GOP shudders at Trump Jan. 6 speech  —  Senate Republicans are cringing at former President Donald Trump's plans to speak on Jan. 6, openly fretting he's trying to pull their party back into debating his false election claims.  —  “I don't think that's a good idea,” said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.).

Scoop: Jan. 6 committee to request Sean Hannity's cooperation  —  The Jan. 6 select committee is preparing to ask Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity for his voluntary cooperation with its investigation of the assault on the U.S. Capitol, a source with direct knowledge of the plans tells Axios.

Ben Smith Is Leaving The Times for a Global News Start-Up  —  Mr. Smith will help start a new organization with Justin Smith, the chief executive of Bloomberg Media.  —  Ben Smith, the media columnist for The New York Times, is leaving the paper to start a new global news organization with Justin Smith …

Facebook groups topped 10,000 daily attacks on election before Jan. 6, analysis shows … Facebook groups swelled with at least 650,000 posts attacking the legitimacy of Joe Biden's victory between Election Day and the Jan. 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol, with many calling for executions …

No Way to Grow Up  —  American children are in crisis.  —  American children are starting 2022 in crisis.  —  I have long been aware that the pandemic was upending children's lives.  But until I spent time pulling together data and reading reports, I did not understand just how alarming the situation had become.

POLITICO Playbook: The election reform idea gaining currency on the right  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  TODAY'S BIG EVENT: Senate Democrats will hold a virtual meeting at 12:45 p.m. It will be the first opportunity of the new year for all 50 caucus members to talk about where Build Back Better 2. stands …

Ron Johnson escalates attack on vaccines: ‘Why do we think that we can create something better than God?’  —  Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) this week doubled down on his campaign to promote the so-called “natural immunity” that occurs after one has been infected by Covid-19.

Entrata founder emails Utah tech CEOs, claiming COVID vaccine part of extermination plot by ‘the Jews’  —  SALT LAKE CITY — The founder and chair of Entrata, a Silcon Slopes tech firm, sent an email to a number of tech CEOs and Utah business and political leaders, claiming the COVID-19 vaccine …

Federal judge to DoD: You can't punish SEALs who claim religious exemption on vaccine mandate  —  So much for Lloyd Austin's vaccine mandate ... at least for 35 Navy SEALs.  A federal judge imposed a preliminary injunction on the Department of Defense after the commandos objected …

Ron DeSantis's Vaccination Status Is Now a State Secret … Florida governor Ron DeSantis has been walking a delicate balancing act on vaccinations, assiduously courting vaccine skeptics without going so far to the right that he lands in Marjorie Taylor Greene territory.

New COVID-19 variant named IHU discovered in France  —  What is the IHU variant?  —  A new COVID-19 variant has been discovered in France.  It is called IHU.  —  NEW YORK - A new COVID-19 variant has been detected in France.  The variant has been named IHU.

The Radicalization of J.D. Vance  —  As he runs for the Senate, the ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ author has gone from media darling to establishment pariah.  Is his new, fiery, right-wing persona an act?  Or is something more interesting going on?  —  Let's start with the beard.  J.D. Vance didn't used to have one.

Inside D.C.'s Rowdy New Progressive Scene  —  Once a month, in the latter, vaccinated half of 2021, denizens of D.C.'s progressive ecosystem flocked to a bar in Washington's Adams Morgan neighborhood for a happy hour hosted by the pollster and think tank Data for Progress.

Capitol rioter compares attacks on her to treatment of ‘Jews in Germany’  —  Jenna Ryan, a Texas realtor who has sought to parlay her role in the Capitol riot into a career as a right-wing media personality, posted a tweet in March last year that quickly went viral.

Lies are bad.  A press corps enabling liars is worse  —  Propaganda works when reporters fear telling the truth.  —  It's conventional wisdom among newspaper reporters that we should let readers decide.  Don't come to conclusions.  Just present the facts objectively.  Leave the rest to the op-ed page.

USA TODAY/Suffolk Poll: Red flags for the GOP on the midterms, for Biden on leadership  —  A new USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll raises a red flag for Republicans on the midterm elections and offers mixed advice for President Joe Biden on whether he should fight or fold on his big domestic initiative.

Kelly Ernby, former Orange County GOP state Assembly candidate and deputy D.A., dies of COVID-19  —  Kelly Ernby, a political newcomer who ran for an Orange County state Assembly seat two years ago as a Republican, died this week of COVID-19.  In addition to political activism …

Voter Approval of FBI Declines  —  Fewer voters now trust the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and many believe the agency is acting as President Joe Biden's “personal Gestapo.”  —  A new national telephone and online survey by Rasmussen Reports finds that 46% of Likely U.S. voters …

U.S. Logs Record 1 Million Virus Cases With Data Delay  —  The U.S. added more than 1 million people to its Covid-19 case count on Monday as the true scope of a surge in infections over the holidays began to round into view.  —  The highly mutated variant, combined with delayed reporting …

4-year-old grandniece of George Floyd shot in Houston's Southside on New Year's Day  —  A 4-year-old relative of George Floyd was shot while inside an apartment in the city's Southside on New Year's Day, according to a family friend.  —  ABC13 first reported the connection Tuesday.