Oklahoma congressman threatened embassy staff as he tried to enter Afghanistan, U.S. officials say  —  The call to the U.S. ambassador to Tajikistan came in Monday.  On the line, two U.S. officials said, was Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) with an unusual and urgent request …

Has Delta Peaked?  —  We investigate Covid's mysterious two-month cycle.  —  Has the Delta-fueled Covid-19 surge in the U.S. finally peaked?  —  The number of new daily U.S. cases has risen less over the past week than at any point since June, as you can see in this chart:

With ban in effect, Texas abortion clinics will no longer terminate pregnancies after 6 weeks  —  AUSTIN — A Texas law that bans most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy went into effect Wednesday, as a midnight deadline for the Supreme Court to stop it came and went without action.

McCarthy threatens companies that comply with Jan. 6 probe's phone records requests  —  Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday threatened to use a future GOP majority to punish companies that comply with the House's Jan. 6 investigators, warning that “a Republican majority will not forget.”

The Legal Minds Who Tried to Overturn the Election for Trump Are Being Welcomed Back Into Polite Society  —  Though it hasn't received the attention it deserves, courage from Republican election officials and leaders helped save this country from a total election meltdown in 2020 based on lies …

Texas parents accused a Black principal of promoting critical race theory.  The district has now suspended him.  —  At a heated Texas school board meeting in late July, a man accused a Black principal of promoting critical race theory and “the conspiracy theory of systemic racism.”

America has wasted at least 15 million Covid vaccine doses since March, new data shows  —  The United States has thrown away at least 15.1 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines since March 1, according to government data obtained by NBC News — a far larger number than previously known and still probably an undercount.

What Happened to the Babylon Bee?  —  Until a few years ago, the Babylon Bee was a niche humor site—the Onion for conservative Protestants.  The Bee was founded seven months before Donald Trump took office and became popular mostly because many of the jokes were very funny—but also …

Arrest warrant issued for Ohio man accused of confronting NBC's Shaquille Brewster on live TV  —  Mississippi police issued an arrest warrant Tuesday for an Ohio man who they say confronted NBC News' Shaquille Brewster on live television.  —  The man, Benjamin Eugene Dagley, of Wooster …

They're called mild cases.  But people with breakthrough covid can still feel pretty sick.  —  Coronavirus vaccines overwhelmingly keep people out of the hospital but don't necessarily stop all infections  —  Andrew Kinsey knew that even after being vaccinated against the coronavirus …

Long-Haulers Are Fighting for Their Future  —  While watching the scientific community grapple with long COVID, I have thought a lot about a scene in The Lord of the Rings.  Faced with impending doom, the hobbits Merry and Pippin ask the powerful treelike ents for help.

Jaleel Stallings shot at the MPD; a jury acquitted him of wrongdoing  —  Before the white, unmarked cargo van of the Minneapolis Police Department drove down Lake Street, an officer gave Sgt. Andrew Bittell his orders: “Drive down Lake Street.  You see a group, call it out.  OK great!

Police Say Demoralized Officers Are Quitting In Droves.  Labor Data Says No.  —  While other industries were devastated by the pandemic last year, police departments felt a much smaller impact.  —  Since last summer's Black Lives Matter protests, there's a popular refrain echoing through …

Julie Pace named new Associated Press executive editor  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Julie Pace, a longtime Washington journalist who managed coverage of the U.S. government during a period of historic tumult, was named Wednesday as the executive editor and senior vice president of The Associated Press.