Red Covid  —  Covid's partisan pattern is growing more extreme.  —  During the early months of Covid-19 vaccinations, several major demographic groups lagged in receiving shots, including Black Americans, Latino Americans and Republican voters.  —  More recently, the racial gaps — while still existing — have narrowed.

POLITICO Playbook PM: Poll: Good news for Biden's agenda  —  The bipartisan infrastructure bill remains quite popular: 56% support, 27% oppose.  —  We also asked what voters thought about the size of the BIF package, and despite the price tag a majority (57%) thought $1 trillion was the right amount or too little to spend:

John Hinckley, Who Shot President Reagan, Wins Unconditional Release  —  A federal judge has approved the unconditional release next year of John Hinckley Jr., who wounded late President Ronald Reagan and three others outside a Washington, D.C., hotel in a failed assassination attempt in 1981.

How an Anti-Trump Plotter in 2016 Became His Champion Against Liz Cheney  —  Harriet Hageman, a Wyoming Republican, is the former president's choice to take on his leading G.O.P. critic.  But five years ago, she tried to overturn his victory in the party's primary race.

Trump's new interviews and appearances show that a storm is brewing  —  (CNN Business)A version of this article first appeared in the “Reliable Sources” newsletter.  You can sign up for free right here.  —  “Our country will not survive this.”  —  I watched Donald Trump's entire “interview” …

Goldman Sachs, Ozy Media and a $40 Million Conference Call Gone Wrong  —  The digital media company has raised eyebrows for its claims about its audience size for years.  Then came the strange voice on the phone.  —  This past winter, Goldman Sachs was closing in on a $40 million investment in Ozy …

Stable Governor's Race  —  McAuliffe maintains issue advantage  —  West Long Branch, NJ - Democrat Terry McAuliffe maintains a small lead over Republican Glenn Youngkin according to the latest Monmouth ("Mon-muth") University Poll of the Virginia governor's race.

Anti-Vaccine Cartoonist Ben Garrison Says He's Got Covid-19, Won't Go to Hospital  —  The pro-Trump cartoonist says he's lost about 15 pounds and is taking ivermectin.  —  Alerts  —  Ben Garrison, a right-wing cartoonist known for his opposition to vaccines and his extremely flattering drawings …

Senate Republicans prepare to block measure to fund government, stave off U.S. default  —  The expected vote Monday sets up a last-minute scramble ahead of two critical fiscal deadlines  —  Senate Republicans on Monday prepared to block a bill that would fund the government …

As daughter sought state license, Noem summoned agency head  —  SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Just days after a South Dakota agency moved to deny her daughter's application to become a certified real estate appraiser, Gov. Kristi Noem summoned to her office the state employee who ran the agency …

Facebook Pauses Instagram Kids Project  —  The social-media app had faced criticism over a version for children that it was developing  —  Facebook Inc. will pause the development of its Instagram for kids project, Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, said in an interview on the Today Show Monday.

Biden administration unveils new plan for young immigrants  —  The Biden administration on Monday renewed efforts to shield hundreds of thousands of immigrants who came to the United States as young children from deportation, the latest maneuver in a long-running drama over the policy's legality.

U.S. Asked Russia About Offer of Bases to Monitor Afghan Terror Threat  —  Joint Chiefs chairman Gen. Mark Milley asked his Russian counterpart about Putin's comments at the request of the White House  —  The Pentagon's top military officer discussed with his Russian counterpart an apparent offer …

What Matt Gaetz's Legal Lineup Tells Us About His Troubles  —  There have hardly been any developments in the alleged case against Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL).  But the lawyers he's hired indicate that he's not out of the woods.  —  While the federal sex crimes investigation into Rep. Matt Gaetz …

Why Bipartisanship In The Senate Is Dying  —  Congress is in full-on chaos mode right now, with the future of infrastructure, government funding, the debt limit and voting rights all uncertain.  But at the heart of the chaos is a core disagreement over a basic tenet of governing: Is bipartisanship still possible?

Introducing the Real Will Smith  —  For decades, he worked tirelessly to make himself the biggest movie star on the planet.  Then he hit his “fuck-it 50s” and everything changed.  Now, as he prepares a raw new memoir and a pair of films tackling racial themes, Will Smith is ready to speak his truth.

Trump's Mar-a-Lago Buddies Tried to Get the VA to Sell Access to Veterans' Medical Records  —  A congressional investigation prompted by ProPublica's reporting found Trump's “Mar-a-Lago crowd,” wealthy civilians with no U.S. government or military experience, pursued a plan to monetize veterans' medical data.

Arizona 2020 Vote Audit Finds Potentially Election-Shifting Numbers Of Illegal Ballots  —  While the reports made several significant findings supporting former President Trump's complaints about the 2020 election, the corporate media ignored those aspects of the audit.

These Show Ponies Made Themselves Threats to Our National Security  —  ‘LESS SAFE NOW’ … The process of filling critical positions has been deteriorating, and consequently putting the country at risk, for decades—and it's getting worse.  —  If an enemy of the United States wanted …

Fox News embraces white nationalism and these advertisers embrace Fox News  —  For months, Tucker Carlson has been promoting the racist “great replacement” conspiracy theory.  The concept, which is embraced by white nationalists and neo-Nazis, is that there is a secret plot to “replace” whites with non-white immigrants.

L.A. County D.A. to dismiss 60,000 past marijuana convictions  —  The nation's largest prosecutor's office is moving to dismiss roughly 60,000 marijuana convictions, the latest step to undo what some reform advocates consider the damage caused by narcotics enforcement carried out before Californians voted …

U.S. Adults' Estimates of COVID-19 Hospitalization Risk  —  The American public's understanding of the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines may have been put to the test in recent weeks as national public health leaders openly debated whether a booster shot is needed for the general population.

How Clinton's ‘Basket of Deplorables’ Taught Germany a Lesson  —  In the final days of Germany's election campaign, the center-left Social Democrats appeared to focus their final message to voters on one idea: respect.  The message was plastered across the country on vibrant red posters …

Biden acknowledges economic agenda may not pass this week  —  President Biden on Monday acknowledged Congress may not get his economic agenda and a government funding deal done by the end of the week, but expressed optimism both would eventually pass.  —  “It may not be by the end of the week.

The Public Continues to Underestimate COVID's Age Discrimination  —  In mid-September, King County, Washington, in which Seattle is located, released an eye-popping slide about vaccine efficacy and breakthrough prevalence: Vaccines had reduced the risk of infection from COVID sevenfold …