What we know so far about the five victims of the Waukesha Christmas Parade  —  Bill Glauber Sophie Carson Sarah Volpenhein Talis ShelbourneMilwaukee Journal Sentinel  —  Every parade has an act that draws the eye, that brings a quick smile and a delighted laugh.

President Biden Announces Release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve As Part of Ongoing Efforts to Lower Prices and Address Lack of Supply Around the World  —  Announcement is in parallel with other major energy consuming nations, including China, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, and the United Kingdom

Trump poll tests his 2024 comeback map  —  As Donald Trump builds out a presidential-campaign-in-waiting, his team is focusing on an electoral strategy that relies on recapturing the five states that flipped to Joe Biden in 2020.  —  The five states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan …

Our Foghorn Leghorn Republican senator little resembles his former Democratic self, but in Louisiana we know the type  —  Robert Mann, a mass communication professor at Louisiana State University and former press secretary for Democratic senators Russell Long and John Breaux of Louisiana …

D.C. records 200th homicide of the year, a mark not seen since 2004  —  The District on Monday recorded its 200th homicide this year, the first time that symbolic threshold of deadly violence has been reached in the nation's capital since 2004.  —  A man was fatally shot just after 10:15 p.m …

Rep. Louie Gohmert announces he's running for Texas AG  —  Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas, a staunch Trump ally, made it official on Monday: He's joining the crowded primary to unseat GOP incumbent Ken Paxton for state attorney general.  —  The congressman announced earlier this month …

Thomas Jefferson statue removed from City Hall after 187 years  —  MORE ON:  —  Thomas Jefferson is about to no longer be in the room where it happens.  —  Art handlers packed up an 884-pound statue of Jefferson in a wooden crate Monday after a mayoral commission voted to banish the likeness …

Bannon indictment does little to jumpstart Jan. 6 committee's subpoena talks with top targets  —  Two months after the Jan. 6 select committee subpoenaed them, two of Donald Trump's top White House aides are locked in a standoff with the panel — and the indictment of Trump ally Steve Bannon appears …

Hogan knocks Trump: 'I'd prefer endorsements from people who didn't lose Maryland by 33 points'  —  Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) knocked former President Trump on Monday, pointing to the former president's loss in Old Line State during the 2020 presidential election.

The Democratic brand is broken.  The infrastructure bill isn't fixing it.  —  In the days after the Democratic Party's collapse in the Virginia governor's race, party strategists descended on the commonwealth to figure out what went wrong and understand just how bad the national outlook might be next year.

RNC agrees to pay some of Trump's legal bills in N.Y. criminal investigation  —  The Republican National Committee is paying some personal legal bills for former president Donald Trump, spending party funds to pay a lawyer representing Trump in investigations into his financial practices in New York, a party spokeswoman said Monday.

A Michigan woman tried to hire an assassin online at RentAHitman.com.  Now, she's going to prison.  —  Seething and vengeful, Wendy Wein was on the lookout for the professional killer she meant to hire as she waited inside a southeastern Michigan cafe in July 2020.  —  Wein wanted her ex-husband dead.

New York Moves to Allow 800,000 Noncitizens to Vote in Local Elections  —  New York City will become the largest municipality in the country to allow legal residents to vote if the legislation is approved as expected in December.  —  New York City lawmakers are poised to allow more than 800,000 …

Judge orders two lawyers who filed suit challenging 2020 election to pay hefty fees: ‘They need to take responsibility’  —  A federal judge has ordered two Colorado lawyers who filed a lawsuit late last year challenging the 2020 election results to pay nearly $187,000 to defray the legal fees …

Ridley Scott Pins ‘The Last Duel’ Bombing on Apathetic Millennials  —  The film starring Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer and Ben Affleck, cratered when it arrived exclusively in theaters in late October.

The QAnon JFK Cult in Dallas Is Tearing Families Apart  —  “My sister may be too far gone, but it's not too late to bring awareness to others.  Do not fall into this trap.”  —  DG  —  Katy Garner and her sister grew up in a small town in Arkansas and were always close.

JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon and Tesla's Elon Musk Feud Behind the Scenes  —  Bank's lawsuit against electric-vehicle maker brings the CEOs' long-simmering tensions into open  —  Elon Musk and Jamie Dimon don't get along.  —  Mr. Musk has spurned Mr. Dimon's JPMorgan Chase & Co. for years …

Taliban sends hundreds of fighters to eastern Afghanistan to wage war against Islamic State  —  JALALABAD, Afghanistan — The Taliban has expanded its shadowy war against the Islamic State branch in Afghanistan, deploying hundreds more fighters to this eastern province in an increasingly violent fight …

From Zoom to COVID vaccines to Biden and (gulp) Trump, a liberal's Thanksgiving thanks  —  There is much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving week, despite the pain of our troubled times.  What's on your list?  You might be surprised by mine.  —  Jill LawrenceUSA TODAY

Issues arise about some NYPD cops who relocated to Florida  —  New details are emerging about the newest dozen police officers lauded by Gov. Ron DeSantis for moving to Central Florida from New York City to escape what the governor described as low morale and a lack of support from Democratic politicians there.

Malikah Shabazz, the daughter of Malcolm X, has died, officials say  —  (CNN)A daughter of slain Black civil rights activist Malcolm X, Malikah Shabazz, died Monday, the New York Police Department told CNN.  —  Shabazz, 56, was found unconscious by her daughter at her home in Brooklyn, according to the NYPD.

Buttigieg says vaccine mandate for U.S. flights isn't necessary  —  The transportation secretary is confident masks are keeping travelers safe  —  Despite a recent push from dozens of lawmakers for the United States to add a vaccination requirement on domestic flights, the prospect of a federal mandate is looking slim.

The next Kyle Rittenhouse legal battle?  The $2 million bail posted after his arrest.  —  KENOSHA — With the ink barely dry on his acquittals, Kyle Rittenhouse is expected to face another legal battle soon over the $2 million bail posted after his arrest.  —  Rittenhouse's attorneys filed …

N.Y. man gets 19 months for urging Trump supporters to kill lawmakers who backed election results  —  NEW YORK — A supporter of former president Donald Trump was sentenced to 19 months in prison for threatening to “slaughter” members of Congress days after the Jan. 6 breach of the U.S. Capitol …

Biden's choice for Fed chair is a smart and overdue break with the left of his party  —  After a rocky few months in which President Biden sometimes seemed captive of the progressive wing of his own party, he took a solid step back toward the center Monday in renominating Jerome H. Powell as Federal Reserve chair.

The Housing Proposal That's Quietly Tearing Apart Atlanta  —  Secession efforts by Buckhead residents are gaining momentum as the city proposes zoning changes to create more apartments and affordable housing.  —  For those leading a campaign to secede from the city of Atlanta …

When Will The FDA Approve Paxlovid?  —  You thought it wasn't going to be a prediction market post, but surprise, it's a prediction market post!  —  Metaculus predicts January 1 as the median date for the FDA approving Paxlovid.  They estimate a 92% chance it will get approved by March.

U.S. issues ‘Do Not Travel’ COVID-19 warning for Germany, Denmark … The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the State Department on Monday advised against travel to Germany and Denmark because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases in those countries.

'There's power in that fear': Andrew Cuomo looms in the race to replace him  —  (CNN)More than three months after he resigned in disgrace, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo exists in political limbo — not completely written off as a spent force, but sidelined as the campaign to replace him heats up.