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 …

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.

Biden tells ABC's David Muir ‘yes’ he'll run again, Trump rematch would ‘increase the prospect’  —  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” anchor David Muir that …

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.

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.

Hong Kong University Pulls Down Monument to Tiananmen Massacre Victims  —  Sculptor says he is shocked by actions to remove ‘Pillar of Shame’  —  HONG KONG—The governing body of the city's oldest university ordered the removal of a statue commemorating the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre …

‘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.

The Rise of Eric Adams and Black New York  —  Ms. Gay is a member of the editorial board.  —  It was winter in Black New York, and the last thing Eric Leroy Adams wanted to do was join the New York City Police Department.  —  It was the early 1980s and waves of joblessness and crime …

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 …

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 …

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 …

Wayne LaPierre Testified He Fled to the Bahamas for ‘Security.’ Documents and Interviews Tell a Different Story.  —  The NRA chief's misleading statements about his yacht trip after Sandy Hook and his niece's employment could strengthen the New York attorney general's attempt to dissolve the gun group.

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 aides catch the holiday blues  —  Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration.  With Allie Bice.  —  About two months ago during a fire drill, the White House emptied and aides congregated outside.

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 …

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.

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.

Brigitte Macron to sue over false claims she was born male  —  Brigitte Macron is set to take legal action over an internet conspiracy theory that she is a transgender woman and was born male.  —  The French first lady has been targeted on social media with the false claims …

On More Generous Terms, Obamacare Proves Newly Popular  —  Record sign-ups, even in states that had resisted expanding health coverage under the Affordable Care Act.  —  A record number of Americans — 13.6 million — have signed up for health plans through the Affordable Care Act's marketplaces for 2022 …

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.

Why Biden Refused to Pay Restitution to Families Separated at the Border  —  White House officials ultimately decided that a settlement had become a greater political liability than any potential fallout from a broken promise.  —  Late last week, after ten months of negotiations …

Candidates fighting 2020 misinformation run to administer local elections  —  As a chemist and immigrant from Vietnam, Linh Nguyen never thought she could have a role in U.S. politics.  But then Donald Trump was elected president in 2016 and he “unknowingly inspired minority leaders …

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.

‘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.

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.