Jan. 6 Organizers Used Anonymous ‘Burner Phones’ to Communicate with White House and Trump Family, Sources Say  —  A key planner of the Jan. 6 rally near the White House insisted the burner phones be purchased with cash, a source says  —  Some of the organizers who planned the rally …

Spencer, Kessler, Cantwell and other white supremacists found liable in deadly Unite the Right rally … Prominent white supremacists Richard Spencer, Jason Kessler and Christopher Cantwell and others engaged in a conspiracy in advance of the deadly Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville in 2017, a jury has ruled.

Washington Post's Erik Wemple Scorches Brian Stelter and CNN Over Coverage of Steele Dossier: ‘Journalistic Abdication’  —  Washington Post media critic Erik Wemple took CNN to task on Tuesday for how it has handled coverage of the Steele dossier.  —  A number of mainstream news outlets …

Mike Lindell Blames a Vast GOP Conspiracy for His Supreme Court Failure  —  The pillow boss has long promised he'd file his unhinged ravings to the high court by Tuesday, but that hasn't happened.  Of course, a conspiracy must be to blame, Lindell says.  —  MyPillow chief and 2020 dead …

Seven doctors contract Covid after attending Florida anti-vaccine summit  —  Doctors tested positive or developed symptoms ‘within days’ of conference at which alternative treatments were discussed  —  Seven anti-vaccine doctors fell sick after gathering earlier this month for a Florida …

White House to nominate new budget director months after Congress rejected Biden's initial pick  —  Biden will ask the Senate to confirm Shalanda Young for the important role.  She currently serves as the Office of Management and Budget's acting director.  —  The White House …

He Attacked Cops At The Capitol Riot.  Then He Went To Air Force Basic Training.  —  Aiden Bilyard, who was known to online sleuths as #HarvardSweats, smashed out a window at the Capitol and attacked law enforcement.  —  The FBI has arrested a supporter of former President Donald Trump …

Kevin Strickland is freed after judge agrees he's innocent  —  Kevin Strickland exonerated  —  Kevin Strickland spent 42 years in a Missouri prison for a crime that he, and prosecutors, says he didn't commit.  Prosecutors argued in a 25-page motion that Strickland's innocence is “clear and convincing.”

EXCLUSIVE: ‘The old white ppl...knock dem TF out!’  Waukesha suspect shared social media posts promoting violence towards white people and claiming black people were the ‘true Hebrews’  — Darrell Brooks Jr., 39, allegedly drove the red Ford SUV that plowed through crowds on Sunday and charged …

US to require vaccines for all border crossers in January  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will require essential, nonresident travelers crossing U.S. land borders, such as truck drivers, government and emergency response officials, to be fully vaccinated beginning on Jan. 22, the administration planned to announce Tuesday.

Apple Sues Israeli Spyware Maker, Seeking to Block Its Access to iPhones  —  Apple accused NSO Group, the Israeli surveillance company, of “flagrant” violations of its software, as well as federal and state laws.  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Apple sued the NSO Group, the Israeli surveillance company …

The Biggest Victim in 2021 Redistricting So Far: Competition  —  Heading into Thanksgiving, new congressional maps have either passed or are awaiting signature in 20 states — almost half of the 44 states with two or more seats.  And although Republicans are poised for modest mapping gains, the most dramatic trend is anti-competitive.

Everyone's Moving to Texas.  Here's Why.  —  Farhad Manjoo is an Opinion Columnist.  Gus Wezerek and Yaryna Serkez are graphics editors for Opinion.  —  The traumas of the past few years have rearranged all of our lives.  Many Americans have new needs, new desires, new possibilities and new priorities.

In Venezuela's Flawed Vote, Maduro Shows One Way to Retain Power  —  European observers said the elections were neither free nor fair.  They showed how President Nicolás Maduro's government, however unpopular, can win by excluding and splitting opponents.

Peng Shuai and the High Stakes of Business in China  —  The Women's Tennis Association has taken an unusually bold—and costly—stance on behalf of the tennis star against the state that censored her.  —  When Peng Shuai, a Chinese tennis star, posted on Chinese social media, on November 2nd …

Boris Johnson's Peppa Pig speech forces him to answer the question: ‘Is everything okay?’  —  LONDON — “Is everything okay?” is probably not a question any world leader wants to be asked, especially in relation to their competence.  —  But that is the question politicians …

With hundreds of nominees to confirm, the Senate doesn't deserve Thanksgiving break  —  While the rest of us have turkey with friends and family, the Senate should stay in Washington and do its job — specifically, the job of advice and consent prescribed in the Constitution.

Biden Includes Taiwan Among 110 Invitees to Democracy Summit  — Virtual summit is scheduled to take place from Dec. 9-10  — China may be angered by including Taiwan among the invitees  —  The Biden administration included Taiwan among the 110 invitees to its upcoming democracy summit …

Biden lashes out at oil and gas companies over high prices in economic speech  —  As people prepare to embark on slightly more expensive trips to grandma's for Thanksgiving, President Joe Biden criticized oil and gas companies for high prices at the pump in a speech at the White House.

Sean Parnell is out.  What's next for Republicans in Pa.'s 2022 Senate race?  —  Pennsylvania's Republican Senate race is hitting reset.Just three months after he looked like the GOP front-runner, Sean Parnell's rapid collapse — sealed Monday by a judge's decision against him in his bitter custody battle …

Susan Rice needs those TPS reports  —  Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration.  With Allie Bice.  —  When people applied to join SUSAN RICE's staff at the White House Domestic Policy Council (DPC) this year …

Despite vaccines, the U.S. has lost more lives to Covid this year than last.  —  This was supposed to be the year vaccines brought the pandemic under control.  Instead, more people in the United States have died from Covid-19 this year than died last year, before vaccines were available.

Frustrated with CIA, Trump administration turned to Pentagon for shadow war with Iran  —  In the final month of his presidency, Donald Trump signed off on key parts of an extensive secret Pentagon campaign to conduct sabotage, propaganda and other psychological and information operations in Iran …

Investigations apply more scrutiny to Cuomo's pandemic tenure  —  Former New York Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker spent a lot of time with then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Zucker was often seen coming and going to Cuomo's office on the second floor of the state Capitol …

A Capitol rioter who declared ‘Civil War is coming’ just avoided the prison sentence prosecutors wanted  — Rasha Abual-Ragheb received a sentence lighter than the prison sentence prosecutors recommended.  — She encouraged people to bring firearms to Washington and posed for photographs inside the Capitol.

Parents are scrambling after schools suddenly cancel class over staffing and burnout  —  Two weeks' notice: Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools in North Carolina voted on Oct. 28 to close schools on Nov. 12 for a “day of kindness, community and connection.”

What New Documents Reveal About Jeffrey Epstein's Final Days  —  Newly released records show the disgraced financier living a mundane existence in jail before his suicide, while also spinning deceptions until the very end.  —  The disgraced financier, jailed in Manhattan …

Trump's Voter Fraud Claims Test Republican Candidates  —  Some embrace, and all must navigate, an issue the former president has said will help the party win back Congress  —  WASHINGTON—Former President Donald Trump's yearlong campaign falsely claiming he won the 2020 election …

Paul Boyer is done with the Arizona Legislature  —  The veteran lawmaker decided against running for re-election in the Arizona Senate, saying he just wants to be a regular guy again  —  Republican Arizona Sen. Paul Boyer, best known for his role as the lone Republican vote against holding …

Ciattarelli won all five of New Jersey's competitive congressional districts  —  Jack Ciattarelli may have lost this year's gubernatorial election, but his performance against Gov. Phil Murphy could still bode well for Republicans ahead of next year's midterm congressional elections.

Appeals court order in Jan. 6 documents case may be bad news for Trump  —  WASHINGTON — An order from a federal appeals court late Tuesday may be a worrisome sign for former President Donald Trump in his effort to assert executive privilege over documents sought by a House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.