Hostages freed from Texas synagogue, governor says  —  BREAKING: “All hostages are out alive and safe,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) tweeted about 9:30 p.m. local time, after a loud boom and what sounded like gunshots erupted from the area near the synagogue where police had been in a standoff with a hostage-taker for much of Saturday.

How the ‘Djokovic Affair’ Finally Came to an End  —  Novak Djokovic lost to a government with powerful laws, determined to make an example out of him.  —  SYDNEY, Australia — The day before the Australian Open was set to begin, Novak Djokovic, possibly the greatest tennis player of all time …

Biden at year one: Not enough focus on inflation leaves many frustrated  —  On one level, the story of President Biden's first year is a simple one: Americans feel worse about the pandemic and economy than they did earlier in his term, and his ratings have suffered for it.

Trump Soft-Launches His 2024 Campaign  —  FLORENCE, Ariz.—Tonight, deep in the Arizona desert, thousands of people chanted for Donald Trump.  They had braved the wind for hours—some waited the entire day—just to get a glimpse of the defeated former president.

Reconstruction-Era Law Could Keep Trump Off Presidential Ballot In 6 Southern States  —  The language letting them back into the Union required them to enforce the 14th Amendment's ban on insurrectionists in federal or state office.  —  By S.V. Date  —  Should former President Donald Trump run …

How the states have become “Laboratories of Autocracy” — and why it's worse than you think  —  Former Ohio Democratic Party head David Pepper has a dire warning: Rigged state legislatures are destroying America  —  There's a booming literature on the erosion of democracy in America …

Trump's ‘Crimes Flow Through’ Oath Keepers' Sedition Indictment: Former Prosecutor  —  Former U.S. Army prosecutor Glenn Kirschner said that former President Donald Trump's “crimes flow through” the seditious conspiracy indictment against members of the far-right Oath Keepers group due …

Teeing Up with QAnon  —  What would Groucho say?  Would you rather belong to a club that had the proprietor of a porn shop as a member?  Or Marjorie Taylor Greene?  —  In the spring of 2006, Charles T. Craton III, a businessman in northwestern Georgia, best known for his work on Chick-fil-A's …

‘The days of state-run TV are over’: Nadine Dorries clobbers the BBC with a £2billion funding cut as she freezes the licence fee for two years, with a row over ‘Left-wing bias’ threatening to spill out into all-out war with the Corporation  — Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries freezes annual £159 fee for the next two years

Omicron becomes a blessing in disguise for Britain's economic recovery  —  Less severe variant inspires optimism that the UK is now in the Covid ‘end game’  —  Boris Johnson may feel he has little choice when deciding whether to ditch Plan B.  —  Just as persuasive as the extremely positive …

University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel fired by board after investigation  —  The University of Michigan Board of Regents has unanimously fired school President Mark Schlissel for cause following an investigation into a relationship with a subordinate, the board announced Saturday evening.

Netanyahu negotiating plea deal in corruption trial  —  TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is negotiating a plea deal in his corruption case, a person involved in the talks said Sunday.  —  The deal, which could be signed as early as this week …

India's Hindu extremists are calling for genocide against Muslims.  Why is little being done to stop them?  —  Delhi, India (CNN)At a conference in India last month, a Hindu extremist dressed head-to-toe in the religion's holy color, saffron, called on her supporters to kill Muslims and “protect” the country.

Deranged man pushes Asian woman to death at Times Square subway station  —  A deranged homeless man allegedly shoved an Asian woman to her death in front of an oncoming subway train Saturday morning in Times Square, police said.  —  The horrifying episode unfolded at 9:40 a.m. just nine minutes …

Four Facts About the Filibuster  —  This post is meant as a primer on a political discussion that is about to reclaim center-stage.  —  When a TV series has been running long enough, we get the introductory recaps that bring viewers up to date.  “Previously, on Ozark ... ” This post could be called, “Previously, on Filibuster...”

More Mojo, Joe!  —  WASHINGTON — Poor Joe.  —  Oh, the tribulations of Job Biden!  Kyrsten Sinema humiliated him.  Mitch McConnell disrespected him.  The Supreme Court blocked him.  Vladimir Putin scorned him.  Inflation defied him.  Covid stalked him.  Even Stacey Abrams stiffed him.