As Budget Bill Hangs in Limbo, Kyrsten Sinema Heads to Europe  —  With the Senate out of session, Ms. Sinema, the Democratic senator from Arizona, has been in Europe on a fund-raising trip.  —  Senator Kyrsten Sinema, the moderate Arizona Democrat who has objected to the size and scope …

Trump calls in to rally hosted by Bannon for Virginia GOP candidates  —  RICHMOND — Virginia gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin steered clear Wednesday night as former president Donald Trump phoned into a rally for the state's GOP ticket, headlined by onetime Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon.

January 6 panel prepares to immediately pursue criminal charges as Bannon faces subpoena deadline  —  (CNN)Trump ally Steve Bannon's game of chicken with the House committee investigating the January 6 Capitol Hill riot is on the cusp of entering a new and critical phase Thursday as he faces …

A Secretive Hedge Fund Is Gutting Newsrooms  —  The Tribune Tower rises above the streets of downtown Chicago in a majestic snarl of Gothic spires and flying buttresses that were designed to exude power and prestige.  When plans for the building were announced in 1922, Colonel Robert R. McCormick …

This scrupulous biography of Robert E. Lee is exactly what the country needs  —  In 1935, the year before Margaret Mitchell's magnolia-scented novel “Gone with the Wind” began 21 months on bestseller lists, Douglas Southall Freeman, the son of a veteran of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's legions …

Nicholas Kristof Leaves New York Times as He Considers a Political Run  —  Mr. Kristof, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, is weighing a run for governor of Oregon, the state where he grew up.  —  After 37 years at The New York Times as a reporter, high-level editor and opinion columnist …

Global energy crisis could dim climate hopes  —  An energy crisis around the world is hitting households and manufacturers that were already struggling to recover from the global pandemic.  —  Why it matters: This is a perfect storm of crises.  It features supply shortages, especially from China …

Calls intensify to end Wisconsin's election review amid blunders by ex-judge in charge  —  The glaring errors became clear soon after a former Wisconsin judge issued subpoenas earlier this month in a Republican review of the state's 2020 presidential election.  Some of the requests referred to the wrong city.

Amazon Puts Its Own “Brands” First … Above Better-Rated Products  —  The online giant gives a leg up to hundreds of house brand and exclusive products that most people don't know are connected to Amazon  —  It took Robert Gomez about five months to get his Kaffe coffee grinder …

How a $2 Million Condo in Brooklyn Ends Up With a $157 Tax Bill  —  Opaque methods, hypothetical numbers and ‘bonkers’ adjustments shift the property-tax burden toward middle- and working-class New Yorkers  —  A condo in Brooklyn's fashionable Williamsburg neighborhood sells for $2.15 million.

Jobless Claims Fall to Lowest Level Since Start of Covid-19 Pandemic  —  Unemployment applications decreased to 293,000 last week from 329,000 a week earlier, the Labor Department said  —  Jobless claims fell below 300,000 last week for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic began in 2020 …

The media's doomsday talk about Biden is greatly exaggerated  —  Many in the media are drumming up the narrative that President Biden is in deep political trouble. … Some in the White House press corps are asking questions along the lines of “Isn't the president worried he's failing?”

Top Democrats unveil bill to rein in tech companies' ‘malicious algorithms’  —  Happy Thursday!  It's a huge day for tech policy on Capitol Hill.  Key lawmakers are dropping major bills aimed at addressing concerns about competition online and algorithmic recommendations.  Keep scrolling for all the details.

Summers Slams Woke Fed for Risking Losing Control of Inflation  — Former Treasury chief has warned about price risks for months  — Summers says Fed not preparing public for potential action  —  Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers castigated monetary policy makers in the U.S …

Jim Jordan Makes His Move to Be the Most Batshit Anti-Vaxxer of All  —  RACE TO THE BOTTOM … He's got stiff competition from the likes of Republican trolls Greg Abbott and Kristi Noem, but the former wrestling coach is rolling up his sleeves and going for it.

EXCLUSIVE: Katie Couric covered up RBG's contempt for taking the knee: Anchor says she edited 2016 interview to ‘protect’ the elderly justice after she said people who kneel for the anthem were ‘dumb and disrespectful’  — Katie Couric has admitted to editing out Ruth Bader Ginsburg's controversial comments …

Hacked Records Reveal Hundreds Of Oath Keepers Across New Jersey  —  Over the last decade, dozens of current and former law enforcement officers, military personnel, and government officials in New Jersey joined a far-right, anti-government militia called the Oath Keepers …

Late Gov. Edwin Edwards' wife had his remains exhumed and cremated; his children are angry  —  About 10 weeks after former Gov. Edwin W. Edwards died, his widow had him dug up from a Baton Rouge cemetery so she could have him cremated.  —  For now, Trina Edwards is keeping his remains …

The slippery slope of the GOP's anti-vaccine-mandate push  —  For a while in this space, we've been focused on a looming question: How long before Republicans' coronavirus vaccine skepticism and anti-mandate fervor makes the next logical jump: to the other vaccines that have been mandated for many years?

L.A. Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas and ex-USC dean indicted on bribery charges  —  Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas was indicted Wednesday on federal charges of taking bribes from a former USC dean in exchange for supporting millions of dollars in L.A. County contracts …

Olympic officials won't push China on human rights ahead of Beijing Games, as calls for boycott grow louder  —  SYDNEY — A senior member of the International Olympic Committee said that holding China to account over its human rights record ahead of the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing is not within …

Loudoun County student accused in sexual assaults at two county schools, sparking outrage from parents  —  A teen accused of sexually assaulting a fellow student at a Loudoun County high school in May is also accused in a second sexual assault less than five months later at another county high school …

Stephen Breyer says now isn't the time to lose faith in the Supreme Court  —  (CNN)Justice Stephen Breyer is not giving up on the Supreme Court.  —  In a wide-ranging interview with CNN on Wednesday, the senior liberal justice expressed caution about some of the ideas raised …

Why the Tuskegee Study Slowed Vaccinations of Black Americans  —  Black Americans were once far less likely than white Americans to be vaccinated.  But a wave of pro-vaccine campaigns and a surge of virus deaths have narrowed that gap, experts say.  —  TUSKEGEE, Ala. — By the time vaccines …

FDA advisory panel meets on Moderna booster shots; Biden to address public … President Biden is set to brief the public Thursday morning about the government's coronavirus response as an independent advisory panel meets to discuss whether a booster of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine is safe and effective.