Young Dems more likely to despise the other party  —  Nearly a quarter of college students wouldn't be friends with someone who voted for the other presidential candidate — with Democrats far more likely to dismiss people than Republicans — according to new Generation Lab/Axios polling.

Covid Live Updates: Pfizer Says its Booster Offers Significant Protection Against Omicron  —  Here's what you need to know:  —  Pfizer says blood samples showed a third dose of its vaccine provides significant protection against Omicron.  —  Pfizer and BioNTech said Wednesday …

Man in Custody After Allegedly Lighting Christmas Tree Outside Fox News Building on Fire  —  New York City first responders extinguished a huge Christmas tree fire outside the Fox News building in midtown Manhattan early Wednesday morning.  —  Videos posted by witnesses to the Citizen App show thick clouds …

Dems begin souring on vaccine mandates  —  Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration.  With Allie Bice.  —  Three months ago, as California Gov. GAVIN NEWSOM was turning around his fate in the state's recall election …

The pandemic worsened young people's mental health crisis.  —  The United States surgeon general on Tuesday warned that young people are facing “devastating” mental health effects as a result of the challenges experienced by their generation, including the coronavirus pandemic.

The Fight for Ukraine From Putin's View  —  He sees Russia's loss of the country as a historic injustice.  So how far will he go?  —  An independent Ukraine is for Vladimir Putin what the Treaty of Versailles was for Hitler —a historical injustice imposed on a defeated nation at its moment …

Wisconsin Conservative Group Finds ‘No Evidence Of Widespread Fraud’ In 2020 Election  —  A 10-month-long review of Wisconsin's 2020 election conducted by a conservative group in the state found no signs of widespread or significant election fraud, according to a new report of its findings …

French Police Arrest Man in Connection With Khashoggi Killing  —  A man with the same name, Khalid Alotaibi, is wanted in connection with the murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.  A Saudi official says France arrested the wrong man.  —  BEIRUT, Lebanon — The French police arrested …

Boebert Shows Off Rifle-Toting Kids in Christmas Photo  —  TONE DEAF  —  Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) shared a photo of her children wielding rifles in front of their Christmas tree late Tuesday, the latest gun-themed holiday photo released by Republicans in the wake of a deadly high school shooting.

‘I think we need to rethink entirely how we do things,’ says Dana Milbank of the Washington Post  —  Longtime Washington Post political journalist Dana Milbank on Friday accused his colleagues of being “accessories to the murder of democracy.”  —  Milbank wrote in his biweekly opinion column:

Major antitrust adversary in Congress has daughter on Google's legal team  —  US Rep. Zoe Lofgren — a Democrat who's one of the most vocal opponents of antitrust bills now winding their way through Congress that would target Big Tech — has a daughter who works on Google's legal team.

Rep. Pressley to introduce resolution to condemn Rep. Boebert  —  Nearly a dozen House liberals want Democratic leadership to act against the Colorado Republican for anti-Muslim remarks  —  Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) plans to introduce a resolution Wednesday to strip Rep. Lauren Boebert …

Exclusive: January 6 committee casts a wide net with over 100 subpoenas for phone records  —  (CNN)The House select committee investigating the January 6 riot has formally subpoenaed the phone records of more than 100 people, a substantial number that includes former Trump officials and associates …

Inside Tim Cook's Secret $275 Billion Deal with Chinese Authorities  —  Interviews and internal Apple documents provide a behind-the-scenes look at how the company made concessions to Beijing and won key legal exemptions.  CEO Tim Cook personally lobbied officials over threats that would have hobbled its devices and services.

A Very Weird Interview With Robert F. Kennedy Jr.  —  There are many criticisms to lob at Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and, as a result of the COVID pandemic, one of the most powerful and adored physicians in America.

Unvaccinated Illinoisans Would Pay COVID Hospital Bills Under New Proposals  —  Illinois residents who are eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine and refuse to take it would have to pay for their treatment if they contract the virus under a proposed new bill.  —  “I think it's time that we say …

Lin Wood Claims Marjorie Taylor Greene Is Under Influence of ‘the Devil’  —  ‘DRAW YOUR OWN CONCLUSIONS’  —  Pro-Trump lawyer Lin Wood, who's embroiled in an escalating war of words with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), told The Daily Beast that he believes the far-right firebrand is under the “influence of the devil.”

There's No Excuse for Shutting Down Schools Again  —  With billions in federal aid still unspent, districts need to keep their doors open — and their kids in the classroom.  —  By Editorial Board  —  Nearly two years into the pandemic, America's students are still suffering.

Chinese weddings fall to 13-year low as demographic crisis brews  —  Gender imbalance and high cost of tying the knot blamed for fewer couples getting married  —  China's efforts to lower the cost of marriage and boost birth rates have failed to lead to more weddings, dealing a blow …

Two years into this pandemic, the world is dangerously unprepared for the next one, report says  —  With its vast wealth and scientific capability, the United States held on to its top ranking among 195 countries, even as it scored lowest on public confidence in government — a factor associated with high numbers of cases and deaths

Michael Nutter: Larry Krasner owes an apology to the 521 families of Philly's homicide victims  —  District Attorney Larry Krasner's recent remarks about whether we are experiencing a crime crisis are some of the worst, most ignorant, and most insulting comments I have ever heard spoken …

Cancel Student Debt: $50K for Every Borrower  —  Higher education should be accessible to everyone, regardless of economic status or background.  Unfortunately, that's not the reality in the United States.  —  The cost of higher education has grown exponentially in our country …

In militants' hands, drones emerge as a deadly new wild card in the Middle East  —  The assassins' weapon was a souped-up hobby drone, the kind that can be bought online for a few thousand dollars.  It featured four helicopter-like rotors, an oversize battery and a small bomb …

Italian Lives Matter  —  Italian reader Giuseppe Scalas says that the murder in NYC of an Italian researcher by a black gang member out on parole has turned the left-wing Milan daily Corriere della Sera against The New York Times.  He sent a translation of the Federico Rampini commentary in the Corriere today.