U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon carjacked and robbed in South Philly after touring FDR Park  —  U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon was carjacked and robbed at gunpoint in broad daylight on Wednesday afternoon shortly after finishing a meeting at FDR Park, her office and police officials confirmed.

People Got Sick at a Conspiracy Conference.  They're Sure It's Anthrax.  —  The fact that the conference was likely a COVID outbreak and superspreader event has been almost entirely ignored.  —  DG  —  A group of unvaccinated people who attended a huge conspiracy conference in Dallas earlier …

President Biden to ABC's David Muir: Accountability needed for Jan. 6 insurrection ‘no matter where it goes’  —  He spoke with “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir in an exclusive interview.  —  President Joe Biden said Wednesday in an exclusive interview with ABC “World News Tonight” …

Supreme Court sets special hearing for Biden's vaccine rules for health-care workers, private businesses  —  The Supreme Court Wednesday night announced it will hold a special hearing next month to consider challenges to the Biden administration's pandemic efforts to impose a nationwide vaccine …

Real-world data from U.K. suggests omicron is less likely than delta to send people to the hospital  —  LONDON — Researchers looking at real-world coronavirus cases in Britain reported Wednesday that the omicron variant of the coronavirus appears to be less severe than the once-dominant delta strain.

Michael Flynn loses his legal challenge to the House January 6 probe, one day after filing it  —  (CNN)Michael Flynn has swiftly lost his bid in court to block a possible House select committee subpoena for his phone records and to hold off demands he speak to the panel investigating January 6.

America is now in fascism's legal phase  —  The history of racism in the US is fertile ground for fascism.  Attacks on the courts, education, the right to vote and women's rights are further steps on the path to toppling democracy  —  et us be reminded that before there is a final solution …

‘Have I Hit Bottom?’:  Michael Avenatti and the Fall of a Trump-Era Antihero  —  VENICE, Calif. — Inside a two-bedroom apartment, 11 blocks from the ocean, there is a man in free fall, though he has nowhere to go.  He wears a monitor on his right ankle, government-issued, blinking green beneath his tapered track pants.

Trump's Handling of COVID Was Worse Than You Thought.  —  1. Early COVID  —  Last week the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis issued a report, along with a release of some emails and interviews.  —  First things first: This report is not what America needs.

Biden Won Big With a Bad Hand  —  Relative to its strength in Congress, the Biden administration has proved outstandingly successful.  —  About the author: David Frum is a staff writer at The Atlantic and the author of Trumpocalypse: Restoring American Democracy (2020).

Trump Just Crossed a Red Line for His Evangelical and Jewish Fans  —  Trump's obscenities and antisemitic tropes don't bother his Jewish fans.  But a recent quote has stunned his pro-Israel base, evangelicals and Jews, to the core - and could complicate his chances for a second term  —  Zen Read

Biden administration extends federal student loan payment pause until May  —  A moratorium was scheduled to expire early in 2022.  —  The Biden administration announced Wednesday it will extend a pause on student loan payments through May 1 as the omicron variant threatens to hurt the U.S. economy.

The Biden Youth Bomb  —  Joe Biden was elected to be competent, compromising, and stoic.  But his staggering—no, seriously, staggering—unpopularity among younger voters suggests that the Democratic establishment really doesn't have an earthly idea about what matters to their kids.

Inside the nonstop pressure campaign by Trump allies to get election officials to revisit the 2020 vote  —  More than a year after Donald Trump lost the presidency, election officials across the country are facing a growing barrage of claims that the vote was not secure and demands to investigate …

Select Committee Requests Information from Representative Jordan  —  Bolton, MS—Chairman Bennie G. Thompson today announced that the Select Committee has requested that Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio provide information for the committee's investigation into the violence of January 6th and its causes.

Democrats Score a Big Win in California Redistricting Map  —  On Monday, California's citizens' redistricting commission voted 14-0 to approve a map that's a dream for Democrats.  Technically, the commission (five Democrats, five Republicans and four others) was prohibited from taking partisan or incumbent data into consideration.

Covid Live Updates: Omicron Cases Appear Less Severe, 2 U.K. Studies Say  —  Experts warned that hospitals could still be flooded, because the variant is so transmissible.  The F.D.A. authorized Pfizer's Covid pills for high-risk patients 12 and older, a treatment that could be available within days.

Here's how Democrats can fix the Build Back Better mess — and appease Manchin  —  If Democrats take Manchin's own proposal seriously — with one small addition — they might be able to move ahead  —  Clearly, mistakes were made with the Build Back Better bill.  —  Who was at fault?  Tough to say.

Proud Boy pleads guilty to felony charge in Capitol riot  —  A New York man who was a member of the Proud Boys pleaded guilty Wednesday to obstructing Congress and conspiring to obstruct law enforcement during the pro-Trump riot on Jan. 6, a felony.  —  The plea is significant because Matthew Greene …

U.S. opens investigation into 580,000 Tesla vehicles over game feature  —  U.S auto safety regulators said Wednesday they have opened a formal safety investigation into 580,000 Tesla vehicles sold since 2017 over the automaker's decision to allow games to be played on the front center touchscreen.

Why Christmas Gifts Are Arriving on Time This Year  —  Fears that a disrupted supply chain could wreak havoc on the logistics industry over the holiday turned out to be wrong as many Americans ordered early and shopped in stores.  —  The warnings started to stream in early this fall: Shop early or you may not get your gifts on time.

‘The runner-up is almost always the next nominee’: Cruz says he's well-positioned for 2024  —  Sen. Ted Cruz on Wednesday argued he is particularly well-positioned to win the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, citing his second-place finish behind then-candidate Donald Trump in the party's 2016 primary.

End the Covid-Zero Mentality  —  As the Omicron variant rips through areas of the United States with among the highest vaccination rates in the world, it should be abundantly clear that we will not be able to “end” Covid.  But we still have the power to end the “Covid zero” mentality.

N.R.A. Chief Wayne LaPierre's Misleading Testimony About Free Yacht Trips in the Bahamas  —  Documents and accounts of former staffers, which raise questions about LaPierre's statements, could strengthen the New York attorney general's lawsuit to dissolve the gun-rights group.