Exclusive: Hawley calls on Biden to drop support for Ukraine membership in NATO  —  Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is calling on the Biden administration to drop longstanding U.S. support for Ukraine's eventual membership in NATO, arguing that a binding commitment to defend the country would undermine efforts to counter China.

U.S. Has Far Higher Covid Death Rate Than Other Wealthy Countries  —  Two years into the pandemic, the coronavirus is killing Americans at far higher rates than people in other wealthy nations, a sobering distinction to bear as the country charts a course through the next stages of the pandemic.

Trump's Words, and Deeds, Reveal Depths of His Drive to Retain Power  —  Donald Trump said he wanted Mike Pence to overturn the election, dangled pardons for Jan. 6 rioters and called for protests against prosecutors.  Now, it turns out, he had discussed having national security agencies seize voting machines.

Whoopi Goldberg's Suspension from The View Is Illiberal and Irrational  —  Whoopi Goldberg is being suspended from ABC's The View: … This isn't just illiberal, it's irrational.  What Goldberg said was factually incorrect, yes.  But so what?  Figures on political TV shows say stupid …

Biden to launch ‘long-form’ Moonshot  —  Act on the news with POLITICO Pro.  —  QUICK FIX  — The president is taking a long-term view of cancer prevention with a new Moonshot initiative.  — Medical boards are struggling to control misinformation within their ranks as some states fight efforts to sanction those doctors.

Biden blocked the first Black woman from the Supreme Court  —  President Biden wants credit for nominating the first Black woman to the Supreme Court.  But here is the shameful irony: As a senator, Biden warned President George W. Bush that if he nominated the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court …

Scoop: Leaked document reveals Biden's Afghan failures  —  Leaked notes from a White House Situation Room meeting the day before Kabul fell shed new light on just how unprepared the Biden administration was to evacuate Afghan nationals who'd helped the United States in its 20-year war against the Taliban.

Stacey Abrams raised $9.2M since entering gov race in December  —  Stacey Abrams raised more than $9.2 million since entering the race for governor in December, setting a blistering fundraising pace that eclipsed Republican Gov. Brian Kemp.  —  The Democrat will report about $7.2 million …

Companies unexpectedly cut 301,000 jobs in January as omicron slams labor market, ADP says  — Private payrolls fell by 301,000 for January versus the estimate for a 200,000 gain, according to payrolls processing firm ADP.  — This was the first reported net job less since December 2020 …

Republicans to field more than 100 far-right candidates this year  —  Anti-Defamation League list includes at least a dozen with links to white supremacists, anti-government extremists and Proud Boys  —  More than 100 far-right candidates are running for political office across the country …

Fact check: GOP Rep. Chip Roy twice promotes false online rumor about Canadian PM fleeing to the US  —  Republican candidate tells voters to ‘show up armed’ to polls  —  Washington (CNN)Rep. Chip Roy, a Texas Republican, has twice in the past three days promoted a fictional online rumor …

Biden's Justice Dept. promised to support a strong journalist shield law.  So why hasn't it?  —  More than six months ago, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced sweeping changes to its “media guidelines” — the agency's internal rules for when and how it can spy on reporters.

FBI Director Wray says scale of Chinese spying in the U.S. ‘blew me away’  —  Full interview: FBI Director Wray discusses efforts to halt China's economic and political spying  —  Chinese spying in the U.S. has become so widespread that the FBI is launching an average of two counterintelligence …

Woman Says She Was ‘Virtually Gang-Raped’ in Facebook's Metaverse  —  “Within 60 seconds of joining—I was verbally and sexually harassed.”  —  CS  —  A woman says that she was “virtually gang-raped” in Facebook's metaverse, just seconds after she stepped into the new virtual world.

Democrats Move to Purge Half of New York's House Republicans  —  The biggest redistricting weapon of 2022 has always been the Empire State, and Democrats are poised to finally use it.  On Sunday, New York Democrats unveiled a gerrymander that could expand their lead in the delegation from 19D-8R to 22D-4R …

Surprise!  Tucker Carlson Draws the Most Democratic Viewers in Key Demo, Even Topping Rachel Maddow  —  There is an entire cottage industry within media dedicated to disseminating Tucker Carlson's nightly Fox News musings to presumably liberal audiences who may not be tuning in to hear …

Center For American Progress Staffers Threaten To Strike Amid Contract Fight  —  Employees of the liberal think tank voted to put all options on the table as they push for higher salaries.  —  Workers at the Center for American Progress are considering going on strike amid a fight over salaries at the liberal think tank.

Why I'm seeking accountability against Trump allies in court  —  Public servants who do their duty, tell the truth and uphold their oaths of office shouldn't be subjected to intimidation and retaliation.  —  In July 2019, my life took a dramatic and unexpected turn when I listened …

Michelle Childs's Punitive Criminal Justice Rulings Were Repeatedly Overturned  —  The candidate for the Supreme Court vacancy has a history of tough-on-crime sentences and opinions that higher courts subsequently tossed out.  —  Judge J. Michelle Childs, who was nominated by President Barack Obama …

Americans Offer Gloomy State of the Nation Report  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans' satisfaction with a variety of aspects of U.S. society and the state of policy in key issue areas remains subdued in 2022 after falling in 2021.  In fact, in only one area — acceptance of gays and lesbians …

POLITICO Playbook: Republicans can't agree on a SCOTUS strategy  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  Republicans have been all over the map lately in their Supreme Court messaging.  Sen. ROGER WICKER (R-Miss.) called President JOE BIDEN's vow to only consider Black women for the vacancy “affirmative action.”

Scoop: McCarthy says Pelosi may cap State of Union crowd  —  Each party may be allowed to invite just 25 House members to attend President Biden's State of the Union Address in person, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told colleagues on Tuesday.  —  Why it matters: The possible restrictions …

U.S. State Department Rejects Amnesty's Apartheid Claim Against Israel  —  'The Jewish people must not be denied their right to self-determination, and we must ensure there isn't a double standard being applied,' says U.S. State Department spokesman following Amnesty International report

Luján stroke jolts 50-50 Senate  —  News of Sen. Ben Ray Luján's (D-N.M.) stroke sent shockwaves through the Senate on Tuesday, underscoring the fragility of Democrats' 50-50 majority.  —  Democrats are in the majority because they have 50 seats and the ability for Vice President Harris to break a tie.

Newsweak  —  Newsweek is not really Newsweek, and it hasn't been for a long time.  —  When I hear the word “Newsweek,” my mind conjures an image of the magazine rack inside a Borders bookstore circa 2003.  As smaller magazines jumped in and out of stock, opened and closed in the blink of an eye …