —  Israel should leave the UN, which is “Knesset of hate,” he tells Merkaz Harav yeshiva  —  If the United States returns its consulate in Jerusalem to represent America to the Palestinian Authority, Israel should expel all US diplomats working there …

Tribalism has come to the West  —  About a decade ago, when I worked for the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), I had to force myself to go to lunch with a friend.  I dreaded the meeting because I knew that she was going to try to convince me to leave my job.

Robinhood's Big Gamble  —  In eliminating barriers to investing in the stock market, is the app democratizing finance or encouraging risky behavior?  —  Early on the morning of January 19th, Cody Herdman woke to the vibration of his smartphone alarm under his pillow.

California has a staggering $75.7B budget surplus  —  SACRAMENTO — California expects a staggering $75.7 billion surplus despite a year of pandemic closures — an amount that surpasses most states' annual spending and prompted Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday to propose sending cash back to residents as he faces a recall election.