McAuliffe says Virginia election ‘is not about Trump’ after making former President central figure in campaign  —  Trump has been relatively hands off.  Smerconish has a theory why  —  Virginia Beach, Virginia (CNN)Terry McAuliffe claimed on Saturday that the Virginia gubernatorial election is …

911 transcripts filed in updated “Trump Train” lawsuit reveal San Marcos police refused to send escort to Biden bus  —  The highway confrontation between a Biden bus and Trump supporters made national news in the final days of the heated 2020 presidential campaign.

The Most Damning Jan 6th Revelation Yet  —  New Emails Show Trump and Eastman Saw the Insurrectionists as the Foot Soldiers of the Coup.  They Cheered Them on and Used Them in Real Time.  —  As I have noted in other recent posts, much of the recent ‘news’ about the insurrection has not been terribly new.

26 FDNY firehouses out of service over vaccine mandate staff shortage  —  The FDNY shuttered 26 fire companies citywide Saturday morning because of staff shortages caused by the COVID-19 vaccination mandate — an “unconscionable” move some officials fear could have catastrophic consequences.

Inside the last-ditch effort by Democratic women to pressure Manchin and salvage paid family and medical leave  —  The party's still-forming $1.75 trillion economic package jettisoned the long-time priority to win over the West Virginia moderate.  But many Democrats aren't yet ready to give up the fight.

Samford disinvites historian Jon Meacham after student anti-abortion protest  —  Want more state education news?  Sign up for The Alabama Education Lab's free, weekly newsletter, Ed Chat.  —  Samford University has uninvited Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Jon Meacham from inauguration ceremonies …

Merrick Garland Plays Dumb on a DOJ Atrocity  —  There is no doubt that he grasps how wrong he is.  —  NRPLUS MEMBER ARTICLE  —  M  —  errick Garland turns out to be a political hack.  —  The attorney general very much enjoys his reputation as a distinguished former federal appellate judge …

Biden, other G-20 world leaders formally endorse groundbreaking global corporate minimum tax  —  The new global minimum tax of 15 percent aims to reverse the decades-long decline in tax rates on corporations across the world  —  ROME — President Biden and the other national leaders gathered …

Trump Making ‘Last Ditch’ Effort to Skip Deposition, Zervos Says  —  Former President Donald Trump is making a “last ditch” effort to avoid being deposed in a defamation lawsuit filed by a former “Apprentice” contestant who claims he sexually assaulted her, a judge was told.

Joint Statement by the President of France Emmanuel Macron, Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland Boris Johnson, and President of the United States Joseph R. Biden, Jr. on Iran  —  We, the President of France, Chancellor of Germany …

LA Sheriff Warns Of ‘Mass Exodus’ Of Deputies Because of Vaccine Mandate  —  LAist relies on your reader support, not paywalls.  —  Freely accessible local news is vital.  Please power our reporters and help keep us independent with a donation today.  —  Donate Now

Russian troop movements near Ukraine border prompt concern in U.S., Europe  —  A renewed buildup of Russian troops near the Ukrainian border has raised concern among some officials in the United States and Europe who are tracking what they consider irregular movements of equipment and personnel on Russia's western flank.

‘This is a powder keg’: AR-15-loving church aligning itself with the far right as it grows  —  According to a report from Business Insider, the Rod of Iron ministry that worships the AR-15 and is decidedly pro-Donald Trump, is increasingly aligning itself with far-right figures as evidenced by a recent …

Call logs, speech drafts among records Trump is trying to block from Jan. 6 investigators  —  Donald Trump is seeking to prevent Jan. 6 investigators from accessing daily presidential diaries, drafts of election-related speeches, logs of his phone calls, handwritten notes and files of top aides …

Supreme Court embarks on most dramatic reckoning for abortion rights in decades  —  The Supreme Court will face a bramble of unsettled legal questions when it reviews Texas's most-restrictive-in-the-nation abortion law Monday, but the inquiry itself is evidence of a changed court whose view …

Covid Shots Are a Go for Children, but Parents Are Reluctant to Consent  —  Vaccinating 5- to 11-year-olds could be a big step toward returning to normal life in the U.S., but even parents who got the shot are worried about how it might affect their kids.  —  The Food and Drug Administration's …

Curtis Sliwa Has New York's Attention Again.  Was That Always the Point?  —  The founder of the Guardian Angels has sought the spotlight for decades.  With his long-shot bid to become the city's next mayor, he has found it again.  —  When New Yorkers feared their subway and streets amid …

APA apologizes for longstanding contributions to systemic racism  —  Acknowledges failures, accepts responsibility, pledges change for psychology  —  WASHINGTON — As part of the nation's historic reckoning on racism, the American Psychological Association has apologized to communities …

The Polarization of Death  —  I'm continuing to update the covdata package in anticipation of a Data Visualization for Social Science course I'll teach next semester.  I revisited the Partisan Trajectories graph, as it seems there's more that could be done with it.  More on that in the future, I hope.

U.S. announces deal with European Union to ease steel and aluminum tariffs enacted under Trump  —  ROME - The Biden administration has struck a deal with European Union officials to lift some tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, resolving at this year's Group of 20 summit a bitter trade stand-off …