Covid Live Updates: Biden to Announce New Virus Plan as Omicron Reaches U.S.  —  Here's what you need to know:  —  Biden's winter Covid plan includes insurance reimbursement for at-home tests.  —  President Biden will announce Thursday that the more than 150 million Americans …

‘Handful of fanatics’ to blame for Capitol riot, Trump ally Meadows says in book  —  Ex-chief of staff downplays Trump involvement in insurrection and says mob had ‘absolutely no urging’ from the president  —  In his new memoir, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows blames just …

Why a Pollster is Warning Democrats About the 2022 Midterm Elections  —  Focus groups with Virginia voters led to a bluntly worded memo on what Democrats need to do going into the midterms.  —  Brian Stryker, a Democratic pollster, didn't work for Terry McAuliffe's campaign in the Virginia governor's race.

Symone Sanders to leave the VP's office  —  Symone Sanders, the senior adviser and chief spokesperson for Vice President Kamala Harris, is expected to leave the White House at the end of the year, according to five administration officials familiar with the matter.

Hill leaders strike short-term funding deal as shutdown looms  —  The House plans to vote Thursday on a short-term funding patch to avert a government shutdown in less than 48 hours and punt the new deadline to mid-February, though hurdles still remain across the Capitol.

Two Election Workers Targeted by Pro-Trump Media Sue for Defamation  —  The two Georgia workers were falsely accused of manipulating ballots by Trump allies and right-wing news sites.  Election officials said the workers did nothing wrong.  —  Two Georgia election workers who were the targets …

U.S. and Mexico reach deal to restart Trump-era ‘Remain in Mexico’ program along border  —  The Biden administration has reached a deal with the Mexican government to restart the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” program that requires asylum seekers to wait outside U.S. territory while their claims are processed …

This doctor commutes 800 miles to provide abortion services in underserved communities  —  NEW YORK to SOUTH BEND, Ind. — With the New York City skyline melting into the distance, Meera Shah looked out over the pink sunset, trying to relax as she settled in for the nearly three-hour flight to Chicago.

‘Magic dirt’: How the internet fueled, and defeated, the pandemic's weirdest MLM  —  The social media posts started in May: photos and videos of smiling people, mostly women, drinking Mason jars of black liquid, slathering black paste on their faces and feet, or dipping babies and dogs in tubs of the black water.

Alec Baldwin exclusive: 'The trigger wasn't pulled.  I didn't pull the trigger'  —  George Stephanopoulos' exclusive interview airs Thursday on ABC, streams on Hulu  —  Actor Alec Baldwin told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in an exclusive interview that he had “no idea” …

We Opened the Schools and ... It Was Fine  —  When the coronavirus pandemic first hit, many states and towns closed everything, including schools.  Public-health experts didn't know enough about how COVID was spread or how contagious it was, and the health-care system was overwhelmed in parts of the country.

Germany imposes curbs on unvaccinated, to make shots mandatory … Germany on Thursday imposed restrictions on the unvaccinated as it sought to break a dramatic surge in daily coronavirus infections exacerbated by the discovery of the Omicron strain.  —  Outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel …

Trump intervenes in Ohio Senate primary — for himself  —  The Ohio Senate race is turning into one of the most brutal contests of next year's midterm elections — and former President Donald Trump is worried it could hurt him if he waged a 2024 comeback bid.

If Trump Voters Lived in Germany, They'd Be in the Fascist Party … A recent global poll, which came to my attention via the Liberal Patriot, framed the political choice facing the public in an interesting way.  It asked which position comes closest to the poll taker's own belief …

Revealed: how Sidney Powell could be disbarred for lying in court for Trump  —  The former lawyer filed cases across America for the former president, hoping to overturn the results of the 2020 election  —  Sidney Powell, the former lawyer for Donald Trump who filed lawsuits across America …

The minoritarian third of the Supreme Court  —  The Supreme Court seems likely to significantly scale back access to abortion when it rules on a Mississippi law that sharply limits the procedure — if the court doesn't overturn Roe v. Wade entirely.  That's a function of the court's shift …

Florida Power & Light execs worked closely with consultants behind ‘ghost’ candidate scheme, records reveal |  Special Report  —  Top executives at utility giant Florida Power & Light worked closely with the political consultants who orchestrated a scheme to promote spoiler candidates …

I.O.C. Says It Held Second Call With Peng Shuai  —  Olympic officials insisted they “shared the same concern as many” about the safety of the Chinese tennis star but offered no details of what they discussed with her.  —  The International Olympic Committee said Thursday that it had held …

CIA Files Say Staffers Committed Sex Crimes Involving Children.  They Weren't Prosecuted.  —  Over the past 14 years, the Central Intelligence Agency has secretly amassed credible evidence that at least 10 of its employees and contractors committed sexual crimes involving children.