Esper Claims Defense Dept. Is Improperly Blocking Parts of His Memoir  —  The former defense secretary sued the agency, saying that portions of the book were being concealed “under the guise of classification.”  —  Former Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper on Sunday sued the agency he once led …

‘Patience is crucial’: Why we won't know for weeks how dangerous Omicron is  —  Lab tests and patterns of spread will show whether the new SARS-CoV-2 variant's many mutations are a serious threat  —  At 7.30 a.m. on Wednesday, Kristian Andersen, an infectious disease researcher at Scripps Research …

Inside the ‘Misinformation’ Wars  —  Journalists and academics are developing a new language for truth.  The results are not always clearer.  —  On Friday afternoons this fall, top American news executives have dialed into a series of off-the-record Zoom meetings led by Harvard academics whose goal is to …

Jew vs. Jew  —  On the real lessons of the Hanukkah story. … On Friday July 16, I moved across the country and into a Moishe House, one of a network of communal Jewish houses in cities including Boston, New York, Kansas City, and Pittsburgh.  On Thursday, July 22, my two roommates asked me to move out.

Chinese energy firm chairman gifted Hunter Biden an $80,000 diamond after he agreed to help expand the business by making ‘introductions’ for $10MILLION a year  — A new book, Laptop from Hell, claims that Hunter Biden helped expand Chinese influence in America for $10 million a year and an $80,000 diamond

In a Nonbinary Pronoun, France Sees a U.S. Attack on the Republic  —  When a French dictionary included the gender-nonspecific “iel” for the first time, a virulent reaction erupted over “wokisme” exported from American universities.  —  PARIS — Perhaps France was always going to have a hard time with nonbinary pronouns.

The Secretive Prisons That Keep Migrants Out of Europe  —  Acollection of makeshift warehouses sits along the highway in Ghout al-Shaal, a worn neighborhood of auto-repair shops and scrap yards in Tripoli, the capital of Libya.  Formerly a storage depot for cement, the site was reopened in January …

Michael Cohen: prosecutors could ‘indict Trump tomorrow’ if they wanted  —  New York investigation of Trump Organization is one of a number of sources of legal jeopardy for the former president  —  Prosecutors in New York could “indict Donald Trump tomorrow if they really wanted and be successful” …

Transcript: Dr. Anthony Fauci on “Face the Nation,” November 28, 2021  —  The following is a transcript of an interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Biden, that aired on Sunday, November 28, 2021, on “Face the Nation.”  —  MARGARET BRENNAN: Dr. Fauci, thank you very much for making time.

Former GOP Congresswoman Urges Voters to Oust Boebert, Greene: ‘Take Out the Trash’  —  Former Republican Congresswoman Barbara Comstock of Virginia urged voters to support primary challengers to GOP Congresswomen Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, saying “take out the trash.”

Taliban Covert Operatives Seized Kabul, Other Afghan Cities From Within  —  Success of Kabul's undercover network, loyal to the Haqqanis, changed balance of power within Taliban after U.S. withdrawal  —  KABUL—Undercover Taliban agents—often clean-shaven, dressed in jeans and sporting sunglasses …

Mike Lindell Throws a Fit and Pulls His Ads From Right-Wing Christian Salem Radio Network  —  STATIC  —  Election dead-ender Mike Lindell announced Saturday evening during his 96-hour “thanks-a-thon” event that he had pulled the plug on airing MyPillow advertisements with the right-wing …

In French Pantheon, Josephine Baker makes history yet again  —  France is inducting Missouri-born cabaret dancer Josephine Baker who was also a French World War II spy and civil rights activist into its Pantheon  —  PARIS — France is inducting Josephine Baker — Missouri-born cabaret dancer …

Iranian Brig.-Gen. urges destruction of Israel prior to nuke talks  —  “We will not back off from annihilation of Israel, even one millimeter.”  —  The spokesman for the Islamic Republic of Iran's armed forces, Brig.-Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi, on Saturday urged the total elimination …

Matthew McConaughey will not run for Texas governor  —  (CNN)Actor Matthew McConaughey announced Sunday in a video message on Twitter that a future in political leadership is not in the cards — right now.  —  After acknowledging that he had taken time exploring politics and considered a run …

The hypocrisy argument on the filibuster is itself phony  —  With the Senate facing a do-or-die moment on whether it will protect the right to vote and honest counts in elections, opponents of much-needed reforms want to shift the topic to whether liberals are hypocrites about filibuster rules.

Years of Delays, Billions in Overruns: The Dismal History of Big Infrastructure  —  The nation's most ambitious engineering projects are mired in postponements and skyrocketing costs.  Delivering $1.2 trillion in new infrastructure will be tough.  —  As Honolulu sprawled into new suburbs west …

The dangerous extremism that's killing the Democrats is extreme centrism  —  Long ago, in a United States that now seems far, far away, the coming-to-America story of Saule Omarova would be hailed as a stirring endorsement of our nation as a beacon for democracy seekers.

Republicans are quietly rigging election maps to ensure permanent rule  —  The past decade in Ohio shows how bad it can get - and how quickly.  Despite the state's voters often swinging Democratic, 75% of its congressional delegates are Republican  —  The long-term health of American democracy …

Second gentleman attends National Menorah lighting ceremony: ‘Jewish history is American history’  —  (CNN)Doug Emhoff, husband to Vice President Kamala Harris, spoke at the National Menorah lighting ceremony on Sunday for the first night of Hanukkah.  —  The first Jewish spouse of a president …

Trump's Senate picks stumble out of the gate  —  Donald Trump's favorite in the Alabama Senate race is treading water.  His pick in Pennsylvania just bowed out of the GOP primary after losing custody of his children.  In Alaska and North Carolina, two other Trump-endorsed Senate candidates are behind in primary election polls.